Norman’s Law

Nearest town:
Newburgh (8km WSW)
OS reference:
NO305202
OS sheets:
53, 59
Latitude:
56° 22' 8.2 N
Longitude:
3° 7' 30.85 W
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Norman’s Law

drewbhoy
drewbhoy Jul 14, 2015

From Creich Manse keep heading west and pull in about a 1/2 mile west of Pittachope Farm. The walk is signposted so follow the gentle climb until a tee junction of tracks. Take the eastwards track which eventually swings south and leads to the middle of two hills, Black Craig (which looks like it should have a fort) to the east and Norman’s Law (which has a fort) to the west.

We followed a track heading west gradually climbing up the northern flank of Norman’s Law. This path vanishes into nothing and the climb becomes quite steep. Still the aim was to approach from below the trig on the north west and this was achieved. By going this way the forts northern defences can be seen. Basically follow the wall up and trig, hill indicator and climbers cairn come immediately into view.

The view from the top is wonderful, to the east is now part of Drewland, the west has the soon to be conquered Glenduckie and the south has The Lomonds.

Walls on the southern flanks are in good condition as is the front door to the east. The various hut circles have slight remains in the forts interior. Stunning place and obviously a place of importance.

Heading back down we followed the track thru the front door heading east towards Black Craig. Between the hills there is a crossroads, tracks to the two hills, the main track heading south which swings around Black Craig eventually heading back north, or as we (I?) decided the direct steep path heading north. Good fun it was as we stumbled back to the main track and the car.

Great walk, great climb (not to difficult), great place.

Visited 29/6/2015.

Folklore

Norman’s Law
Hillfort
Rhiannon
Rhiannon Jan 17, 2007

This comes from the Scottish Big Cat Trust at
bigcats.org/abc/sightings/1998/beastofnefife1.html
and was originally in the Dundee Evening Telegraph for September 8th 1998.

A North Fife man, who was out for a walk in woods near Luthrie on Monday night, reckons he may have caught a glimpse of the same black puma-like animal which was apparently spotted a few miles south in Letham at the weekend. The man, who asked not to be named, said he was strolling down a path near the west side of Norman’s Law at around 6.45 pm when he saw a ‘mysterious creature’ roaming through undergrowth around 20 yards in front of him.

He said, “At first I wasn’t that worried because you always hear noises from rabbits, foxes, deer and the like, but when I stopped for a minute to watch this mysterious animal more closely I quickly realised it was not the sort of thing you normally see in the area. It was long, black and sleek like a big cat – certainly with a feline posture – and looked to be something like a panther or a puma. I don’t think it saw me but I have to say I didn’t hang around for long after that to give it a chance. It is quite remote up there and with me being on my own, I didn’t want to find out if it had had its tea or not.”

The man, who regularly walks in the area, said he had doubts about what he had seen until he read Press reports about another sighting. At around 8.15 on Sunday morning a man out walking his dog apparently saw a similar creature prowling across playing fields in Letham.

Mary Stark who runs the Bow of Fife post office said the sighting of the big cat in Letham had been the “talk of the village” for the past few days. She said several people who attended a christening at Letham village hall on Sunday had also claimed to have seen the creature that morning.

Around 30 sightings have been reported at a number of locations in north east Fife over the past few years. Anyone who thinks they might have seen such an animal in the area recently is asked to contact divisional intelligence officer George Redpath at Cupar police station. He has been collating a file on the subject for many years and can be contacted on 01334 418700.

Traditionally Black Dogs are well known for haunting barrows – and why should modern Black Cats miss out on frequenting prehistoric spots?

Miscellaneous

Norman’s Law
Hillfort
Rhiannon
Rhiannon Jan 17, 2007

Norman’s Law (the hill of the northern men) is in height 850 feet above the sea level. It commands a most delightful prospect, especially to the north, where the Carse of Gowrie and the Frith of Tay appear in full view in all their richness and variety. There are three concentric circles of rough stone near the top, supposed to have been a fortification of the Danes to cover their inroads into the country, or perhaps erected by the natives to repel these invaders.

From The New Statistical Account of Scotland By Society for the Benefit of the Sons and Daughters of the Clergy (1845) v11, p49.

It seems from the RCAHMS record that the two outermost rings are the oldest, and delineate the prehistoric hillfort. The innermost possibly postdates the Roman invasion and was built to protect the huts of the settlement within.

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