drewbhoy

The walk between Spynie and Phoineas could described as difficult also included : fences, steep climbs, a maze of paths, mud etc etc. Conditions between Phoineas and Cabrich (or Dun Mor) are quite a bit easier as we swung north west and then east eventually finding a path which we thought would make things easier. It did until we ran out of path on the last section, a steep climb containing a tree that stole my rucksack. Once at the top easy enough, keep going east and the fort is reached.

The fort was built in two sections described by Canmore as a ‘citadel’ on the south west crags and a ‘bailey’ on the the flatter eastern side. There are remnants of a rampart swinging from the east to the south. Paths in the north east mark the entrance to the site.

A great way to end a superb day hiking around the Beauly area. We ended by looking over to were we’d started at Redcastle’s crannog, a stunning view of the Beauly Firth, also stunning was the scenery around Ben Wyvis.

Take me to the ice cream shop :-)

Visited 13/4/2019.

From Castle Spynie we headed north west going downhill, climbing through a deer fence first, until we met a forestry track, follow this west until it curves round north and eventually becomes more of a grass track. Moss and grass covered dry steen dykes border the edges upon which was parked the remnants of a car. How it had managed to get there is a mystery as no traffic had been on this track since the car itself. Luckily no skeletons. Keep going until the grass covered track meets a proper forestry and head east. When a small valley is to the north climb the hill to the east. This part is treeless and more of a mud bath until the trees re-emerge at the top. Once back into the trees keep going east.

The north and east sides are well protected by sheer rocks however to the west, our route, the outer wall of the fort can be seen as six large blocks still there. The impressive standing stone might be a more recent addition. Remnants of wall can also be found to the south east where the slope is slightly more gentler. Nothing else remains of the fort, its centre featureless.

Still a good place to visit, if visiting Spynie you really should visit here as well.

Visited 13/4/2019.

Corffhouse is famous for lot of reasons, one of them being the stupidity of the parking. Luckily we had no problem, but there isn’t anywhere for more than one or two cars to park. There are local walks, the famous bridge crossing the River Beauly and the steps leading up to the war memorial which also leads to the fort. It is just to the south of Beauly and slightly to west of the bridge on the A862.

After climbing the stairs to the war memorial keep going until a clearing in the woods. This is the forts interior. Much of the defences have been removed, some remain in the north with low ramparts and wide ditches. These show that the fort was over 70m in width. To the south all the defences have been removed, the rest having been destroyed by quarrying. However like every fort everyone has been to the one thing that can’t be removed is the view. Stunning views east towards the river and the Beauly Firth.

Pity about the parking situation, a pleasant site on a pleasant day.

Visited 13/4/2019.

Head west from Blairgowrie towards Dunkeld on the A923 looking for Loch Marlee. Just at the start of the loch there is a layby with the small wood containing the site just beyond.

Canmore have had problems with this place in the past but I got lucky, the vegetation seems to died down a bit, jumped a wee dyke and fence to land on the east site of the cairn, which resembles many of the barrows reasonably nearby. It is huge, 30m wide by at least 2m high. Field clearance appears to have been dumped on top. In the middle of site there is a weird square of stones, pure luck or maybe the remnants of a cist. Despite a good look I couldn’t find anything that resembled a capstone.

The site is also surrounded by an old dry steen dyke which helps retain its circular shape. A signpost says that the farmers believe in conservation, hopefully this means prehistoric sites as well. The evidence is good as previous visits to nearby sites have clearly showed that many of the farmers in the area do care.

Visited 9/7/2019.

For this visit, en route to Dunkeld, I parked just to west of the River Isla, at Ruthven Farm. From here I walked back east over the bridge. Despite the slow down signs and give ways I don’t think local drivers pay much attention to slowing down.

Just to the east, beyond the cottages, take the track into the field and follow it as heads back west towards to the River Isla. At this point the track heads north leading straight to the site.

A good drenching and a beautiful river walk made for an atmospheric site.

Visited 9/7/2019.

Dun Mor is set high above Beauly with spectacular views south, east and west. Almost everywhere you look the surrounding hills have forts or duns. This dun has to be one of the best.

From Beauly take Croyard Road, go through the cross roads, there is a sharp turn south west then north west, at the end of the road turn north east, at the first sharp corner there is a chalet park. I asked permission from the owner of the chalets to park who was delighted that the fort had visitors. She also had good knowledge of chamber cairns to the east. Walk a short distance to the west, jump the fence and you land on the outer rampart.

The double rampart is in very condition despite some quarrying on the southern edge. These ramparts surround the fort, on the eastern side stone work can be seen underneath the trees. The cup marked rock remained invisible despite my best efforts. There seems to be a debate about the site being a cairn, I saw nothing to support that theory. At 60m by 54m it would with ramparts up to 3m in height it seems unlikely.

I loved this site, nice sunny weather and tremendous views.

Visited 13/4/2019.

The Redcastle crannog is easily enough spotted on a nice clear day when the tide is reasonably out, so it proved when we had superb weather for our visit.

Leave the A9 at Charleston and take minor road west following the Beauly Firth, as you reach the crannog there is a massive passing place just before corners that lead to village and castle.

There was no causeway to the site, as Ian Suddaby (CDA Archaeology) explained to us. Hopefully I’ll get his field report and post it here. He had found that the Iron Age folks had probably used the crannog as a place for skinning various beasts to use their hides. If we had taken waders we could have walked or stumbled across.

Still a beautiful site to start the day, one which I’d see from higher places with superb company.

Visited 13/4/2019.

After a long and fairly annoying look around the ‘improved field’ at Brae Farm we headed south west back along the minor road until the Culbo junction. Follow the road until the second major corner and take the farm track south.

Canmore has the cairn situated amongst trees, however these trees are long gone and a new fir tree plantation was being planted when I arrived which meant that I could clearly see the cairn, slightly uphill, to the south.

An easy walk of about 400 meters leads to the cairn. It has been clipped by a track to the east and has had field clearance bunged on northern side. On the eastern side a couple of kerbs remain in place. Some type of plant grows on the southern side as well, whatever it is it makes the cairn look in need of a hair cut. On top of the cairn the earthfast stones are still there and at various points cairn material is clearly visible. To the east there is a chamber cairn, to the west and north glorious views of Wyvis and the Cromarty Firth.

A fine cairn to end a fine days hiking in the Black Isle, despite the untidiness of Brae Farm. Better get there in the near future or once again the cairn will be hidden by trees.

Visited 10/4/2019.

This much damaged cairn is in a corner of a disaster area to the north of the barns at Brae Farm. The kerb in the north arc is fairly well still preserved whilst others lay strewn everywhere around. Yet it still survives at just over 7m wide and at its tallest is 1m, the collapse in the cairn appears to have been filled in. There is a lot of rubble lying about thanks to the ‘improvements’.

Brae Farm Chamber Cairn NH 6615 6281

As for the chamber cairn supposedly nearby, stones were lying everywhere, gorse/whins piled up. Will go back to have a look, but hugely annoying.

Visited 10/4/2019.

After returning to the forestry car park near Breachloch, we about turned and headed back north, then take the first minor road heading north east, keep going along till the road ends (very straight, very twisty, very straight) meeting another minor road. Take this road which heads south east then north east. If you look to the south the cairn can be spotted before the road to Brae Farm. At the farm I asked permission to park which was kindly given.

At the farm head west into the field avoiding the barns, basically horse shoe round these buildings and after a couple of fence jumps the cairn is in front with stunning views north (the town in front is Alness), west and east.

The cairn, at one time completely separate, appears to have been joined by field clearance on its eastern side. I noticed that cattle feeders had also been used on top of the site. Still kerbs remain in place to the south and the width, 9m, can still be detected. It is almost 1m in height.

This site has seen much better days, hopefully it can be rescued.

Visited 10/4/2019.

On leaving the dun at Findon Cottage we headed back west on the B9169 towards Culbokie taking the first minor road south east. Keep going until the road becomes very straight, half way down this there is car parking for forestry walks on the west side.

We walked back up the road until a track heading east, near a mast, which gradually turns into a walkers track.

The forestry people discovered the cairn and have completely made sure that it will be almost impossible to find. It has been trashed and trees planted on top. Only the height (1m) of the site gives an indication of its whereabouts, deep trenches either side make it dangerous for walking. Its width is approx 10m.

Sadly not much to see, a nice walk tho except for the approach to the site.

Visited 10/4/2019.

After a lengthy stay at Carn Mor we headed back into Culbokie to head further east along the B9169 until the first minor road heading north, keep on the road as it swings to the east. Plenty room to park at Milton Cottage.

Head west across the road, down a fairly steep gully, jump the Findon Burn, climb up the other side and the remains of the dun will be straight in front.

The dun has been badly quarried but enough remains to give a fairly good idea of what might have been. In parts the surrounding wall/rampart still survives at 1m high and is 3.5m wide.

Nice site despite being almost an extension of a garden and despite my best efforts I didn’t fall into the burn.

Visited 10/4/2019.

After the stunning site at Culbokie Henge we headed east to Culbokie on the B9169 taking the first minor road that heads south(ish). Keep going until a forestry car park, this has two informative boards about the dun.

Through the woods to the north the village of Culbokie can be seen, showing how the village has grown since the Canmore photo. It seems to me that the eastern side of the Black Isle has a lot of new builds.

The dun had three ramparts which, at the moment, can be best seen on the north due to some heather burning. Fallen stonework indicates how big these defences must have been, the innermost rampart has spread to over 5m wide surrounding an area of 18m. The complete width seems very close to 60m with a clear entrance on the south west.

One of the best duns I’ve seen.

Visited 10/4/2019.

We parked at Teanagairn Cottage (on the B9169, west of Culbokie village), which overlooks the Cromarty Firth, its bridge and Dingwall (to the west). The oil rigs in for servicing at Invergordon can also be clearly seen.

To be honest this site came to me as a bit of a shock as it is quite well preserved and is over 30m wide. As a meeting place it is perfectly placed. Like Stoer, I had a good look at some of the stones near the wooded track, makes you wonder. Also some largish and lengthy stones are piled beside the gate which leads to the track back to the B9169.

Superb site.

Visited 10/4/2019.

Not much remains of the Bronze Age cremation cemetery, what does remain is the badly damaged mound and a well lowered enclosure which is well over 20m wide.

The north east edge of the site is up against a fence. Still at least something survives unlike the nearby chamber cairn, still there 1963 gone by 1970.

From A9 take the A832 east at the Tore roundabout, then take the first minor road south. Go about a mile and pull in at the first forestry track. Follow this track, east, until near its end then look for a small track heading south. This heads straight to the site which can be spotted as there is a fallen tree on the north west.

There is an atmosphere here, there always is amongst trees I think, probably enhanced by the destruction of the nearby chamber cairn.

Visited 10/4/2019.

From Square’s Knap head downhill then follow the fence to the top of the hill which leads straight to the Carmont Cairn, north west. I’ve known were Carmont has been all the time but never visited.

It is similar to the cairns at the Tower of Johnson and the Cairn of Shiels in that it is made up of well rounded pebbles.

Being over 16m wide and almost 1m tall it has impressive all round views. The one major surprise is the proximity of the A90.

A great cairn, a great place but sadly its near neighbour has all but gone.

Visited 28/3/2019.

I’ve always wanted to go to the Square’s Knap and Carmont cairns. The delivery of a trumpet to a nearby house provided the perfect opportunity.

Canmore’s description as a turf and whin covered site are sadly, like a lot places recently I’ve seen, well out of date. Square’s Knap has been well and truly removed.

All that remains is a circular pattern of pebbles, stones that are similar to Carmont, Cairn of Shiels etc etc and a change of soil colour. The next time this field is ploughed all evidence of the cairn will be removed.

I parked at Hillhead of Auquhirie and kept heading west using various tracks and fields until I reached the wind farm. At the main junction amongst the turbines keep heading west into a field and look into the small valley below. Piles of stones, whins and turf, the probable remains of Square’s Knap.

To find the actual site follow the fence line until the wood appears, jump the fence and head up the small hill to the south. What remains of the cairn now lay scattered in the recently ploughed field.

Visited 28/3/2019.

We parked at Tillypronie House which is going under extensive rennovation. The track heading west is in a fairly decent condition which we used to get onto the tarred road leading to the house. Keep heading west until a hardly used track heading south. This leads into a field, the remains of the cairn are on a ridge with glorious views of Morven.

Not much remains in a cairn that is almost 8m wide and no more than 0.2 high. Possible kerbs remain on the south and west. Sadly the site has taken tremendous punishment, nearby hut circles are barely visible.

Despite all of this I liked this site, I like this area and I like Morven.

Visited 1/3/2019.

Leave Craigiehowe Wood and follow the minor road, west, until the first minor road heading north west. Take this road until its meeting place with another road. Go north until the first minor road, signposted Drumderfit, heading east. At the farm I asked permission to park which was kindly given.

On the north eastern side of the farm there is a track which skirts the northern side of Drumderfit Hill. Keep going until the track ends and meets a track heading south east. At this point I headed uphill to find the dun sitting on top of a rocky crag. A very pleasant walk through the Black Isle countryside.

We approached from the west but the entrance is marked by blocks on the eastern side. Several large blocks make up part of the defences as well as the fallen turf covered stones of a wall. Once again the views over to Munlochy Bay, at the bottom of the hill, are beautiful. The forts interior is 17m by 11m. The pig sty is more recent.

This is a very nice site and a very nice walk, a bit of chill after the anger of Craigiehowe.

Visited 4/1/2019.

This is the furthest east and the last remaining, as far as I could see (except Arrie), cairn of the Craigiehowe area. It is a sad state of affairs as it has almost been completely obliterated.

A very low mound about 10m in width remains and can be seen quite clearly. What looks like kerbs or smallish standing stones have been flattened, field clearance flung on top and sadly it looks like it will be completely removed reasonably soon.

Follow Craigiehowe 2 head north east then follow the track north, eventually this will head east, and keep going until an almost clear field. The remnants are in the middle.

Cracking views of Munlochy and its bay. Beautiful area this, with a trail of prehistoric destruction as follows.

NH 6787 5154 couldn’t be found.

NH 6791 5157 gone.

NH 679 516 gone.

NH 6794 5161 gone.

Hopefully someone will come along and prove me wrong especially for the ‘not found’.

Visited and not visited 4/1/2019.

The second survivor at Craigiehowe sits right next to were I parked so is in fact a very short walk, it felt longer as I’d probably walked over a mile to get to the cairn near the house.

Situated next to forestry track I hope this cairn survives as a few sites nearby have been completely trashed.

It sits at almost 8m wide and 1.5m tall being covered in turf, furze and ferns. On the north east side some of the cairn can be seen.

Next it was on to the carnage :-(

Visited 4/1/2019.

This cairn appears to have done very well to survive as most of its near neighbours have received some very harsh treatment. Still this site was protected during the building of a very nearby house.

It sits about 12m wide and is about 2m tall with a small hint of houking. Some cairn material pokes through but otherwise the cairn appears undamaged which considering what has happened nearby is something of a minor miracle.

From Viewbank, near the path to Creag A Chaisteil, I headed back west then took the minor road heading north east until its end. For parking I kept going up the forestry track until I found plenty room to park. From there I headed back to minor road, headed slightly south then headed back north east on the tarred track. The cairn is in front of the house to the north.

Excellent views south and west.

Visited 4/1/2019.

Leaving Bogallan, head south and then take the first minor road heading east until its end, then turn right and then left, pulling in just after the Viewbank farm.

There is a fairly decent track which heads north east straight to the Creag A Chaisteil Dun. This is a very beautiful walk which has fine views of Loch Lundie to the south. After a few ups and downs, including walking past a hobbit house (I kid you not, after Bogallan’s weirdness a hobbit house almost seems normal), there is a small climb through some jabby stuff as the path leads to the dun.

A terrific spot for a dun as on three sides it has steep slopes and cliffs as natural defences. Most of the man made defences are concentrated on the west and they themselves are now protected by furze etc. Stone work can be seen if get on your hands and knees. However these walls do not indicate an entrance, I managed to climb down on the south east side but that would not seem an obvious choice. The dun has tremendous views south to the Moray Firth, west to the fort on Ord Hill, east to Munlochy and north towards Alness etc.

On the way back no hobbits were seen!

Visited 4/1/2019.

The cairn at Bogallan Wood is in a very weird place as there has been, in the not to distant past, a Wildlife Park here. Sadly, maybe not sadly depending your point of view, it has been closed for ages, empty enclosures, cage type things, closed restaurant/shop, abandoned little trains and small empty barns made me think that I was wandering through the set of the Twelve Monkeys, Dingwall was being invaded by elephants, giraffes and lions. Interesting thought.

From the A9 take the minor road heading north east , sign posted Drumsmittal, and keep going until the beginnings of Bogallan Wood. The entrance gate is now shut, so no entrance fee and we had the eerie place to ourselves.

This still is a huge cairn despite a lot pinching of stones for buildings and dykes. The round cairn is about 28m wide and well over 2m high.

Follow the road south west, go past the restaurant, a couple of barns and take the road heading west. The cairn is slightly to the south behind the barn.

Bizarre place!!!

Visited 4/1/2019.

We had looked for ages for the missing cairns and with time pushing on, we pushed on as well heading up through the wood back to the minor road going through Drumashie Moor.

Crossing the road we could see the reservoir and Loch Ashie to the south east. However we were looking for another cairn and this time we held straight east on the mainly dry heather.

A long time ago this cairn must have been massive. It still stands at almost 20m wide with a good number of kerbs and maybe the hints of cists still in place. Sadly, most of the cairn material has been robbed leaving scattered remnants which in parts reach 0.5m tall. However the visitor is compensated with superb views of Loch Ashie.

With that it was back to the car to head to Carn Glas (we’d been to several sites earlier much nearer Inverness), without any mishaps happening to me, I did get the chance to see A, my wife, do an action replay of falling backwards into a heathery puddle. Luckily it was a nice nice sunny October day!!!!

Visited 20/11/2018.

After the unsuccessful attempt to find the cairn at NH 6293 3600 we headed north east on the slightly more boggy part of Drumashie Moor, at least it saved walking on the busy road.

Walk until the small wood to the north, jump the fence and keep going. Underfoot conditions, by this time, are reasonably tricky thanks to the forest agriculture. At least the cairn at NH 6329 3681 is still there. It stands at almost 11m wide being 1m tall. Hard to spot, it is mostly covered in ferns although there are some gaps which reveal cairn cairn material. As usual the centre has had a bit of a houk.

Must have been impressive at some stage, difficult to tell, at least it is in a clearing.

It is mightily impressive compared to the two cairns at NH 6333 3683 and NH 6345 3677. Sadly they have gone :-(

Visited 20/11/2018.

At the Essich roundabout on the A8082 (Holm Road) head south and keep going out of Inverness. Keep heading south west until in sight of the beautiful Loch Ashie and pull in just after the reservoir on the east side. This was only safe place to park that we could see.

We jumped the fence on the eastern side to visit the first of what we hoped would be five cairns during a decent walk.

This cairn has wonderful views east, west and south, the north being blocked by the slope up to the road. Only a short walk through non boggy heather, heading towards the north east tip of the loch.

The cairn is about 8m wide and 0.3 tall, with hints of a kerb. We certainly found 3 earthfast stones and large flat stone in the centre, perhaps a capstone to cist.

Certainly a very beautiful site and worth visit just for that.

Visited 20/11/2018.

NH 6293 3600

When discovered in 1970, this was covered in whins. It is now completely covered in everything that could be described as jabby. Therefore, there is a fair chance that the kerb cairn is still there.

For years and years I’ve been meaning to visit this site and for years and years I’ve completely forgotten about it.

However no mistake this time, we parked at the outdoor centre at the Spittal of Glenshee, wished they would pull down the remains of the hotel and a shops, what an eyesore.

We walked across the A93 and over the burn onto the Cateran Trail. The four poster cannot be seen from the track, however as the track veers south head up the fairly steepish grass covered hill. After a short climb the circle will be staight in front perched on top of a natural mound. If old Diarmid was buried here, then what a spot.

The four stones are less than a metre in height and mark a very beautiful place.

I remember a long time ago the Spittal of Glenshee being a thriving ski, hill walking, fishing and mountaineering centre, the Devil’s Elbow was truly devilish. Modernisation and the upgrading of the road, the A93, may have improved driving, it most certainly destroyed the local businesses!

Visited 27/11/2018.

Once I again I went to visit the cairn, The Lair but this time as well as that site I went further north west to the site at Corra-lairig. This is fairly easy to get to, from the The Lair keep going until the track ends, the grack marked on the OS at this point appears to have long gone. Once there look north west and for the wee ferm toun, the cairn is to the east of the fence on a small mound.

Some impressive kerbs, seven of them, are on the southern side of the site which measures at 10m wide being just over 0.5 in height.

Even on a cloudy day the views up here are stunning!

Visited 27/11/2018.

Dun Mor, at the northern end of Glen Clova is in a stunning location overlooking the meeting place of the White Water and the River South Esk. To get to the fort is quite stunning as well.

From Marchburn head north west towards the hotel on the B955 and keep going on the minor road until it ends at Braedownie.

To get up to the fort is at first quite steep, a path is indicated opposite to the farm. This sign is a bit of a joke but on we plodded thinking the first hill, called Downie, was the fort. How wrong was I, we walked a fair distance and I hummed and heyed about continuing, eventually I decided to go on.

From here it is dangerously steep, large boulders mostly with small slippery stones between only the occasional flat to have a breather. In reality I should have gone back down but slowly I made my way up eventually reaching the forts north end. Looking back down I could see that it was one of the stupidest decisions I’d taken. However the view is stunning, the two aforementioned rivers, The Corrie, looking up Glen Doll, back down Glen Clova, and the Red Craig, Cairn Derg immediately east towering above.

One thing for sure nobody in their right mind would attack from the south and west. The builders of the fort took full advantage of the natural rock filling gaps with ramparts, very low trenches stretch across from north to east, the only possible entrance. All of the ramparts are grass covered with only the occasional stone sticking out. The forts dimensions are almost 100m by 50m. Interestingly there had been a fence around the west and south edges, all that is left of them are the metal stakes used to hold them.

Now the entrance of the fort is to the north, and we went through this to get to the trees beyond as I wasn’t going back the way I’d came. After climbing the fence I walked about 20 yards into a track which in its Tour de France way led back to a 1/2 mile further up the road. There is always a path!!!

Still, there is a sense of achievement in climbing to the top of a hill even if it is pure stupidity to get there. Great site, spectacular views, use the forestry track which is marked on the OS map.

Somehow, no injuries!

Visited 7/8/2018.

From Ferness take the A939 heading north and pull in after the second minor road, Loch Belivat is to the west. There are parking facilities and walks in the surroundings.

Belivat is beautiful small loch with the crannog situated near its north eastern bank.

Visited 18/7/2018.

Now despite being almost completely hidden by heather Marchburn is a lovely site and very rarely visited.

Once again we headed north west from the Wheen car park. Make sure you keep your eyes peeled on the north side of the B955. There is a track, not marked on the OS map between Adielinn Cottage and the road to Inchdowrie House.

This track heads north, follow it until what looks like a quarry, come away from the track still heading north. This isn’t to steep and takes you to the cairn.

It is quite an impressive wee cairn with a boulder kerb, one of them being a large quartz boulder. It still sits at over 6m wide and is just over 0.6m tall. Impressive views from a higher vantage point again make Glen Clova even more magical.

Visited 7/8/2018.

The third of the Wheen cairns and still no let up in the scenery, this time we get to see it from a much higher vantage point.

From the Wheen Cairn we made our way back to B955, headed south east and crossed the Burn of Wheen once again. Luckily there was a hole in the fence that let us head uphill and north east. We followed a track of sorts until it ran out, however with the dry conditions underfoot conditions were good. Keep following the fence and it leads straight to and over cairn.

To add to the cairns misery a sheep pen has been added to it’s southern flank. Underneath the heather, kerbs can still be spotted marking the edge of a cairn that is almost 9m wide and at least 1m high.

Glorious views again which include the River South Esk, 2 cairns, White Hill, Finbrack and to north the first glimpse of the toughest part of the day.

We followed our steps downhill and rejoined our track. This meets with a track heading south, this will lead, over variable ground, straight back to the car park.

Visited 7/8/2019.

From the ring cairn we retraced our steps except where jumped the burn and headed north west to a massive cairn situated in the middle of a field.

It’s obvious field waste and clearence have been dumped on to the middle of the site, it is also obvious that a fair amount of ‘houking’ has taken place and it is obvious that this is still a stunning site.

Massive boulder kerbs mostly remain intact on the west, however there kerbs dotted round the cairns edge. The kerbs here might well have been deposited along with field waste. Within the kerb sits a cairn almost 18m wide and 1.5m high.

It would be safe to assume that flooding happens a lot here thanks to nearby Esk but unlike a lot places the prehistoric folk built things to last. They also built places with a good view, they couldn’t get a much better site thanks to the glorious surrounds of Glen Clova.

Visited 7/8/2018.

We made our way back to car park, from the burnt mound, and walked north west on the B955 for a short distance. Just after crossing the Burn of Wheen there is a gate on the west side of the road. Jump this and head south, jump the burn and head up the wee hill. The ring cairn is in front.

It is in better condition that Grasslet but is still one of those ‘what if’ sites. What remains is pretty good and worth seeing.

The outer ring is almost 11m wide and its central court is 4.5m in width. Its a pity the site is mainly covered in turf, however there is a spectacular site just over the fence.

Visited 7/8/2018.

After refreshment at Grasslet we headed up to Wheen, plenty of car parking as the area is a nature reserve.

Apparently there are two burnt mounds side here, somehow I missed it (one of the photographs seems to have a mound cheekily sneaking into the background). Still this burnt mound is easily spotted thanks to a fence post being stuck in the middle of it.

From the car park, head thru the gate and head north east. Easy underfoot conditions with a fence post being a superb location finder. It sits at 11m wide and at its tallest is just over 0.5m tall.

A nice start to a very scenic walk.

Visited 7/8/2019.

The Grasslet ring cairn must have been an interesting place ‘back in the day’ but now it is reduced to an outer ring and a barely visible inner ring.

Kerbs surround the 8m wide site, the tallest being 0.6m tall. The inner ring has at least 3 kerbs and the curve in the turf suggests more underneath.

Once again the views are stunning with the White Hill keeping an eye on proceedings.

From the Whitehill Plantation Cairn head north and pull in beside the Rottal Burn bridge. The site is up the hill to the east, over the gate near the bridge and just after the first fence. On getting back down we walked a wee bit further up the road to get some refreshment.

Visited 7/8/2018.

After visiting Whitehillocks Stone Circle head north past the farm until the first deer fence gate on the north side. Follow the track until it veers north, we kept going straight east over a slightly boggy area for about 150m, the cairn is a further 50m sitting on much drier land.

This cairn has seen a fair amount of misuse but there are enough kerbs still in place to suggest that it had once been quite impressive. It stands at 7m wide and is 0.5m tall.

As with every site in this glen, the views are more than impressive.

Visited 7/8/2018.

The Whitehillocks stone circle is very easy to jump to as all you need to do is jump the fence on the west side of the B955.

Of the 5 stones in the circle, a boulder remains upright, another is almost completely down and now impersonates Jaws whilst the other three are properly down. There are possibly the remains of a cairn near the two northernmost stones, and from what I saw several kerbs appear to remain in place.

Another impressive site that looks north towards the spectacular meeting place of several glens.

Great wee site.

Visited 7/8/2018.

Glen Clova has always been a drewbhoy prime target and on returning from Islay it was time to pay the famous Glen a long overdue prehistorical visit.

Cortachy stone almost marks the spot were the B955 heads straight north, after the village of the same name, I’d came from the north east. The B955 starts at Kirrienuir.

From Cortachy Memorial head west for a short distance and take the first farm track south past the Old Manse. There is plenty of room to park on the sharp corner as the track veers west.

Walk straight south and the standing stone will appear just over the wee hill. There are no markings on the stone but there are views north and south, towards the Bell Hillock. It stands at 1.7m and was a very easy start compared to the exact opposite which would end the day.

Visited 7/8/2018.

The last site of this visit was also one of the best and also one of the saddest.

Of the four stones that once stood at Achnancurran, Canmore says three, once again one of the locals said four, local knowledge, I find, is always a good thing, only 2 stand, with 1 fallen and another lying just to the south dumped and smashed to pieces.

Stone rows seem to have been reasonably popular in this part of the world and this can easily be compared to Carragh A’ Ghlinne on Jura.

The northern stone stands at 2.7m and the south stone would stand at 2.8m if it was upright. This stone needs help as it stands at a very jaunty angle, without help it will end up like the central stone. This stone would have stood at around 3m in height. A great site but in dire need of help.

Head back to Ballynaughton Chamber Cairn from An Dunan then head west, till a tractor track is found then head south. Go over a wee hill then head west again, the site will be straight in front of you situated at the end of a field.

From An Dunan we pondered about heading to Cnoc An Altair, another chamber cairn, common sense for a change won as the sun was beginning to set. A perfect setting for Achancarranan and perfect way to end, this visit, to Islay.

Visited 3/8/2018.

An Dunan is a superbly situated fort with superb all round views, equally good was the wind direction taking the wondrous smells of the Lagavulin Distillery to our noses :-)

From the Ballynaughton Chamber Cairn head north using the rough track cut into the hill. Keep going north and head downhill, jump the small burn onto the boggy land then go north east to the easily spotted site. Fortunately the mornings heavy rain had missed this area so underfoot conditions were reasonably good, dryish.

By pure chance we found the entrance in the south west so the climb to the top was easy. Traces of wall surround the fort, its builders making good use of the natural rock face as well. The wall can be best seen to east and west sides, I disagree with Canmore as I found tumble down wall on the north side swinging east protecting the site which is 50m by 20m.

A great site!

Visited 3/8/2019.

After fair time at Druim Mor we kept heading north to head of the dyke, then headed west following a fence till it met a dyke which headed north. Follow this until it ends and keep heading north over slightly rougher ground. Look for a gap in hill in front, the chamber cairn is just to the west.

One of several Clyde type chamber cairns, hardly any of the cairn material remains, presumably why there are dry stane dykes in the area. Better than me explaining I’ll let Canmore explain :

This cairn is situated 300m w of the ruins of Ballynaughton More on a relatively narrow strip of almost level rough

grazing bounded by arable Fields to the SE and by a rocky ridge to the NW. Only a little cairn material remains, now

almost completely overgrown, but as shown on the plan it appears to extend intermittently over an area measuring

about 20m from NE to sw by a maximum of 10m transversely; whatever its precise size may originally have

been, it seems likely that the cairn was trapezoidal in shape, with a breadth of not more than 16m at the broader (NE) end and a length of at least 20 m.

Entered from the NE, the roofless chamber is about 6m long and up to l-5m wide internally, and is divided by

transverse septal slabs into four compartments. Immediately N of the entrance there is a pointed stone, I m high above

ground level, which may be one of a pair of portal stones; what appears to be its fallen partner would, if erect, occupy a corresponding position at the s side of the entrance. Most of the slabs forming the chamber are massive blocks, now-

exposed up to 0-9 m above ground: during excavations carried out in 1901 ’ it was found that the surviving side-slabs

of the two outermost compartments were standing to a Ileight of as much as 1 -42 m above the floor. Although at least

two side-slabs are missing, it can be seen that the chamber decreases in width towards the rear. from a maximum of

about l-5m to 0-6 m at the back of the innermost compartment. Likewise the compartments contract both in

length and height, and the innermost is evidently a less substantial structure than the others, only the tops of its

stones being at present visible at turf level. The septal stones rise almost to the same height as the side-slabs they support and the disposition of the side-slabs shows the successive overlapping (or imbrication) characteristic of chambered cairns of Clyde type.

The chamber contains a layer of debris about 0.6m deep, but when emptied in 1901 it was filled with stones and soil from which were recovered a chert flake and one tiny fragment of burnt bone; the discovery of a hoard of coins, dating from the mid-15th to mid-16th centuries AD, which lay hidden in the E corner of the third compartment, suggested to the excavator that the chamber had already been disturbed and rifled by the time the hoard was deposited. All the finds are lost.

Now I liked this site, it has atmosphere with superb views to the south, east and west. Like a lot of these places it would worth a trip back in time to see what they really looked like.

At least the chamber remains, after a good look round it was time to press on.

Visited 3/8/2018.

From the Lagavulin Stone keep heading east until you reach some farm huts, follow the track north over the wee hill and keep going. The huge stone set in what is now a dyke line is called Druim Mor, certainly by the locals who we spoke to. Canmore also call this stone Lagavulin.

This stone stands at a massive 3.5m in height and a dry stane dyke has been built to incorporate its ancient friend. I love these stones especially when covered lichen, this chap appeared to have had a shave at some point. Now we approached from the east side of the wall and did’t notice it had a fallen friend of similar size.

However we didn’t know so onwards we marched towards our next site. So far walking conditions were excellent!

Visited 3/8/2018.

Rumours that I park only near distilleries are true as we finally parked for the final walk of this trip at the magical Lagavulin Distillery.

From here it is an easy walk following the track east until the stone becomes visible sitting on top of what looks a small cairn. It looks more like stones have been cleared from the field and dumped beside the standing stone. Over the years the gaps have filled in and it now almost appears to a small kerb cairn. Canmore also appear to be confused.

The stone stands at 1m tall having no markings. Worth a visit as it is the gateway to more prehistoric sites.

Visited 3/8/2018.

Dun Dearg must have been some place when it was used as there is a huge amount of stones still partially built, some strewn, some made into a modern cairn and some have fallen over the southern cliff. It was from the south I made my ascend, a short but very steep climb up slippery rocks. However after about 15 minutes from the bottom I was looking south to the glorious view of Ardbeg Distillery.

The normal entry, nowadays, to the dun would have been from the north were the remains of walls can be still be seen. Some of the wall is made from massive blocks which lead to a small gap in the south east. In Iron Age times this would have been the most likely entry and it provided my path down, much safer than the path I took up. These walls protect the interior which would have been 21m by 14m.

This must have been a tremendous place, it still is. From the distillery at Ardbeg take the farm track to Callumkill. Pull in just before the farm, look north behind the houses and the modern cairn can be seen.

How you get up is up to you :-)

Visited 3/8/2019.

Kilbride Standing Stone marked the start of the final of hike of this Islay/Jura trip. From Port Ellen head east and take the first minor road heading north, this takes you past the Port Ellen and Branhunisary Standing Stones, keep going until the road ends at Kilbride Farm.

Look south, through the gate, up a small slope and the site with its glorious views south. Kilbride stands at almost 3m tall proving to be a superb starting point for the final evening hike.

Visited 3/8/2018.

On the way back from Ardnave we rejoined the B8017 and headed east until the 2nd minor road which heads straight east, the b8017 takes a sharp turn south. Keep going until the minor road heads south, take the first track which heads west to the farm at Lagostan, plenty room to park.

From here its follow the track past some ruined ‘ferm toun’ houses, head south westish over the heather, boggy in parts but on this occasion no falling in.

There are two barrows here :

NR 2982 6462

The largest barrow at 9m wide being almost 1m tall. There does appear to be some kerbage. The stones at the top might be the remains of a cist.

NR 2583 6465

The smaller of the two barrows is almost 5m wide and 0.5m tall.

Not much to see except the glorious views all round, stunning place. Nearby forts can wait till next year as we had an appointment with an old friend at Bowmore.

Visited 3/8/2019.

I love driving to the end of roads, especially on the islands. After having some lunch we headed north leaving the B8017 at Gruinart, near the nature reserve following the minor to its end at Ardnave Loch.

The 40m wide crannog can be reached by a causeway, almost 6m wide. A mound near the centre measures at 10m wide 0.6m tall. I couldn’t see any of the cists or slabs mentioned by Canmore and I didn’t see any of the stepping stones. Nobody here can see them either, as once again I proceeded to get to the site only to discover that I’d left the camera in the car.

The walk from the info boards at Ardnave is very easy and flat, the causeway clearly visible. Wear wellington boots. When heading south make sure to visit the Kilnave Chapel and it’s eerie shaped cross.

On we go.

Visited 3/82018.

It started to cloud over as I arrived at Barr An T-Seann Duine but the clouds didn’t hang around for long leaving the site dry. The rain from earlier at Cornabus fortunately had not reached here. It was bone dry.

From Port Ellen follow the A846, somehow pass Laphroaig, and take the second proper road heading south. This leads to what appears to be a small industrial estate so plenty room to park. The site cannot be missed, it is straight in front.

The fort is easily reached following a small track on the east side which leads to the middle of the site. This, to me, seemed the best place for an entrance as well. The fort covers an area of 90m by 60m and is roughly circular. Additional defences are helped by steep sided slopes to the west and east. There is a lot of fallen wall to the west, and parts of wall surround the whole site. The forts interior isn’t very flat, the remnants of much more recent buildings maybe are the cause of this. The highest point is marked by the usual climber’s cairn.

Another cracking wee fort with stunning views south, sacred views east and west, Lagavulin and Laphroaig.

Visited 3/8/2019.