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From the “pheasant prison” walk east, this cairn is thankfully undisturbed. But for how long? It’s eastern side is covered in colourful ferns whilst the other directions are moss and grass covered. Several quartz rocks can also be seen sticking their heads thru the moss as if gasping for air. At present Canmore are correct in saying the cairn is 9 meters wide and 2 meters tall. With the snow flaking down this cairn was a peaceful end to a day that started with raging seas and heavy snow.

Visited 30/11/09.

Follow as for Foulford Bridge and follow the North East track keeping an eye for the now defunct pheasant prison, this badly robbed Bronze Age cairn, next to the unused prison, is almost destroyed on it’s western flank with only a scattering of small stones. What’s left on the eastern side rises to 2 meters tall being a 11 meters in width. Even here there has been a trench dug out.

Visited 30/11/09.

This Neolithic Long Cairn, which surprisingly couldn’t be found by the Canmore people, is no more than 200 meters north of the A98 about a 1/2 mile east of the Buckie junction. What is difficult is the job of taking decent pictures because of the overgrowth. Eventually I found two spots that showed at least the bottom of the cairn. At the eastern end some stones can be seen after a battle with various “jabby things”.

Plenty car parking as a lay by is on the opposite side of the road.

Visited 30/11/09.

There is a maze of country tracks to walk before reaching the cairn so take an OS map of the area. Even then, some of the tracks can’t be found. Travelling west on the A98 after the Cullen Bay Hotel (pretty good as is the ice cream shop in Cullen) take the first farm track south. With permission I parked at Bruntown farm.

After what seemed ages I found the Foulford Bridge which crosses a small burn, at least it’s on the map. There is a track that goes North East, which heads in the general direction of the other two cairns, but I headed thru the heather/bog/fallen trees and luckily walked straight to the cairn.

The cairn is made of boulders and earth being covered in moss, grass and trees. It has been dug out leaving a trench 5 meters long and 2 meters wide. However this does let the visitor see how the cairn was constructed. At it’s widest it is 14 meters being some 2 meters tall. Not the most spectacular of finds but a pleasant walk despite heavy snow showers.

Visited 30/11/09.

This place is a bit of a nightmare to find within the maze of roads in the Cushnie valley. Leave the A980 just south of the Muir Of Fowlis taking the minor road, west, to Leochel-Cushnie. Keep going until this road ends, then turn north, the next road east and don’t turn the corner keep going. The signpost, on the photo, can be seen at the top of another minor road, follow this until it turns into a farm track. From here you can drive to South Brideswell or walk. I took one look at the road and walked.

I counted 14 stones remaining in place of the outer ring, others having been robbed their places still noticeable by holes in the ground. It is almost 23 meters wide, unfortunately agriculture has caused damage to the southern side, tractor tracks. Canmore suggests that the central round cairn, some 14 meters wide, was made during a second phase of building. Whenever it was built it isn’t very high coming to less than a meter after the usual destructions.

Nearby is another cairn, and the hut circles of an ancient settlement. A hard place to find but well worth the effort. Some beautiful countryside is an added bonus, no rain was an unexpected bonus!

Visited 26/11/09.

This the largest of the cairns is situated within an ancient settlement being only a few metres from the ring cairn. It has been badly robbed, being now close to fourteen meters wide. As well as granites it contains a few quartzs.

In the same field are several hut circles and clearance cairns. Directions to this site are given on the field notes for the ring cairn.

Visited 26/11/09.

Carnaveron is about 2 miles south of the Gallow Hill, near Alford on the same minor road. I followed the the farm track until the first major corner finding plenty of room to pull in.

The cairn is on the west ridge of the hill behind and has been badly robbed and is barely recognisable. However at least 5 kerbs are in place with probably more hidden amongst the bushes and gorse. Canmore estimates that the cairn would have been 34 meters wide and 0.6 meters high. To make matters worse cows have wandered everywhere churning up the grass and deposited their markers everywhere. So be warned and take more than one pair of boots!

Up and down the hill is no more than a mile. Scenery looking down onto the Muir Of Fowlis village is lovely.

Visited 26/11/09.

Entering Alford from the east on the A944, find Greystone Road near the town centre. Travel the length of this road, going past the Auld Kirk Of Alford (ring cairn) and turn left (south). Gallow Hill farm is the first road to the right, west, with the stone situated slightly more than 200 meters north west into a field behind the farmhouse.

The stone is 1.85 meters in height and looks down onto the River Don and is perhaps aligned to Bennachie clearly visible to the east. It looks like somebody took a drill to the top of the stone. Today was a good day, it didn’t rain.

Visited 26/11/09.

Travel west along the A941 towards Dufftown, Newseat is the first farm on the road, to the right. Climb up the hill for a 1/2 mile behind the farm, beyond the rusting hut. If you keep going up and up the walk will lead straight up the Tap O Noth.

At least six kerb stones of an inner ring are still earthfast, alternatively it could be a hut circle. There also appears to be an outer ring with at least two stones of over a meter in height fallen. This might possibly be a ring cairn and looks down onto the village of Rhynie. On the way back down I met an elderly chap, who lives at Newseat farm, who told me all about the Giants Stone.

Visited 23/11/09.