Balgorkar

Also known as:
Castle Fraser, Castle Frazer, West Mains
Nearest town:
Kintore (8km ENE)
OS reference:
NJ715125
OS sheet:
38
Latitude:
57° 12' 8.74 N
Longitude:
2° 28' 18.35 W

Images

Image of Balgorkar (Stone Circle) by Chris

Not an easy circle to photograph at sunset, I gave up and went to the outliers instead ;-)

Image credit: Chris Lodge
Chris
Chris Oct 8, 2012
Image of Balgorkar (Stone Circle) by fitzcoraldo

The use of different coloured stones and stones that contain mineral veins is quite common amongst the RSCs.

fitzcoraldo
fitzcoraldo Dec 1, 2006
Image of Balgorkar (Stone Circle) by greywether

Looking SW showing the recumbent and flankers and three of the four other upright stones (the fourth is quite small).

greywether
greywether Mar 22, 2005
Image of Balgorkar (Stone Circle) by Moth

The circle in ‘right mucky’ weather

Image credit: Tim Clark
Moth
Moth Aug 29, 2003
Image of Balgorkar (Stone Circle) by Moth

The standing stones with the circle in the background

Image credit: Tim Clark
Moth
Moth Aug 29, 2003

Articles

Balgorkar

Chris
Chris Oct 8, 2012

Has no-one been for 6 years?

Recently harvested (the farmer was still baling) access was easy to the field, but less so to the circle which was head high in weeds in places.

The noise of the tractor and the height of the weeds made it hard to get a handle on this circle, but the setting is stunning and the view to Mither Tap (minus the trees) would have been amazing.

One to return to on a cold, frosty sunrise I think.....

Balgorkar

fitzcoraldo
fitzcoraldo Dec 6, 2006

I parked up at the cottages and walked through the wood that runs along the edge of the field.
Fortunately the crop in the field had just sprouted so I was able to carefully pick my way across to the circle.
This is a lovely ring, the choice of stone, the views through the leafless trees to Mither Tap and the two mighty outliers all combine to make this a special place.
If you’re up in Aberdeenshire you should definitely put Balgorkar on your list

Balgorkar

greywether
greywether Mar 22, 2005

Another “top ten” recumbent stone circle.

Level recumbent, framed horizon, dressed outer faces .... it’s all here. With a couple of outliers thrown in for interest.

Here the recumbent is about 2m long – amongst the smallest. Four other circle stones remain.

Access. Park at Backhill and go through the gate at the east end of the plantation. If the field is in crop, it is easy to walk through the plantation to get a close view.

Visited 16 March 2005

Balgorkar

Merrick
Merrick Aug 7, 2000

(notes from Balgorkar, 30 June 00)

Balgorkar is easily visible from the road 300 metres away, but at the time of our visit the Modern Antiquarian’s friendly cows had been replaced by ripening barley. As we’d have to walk through crops (ie trample someone’s livelihood) to see the stones we made a point of finding somebody in the adjacent houses to ask permission. The woman we spoke to told us that she goes up to the trees by the field sometimes, “beautiful clear nights and big moons over the moonstones in the corner of the field”. The lunar connection of the stones resonating so deeply with this casual observer that she calls the two outliers ‘moonstones’!

The outliers are to the east, and according to the map some 600 metres beyond them (the other side of the Castle Fraser estate) is a solitary standing stone.

We walked up the copse to the north of Balgorkar and crossed through the barley. There are several fallen stones and some missing entirely, but the raised ground inside the circle gives a sudden sense of hovering over the land that makes it a very commanding place. The circle’s a metre deep in grasses and weeds, but several cairn stones are still obvious.

On our way back to the road, we found a stone in the copse. It’s leaning against a tree, which means it was moved recently (the tree must’ve been there first). It’s not huge, but it is big enough to catch your eye and make you wonder if it was once in the circle.

Sites within 20km of Balgorkar

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