thesweetcheat

The western rampart. If Gustav Klimt did hillfort ambience...

Looking along the northern rampart.

Summer interior.

The eastern entrance with inturned banks, rather more overgrown that on my previous late winter visit 6 and a half years ago.

The eastern rampart.

The eastern ditch, with the eastern rampart on the right.

The fort from the north, next to Tillington Common stone.

The stone’s current setting, looking eastish. At least four Herefordshire hillforts (Backbury, Dinedor, Aconbury and Credenhill Camp) can be seen from this spot.

Scale for one of the cupmarks.

The top of the stone with the four cupmarks indicated.

A step was cut into the stone at one point so that it could be used as a mounting block. We’ll never know whether there was another cupmark in that corner.

The extremely low and overgrown northeastern barrow. We didn’t find the southwestern barrow in the wood.

Between the reinforced pillars framing the gated entrance to a gallery.

The tunnels are pretty low.

One of the biggest of the shafts.

Grimshoe mound, apparently built from mining spoil.

The other accessible shaft that we didn’t get to go down. Not sure if this is the one that you can arrange to go down.

One of the accessible shafts, not open to the public.

Grime’s Graves baking in a heatwave.

As well as King Arthur’s Cave itself, there are numerous other small caves and shelters beside the path running north from the Cave.

Further in...

Two paths there are,
One leads to treasure,
The other to death,
Choose wisely.

Inside out.

King Arthur’s Cave.

The beautiful Wye Valley from Seven Sisters Rocks.

Another passage leading back from the cave entrance. There is a very narrow crawl space under the blocking rocks. I didn’t attempt it.

Inside [Cavall’s?] Cave.

What I think is Cavall’s Cave (named after King Arthur’s dog).

At the southeastern extremity of the fort there are no ramparts, just sheer cliffs.

The eastern ramparts – the inner bank on the right has been damaged by the addition of a track that’s cut into the earthwork.

I agree with MelMel that the forestry track on the east side of the fort has been cut into the inner rampart.

The open interior of the fort.

Rampart on the southwest. The ground drops away steeply below these defences, to the River Wye over 150m below.

Heavily overgrown ramparts along the north side of the fort.

At the northern end of the fort.

Two lines of ramparts on the northwestern side of the fort.

Western ramparts.

Approaching the fort from the west.

At this time of year the mound is abundant with wild flowers.

The superb micro-drystone walling around the facade.

High Summer, Belas Knap.

Looking northwest. Belas Knap chambered long barrow is behind the wood on the opposite hillside. Further right is Nottingham Hill, one of the biggest hillforts in the Cotswolds, with Bredon Hill distant far right.

Looking west towards Cleeve Hill.

Looking off the edge of the escarpment towards Winchcombe. The big hill over on the far left is Bredon Hill, which has two forts.

Exposed section of the bank showing the limestone used in the construction.

The northwestern corner of the earthwork and one of the many big insects that seemed to congregate over this site.