Gogar Stone (AKA Easter Norton)
Wednesday 14/11/01
Well- here I am standing next to this stone in the middle of a cultivated field which feels a bit odd! I stopped off at Easter Norton farm and spoke to the very cheery and helpful folks there. The woman I spoke to said "aye- the stones just across the field- it's meant to be in some sort of line with some other places around here"- indeedy- it's been suggested this is a possible outlier of the Newbridge complex, however, I'm unsure whether this would have been visible from there as this stone lies not on the crest of this field, but down the hill a bit. Anyway- the farmer said it would be fine to walk across the field, but turns out it doesn't belong to him! Fair enough- I'm here and that's the main thing. Just to the south of this stone lies the M8, and the main Edinburgh/Glasgow railway, but it's the Pentland Hills which dominate over all. The stone is quite small, only about 4 foot high. It's almost square in plan with the sides aligned approximately NE/SW. The south face has a concave curved profile and the top is sloped- a beautiful and purposely shaped stone. My hands are now freezing up- methinks time for gloves, photos and contemplation trying to ignore the nearby farm machinery, motorway, railway and airport!
Directions;
Head west out of Edinburgh along the A8 Glasgow Road. To get a good view of the stone (instead of walking across cultivated fields!) take the second left after the Gyle roundabout towards Ratho (Freelands Road). Pass Gogar Stone house and take the first right. The stone stands in the field to the right about halfway between the junction and the railway bridge.
An entry from Ancient Stones, an online database that covers most of the standing stones, stone circles and other stones found in South East Scotland. Each entry includes details, directions, photograph, folklore, parking and field notes on each location.
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