drewbhoy

From the two fallen standing stones I headed north towards the impressive standing stones at the strangely named Dunamuck South, they aren’t the furthest south but the grid ref is right so who cares. If coming from the south look north into valley below, look further north another stone can be seen.

The furthest north stone is 2.75 metres tall, the southern pointy topped stone is 4 metres tall.

Close by the River Add can be heard, I’d soon find a wee burn that runs into it.

Visited 08/04/2025.

The two fallen stones are the most southerly of the three groups of stones at Dunamuck, just a slight distance south west from the nearby cairn.

At just over 3 metres high, 1.4 broad and 0.4 wide the west stone is the smaller of the two stones, the east stone measuring at 4m by 1.7m by 0.4m being the largest.

No details about the plastic bucket!

Time to move onto the next set of stones.

Visited 08/04/2025.

From Dunamuck Farm I headed back towards the chamber cairn, jumped the fence after spying the sign saying standing stones and headed north.

The grass has been well maintainned by the local greenkeepers (sheep) and this makes walking very easy. Easily spotted are the standing stones, but just before them there is a cairn.

It is almost 8 metres wide and at its highest 1 metre. I counted 9 kerbs poking through the turf. Sadly the centre has been hollowed out and to add insult field clearance has been dumped on top. Weird that Trove/Canmore haven’t mentioned this site as clear views of several monuments can be seen, including the very nearby standing stones.

Visited 08/04/2025.

After retracing my soggy steps back to the track from the cairn in the woods at Achnashelloch I heaed west towards the much damaged chamber cairn at Dunamuck.

At the first cottage jump the fence to the north and you should land on the edge of the cairn. A once massive cairn, being 33 metres wide and at its highest is 2 metres tall, it has been ploughed, missshapen, robbed and used as a dump for field clearance.

At some stage there might have been three possible cists or chambers at the site, one can definitely be seen, the other two are moved slabs probably damaged during robbing.

A bit of a ‘what if’ but still an impressive site.

The next intended site was the nearby dun/fort at Dunmamuck less than a half mile north west. Dunamuck Farm is next to the dun and I did the right thing by asking the farmer if I could walk past the barns and climb the wee hill behind. In language not to be repeated exactly, I was told to get back to the sign near the chamber cairn to head north to the standing / fallen stones etc.

It was a nice day so I decided, surprisingly, not to complain and headed on my way. We’d meet again later on............

Visited 08/04/2025.

Despite its proximity to the main road and the farm track that leads to Dunamuck Farm this site is a nightmare to reach. I’d parked at the car park to the north of the farm track and walked back down the A816, a reasonably brave thing to do, to reach the woods on the north side of the entrance to the farm.

Walk a short distance towards the farm then head north trying to find a way on to dryish parts of the bog. Also the trees are a bit of a problem, persevere and the site will gradually come into view amid the murk.

Underneath my feet I felt stonework of the probable cist near the cairn’s centre. Vegetation and fallen trees make any attempt at a decent look almost impossible. What remains is a well wrecked site that survives at about 16m wide and at its tallest just over 1m high. At one point in Kilmartin’s history this might have been an important site but sadly the tree plantation has covered most of the evidence.

Somehow, I made my way back to track without much damage to myself except for some rather soaked boots.

Visited 08/04/2025.

A very easy dun to find, simply follow the B841 until the corner that leads north to the former Crinan Moss ferry. Plenty room to park at the corner, the minor road continues to Crinan.

Blasting has happened here, what appears to be a cave isn’t, what appears to a small ravine almost leads straight to the site. Climb up this passage, at the top look look west.

Not much remains of the site with the once large walls scattered. However a gap in the walling reveals there was an entrance situated in the north of the 23m by 16m dun. Remnants of a possible hut circle can be seen in the sites interior.

Not many people come here but worth a look if in the area.

Visited 08/04/2025.

After getting back down the hill from the dun at Ardnackaig, head north west on the track which eventually leads to Crinan. When you reach a part where the track widens, the wide part being used for logs, look up and north east, impressive stonework can be seen perched on top of the hill.

Don’t think about climbing from here, head further north at you’ll find a path, part of the Crinin Trail, that leads straight, in a curvy way, to the dun. No difficult parts but at the end of a long hike quite tiring.

The first glimpse of the dun is as you come out of the trees to the site’s entrance. This is a stunning place with stunning views of Jura, southern parts of Islay along with Mull and a lot of Argyll.

Originally the entrance was 2 metres wide but that has been reduced to 1 metre thanks to the wall being extended. Alterations have also happened to the outer wall as can be seen by the ‘join work’ in the photos. Clearly two sets of stone masons have been used. The small room, described by some as a souterrain, has been part of a possible outlook tower. Other little recesses might have been cupboards / storage areas made possible by the east wall being strengthened.

After scrambling around the outside of the fort and almost tripping over two long stones, possible lintels, and a wee sit down it was time to head back down the hill to the track to head south back to Carsaig.

Visited 07/04/2025.