Showing 1-50 of 2,698 posts. Most recent first | Next 50     
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27/05/2023 - Canmore has a 'probable crannog' listed at the north end of Loch Builg. We were passing on the south side so not really close to have a good look. I'm not too sure after looking at aerial photos online. Thought I'd add anyway, you never know.
Might go that way next time. It's a little bit in the middle of nowhere. Nice area though.
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Site record for Loch Builg
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19/04/2023 - Evening walk to Cairn-mon-earn. It's been 12 years since our last visit here. This was our first time up after sunset, just for something different really. Started from the small parking area just off the Slug Road. It's an easy 45min walk up a curving track to the top. Quiet this evening. We sat, had a brew and watched the sky slowly turn dark. Really good stars tonight. The Bronze Age cairn at the top is big, 17m in diameter by 3m in height. A nice midweek walk.
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31/03/2023 - Newgrange. Last stop of a lovely day out looking at stones and the main reason we had made the trip. Great to finally make it here after our cancelled trip 3 years back. We took a tour bus from Dublin. Mary Gibbons tour of Hill of Tara, Knowth & Newgrange. Can't recommend it enough. She's excellent. I know tours ain't everyone's thing, but you don't get any less or more time there than if you made your own way to Newgrange and it just takes all the hassle out of getting there from the city. Only small groups too which was a really nice bonus as it was peaceful.
Allowed time there is short but again like Knowth, not overcrowded. The entrance of Newgrange passage tomb is pretty in your face but I liked it. White quartz covers the front, the just fantastic entrance stone guards the way in, with its spiral motifs. A wonderful stone. The inside chamber is wow. To look up and see that wonderful corbelled roof, very special. The light demo is very well done. Too soon it was time to leave. We had a quick walk round the outside of the mound, looking at the rock art on the kerbstones then headed back to the bus, a bit soggy from the rain but very happy.
Just magic to have finally made it to the Boyne Valley. Guess we all spend most of our time at sites that get seldom visited and it’s just us and the stones. Always a bit of a worry going to the big sites like Newgrange, Stonehenge and Skara Brae that the people/noise/rush with spoil the vibe. Newgrange/Knowth tour turned out great though, really enjoyed it. Should mention the visitor’s centre too, it’s excellent, I got myself a Newgrange tea towel to add to my collection!
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31/03/2023 - Knowth Neolithic passage grave. Great site, big mound with 17 smaller satellite tombs surrounding it. I really liked this place. Top Site. Only a short time allowed there on the guided tour but that meant fewer people so the vibe was good. The rock art is just amazing. It rained but it didn't much matter, a must visit site. The very good tour guide took us round the outside of the monster mound. 127 kerbstones surround the base. The carvings are a wonder. just too much to take in on one visit. A few seem to show both waxing and waning phases of the moon maybe. Both passage entrances with good. I like the standing stone in front of each. The ground at the entrance is covered in quartz. I maybe just preferred Knowth to Newgrange. It is an amazing site. You can walk to the top of the mound. The view is nice and good for seeing Knowth's place in the landscape. It was a very good visit.
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31/03/2023 - Hill of Tara. First stop of a busy day of stones. This ancient site is good. Quiet today and nice views even on a grey day. I didn’t read much about the place beforehand so didn’t know about the Mound of the Hostages passage tomb with its fine rock art until we got there. Really nice surprise. It's a good one. You can't go inside but the view down the stone lined passage is nice. There's a lovely big stone on the left with some nice rock art. Swirls and circles from what I could see. The Hill of Tara has a lot going on. Grassed over earthworks with a standing stone at the top, the Lia Fáil (Stone of Destiny). Probably should have read up more before my visit, though there are good information boards at the entrance. It’s an important site.
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11/02/2023 - A quiet walk to Monluth Hill and Kerloch. Visit after sunset. After windy walks the last few weeks, it was finally much calmer. Temperature was OK too. We'd not visited these two before in the dark. After sunset by the time we reached Monluth Hill. We had a sit and our tea here, watching the sky go dark. Nice view across to Kerloch, our next stop, silhouetted against an orange sky.
Monluth Hill is only 377m high but it's in the middle of a forest so a great feeling of just us and the hills this evening. It's a good walk to get here from where we started. The way was dark now between Monluth Hill and Kerloch. Jupiter and Venus looking after us in the night sky as we plodded on.
Finally made the top of Kerloch. I was happy to get here and have a sit and a brew. Bit tired today and the feet were grumpy. Night time now. The cairn was a welcome sight, lit up by our headtorches. It's a fine cairn, worth a visit just for the view really.
The track up Kerloch from the east is still as rough as ever. Trees down too, so maybe not the best way up at the moment. It was a bit tricky in the dark.
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