Mr & Mrs Goffik's wedding tour
15th September 2004
Goff mentioned on our Heritage Action list that he was planning a holiday to Orkney, so I sent him some ideas of routes to get there, and what to see on the way. That then led (inevitably!) to them spending some time in Perthshire on the way back down.
I met Graham and Hazel at the Garry Bridge car park, just north of Pitlochry. I was fashionably late, forgetting about the landslide on the A9, and so ignoring my own advice to Goff to miss out that bit! After the introductions, we set off west along Strathtummel for Queen's View, where - after a large blue rinse contingent had posed for numerous photos - we got our first (of many) view of the mighty Schiehallion rising majestically above Loch Tummel. The moment was spoiled slightly by a pair of Tornadoes screaming past.
Back into the car (which wasn't as old, rickety or dirty as Goff kept saying it was) we headed along Strathtummel, along the side of Schiehallion and out beyond Kinloch Rannoch to the Clach a' Mharsainte at the Macdonald hotel complex. From their car park we were also awarded another great view of Schiehallion, this time from the pointy end. A short drive back to Kinloch Rannoch and we were at Clach na Boile where we commented on the fact that it sits down in the middle of the wide strath, immediately between 2 rocky crags - some significance or just a nice place to put a stone?
We then drove up the B-road that takes you to the car park at the bottom of Schiehallion, where we parked and walked part of the way up the new path to the Braes of Foss cup-marked rock. Probably not a patch on the rock art Graham and Hazel would see with Hob a couple of days later, but still impressive, although difficult to photograph.
Next stop was the picturesque village of Fortingall, where we parked at the church before walking to the 3 Fortingall stone circles, then back to the church to see the Fortingall churchyard cup-marked rock, and of course the huge and ancient yew tree. We didn't go over to look at Carn na Marbh as the hunger was starting to set in and we still had quite a way to go before lunch. A quick drive through Fortingall took us to the field by the bridge over the Lyon, jam-packed with archaeology - the Bridge of Lyon Standing Stones, The General's Grave (I think they believed my story about Pontius Pilate about as much as Moth did!), and Bridge of Lyon Long Cairn.
A quick scoot down to Fearnan and we were travelling along the edge of Loch Tay to Kenmore, looking out towards the Crannog Centre. We stopped in Kenmore to pick up some sandwiches, but unfortunately - being the end of the tourist season - puddings were in short supply and we had to settle for crisps. I was not amused! ;)
Not far along the road was the perfect picnic spot - Croftmoraig stone circle. While we were here two other sets of visitors came and went while we drank in the atmosphere, and the sunny weather Goff had brought down from Orkney with him. Back on the road we went through Aberfeldy and up through Glen Cochill, pausing at the forest car park for another view of Schiehallion, this time showing how it dominates the horizon.
We turned off through Strathbraan for Dunkeld, and took the road over towards Blairgowrie so that Goff could experience travelling by car through a stone circle at Ardblair, something I found out later he'd always wanted to do! Then it was down through Carsie to the Cleaven Dyke where we stopped for a wander. I've passed so many times without stopping, and I have to say I was underwhelmed. I can appreciate how much effort goes into building a cursus, but this one at least just didn't excite me as much as stones do.
Passing by the tallest hedge in the world at Meikleour, we headed down to Perth to take the road out to Fowlis Wester ("which way are we heading?" said Goff as we drove into the setting sun!). We didn't have time to stop at the New Fowlis cairn or Crofthead Farm but we did stop to have a look at the replica cross-slab in the centre of the village (the church was locked) before heading up onto the moor to the circles at Braes of Fowlis. With the sun on it's way down, it seemed that the two massive outliers would once have lined up with a notch in the distant hill where the sun would disappear over the horizon.
With the light fading fast, we just had enough time to head up the Sma' Glen past the Giant's Grave and stop at what is surely the biggest cist cover ever found, Clach Ossian. By now it was getting pretty dark, so we headed back up to the Garry Bridge car park and couldn't go to the final two sites on the itinerary - Tigh na Ruaich and Faskally Cottages stone circles - but I have a feeling Graham and Hazel may well be back for more next year!
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Fear not, 'til BigSweetie do come to Dunsinane Hill
Dunsinnan Hill is somewhere I've wanted to go up for a long time, but for various reasons never got there. Today I set off from Dundee in blazing sunshine knowing that this was the day I was finally going to do it. Rather than going up the Coupar Angus road as usual, I cycled down to the station and got the early train through to Perth from where I took the new cycle track up the side of the A9, switching to farm tracks on the way into Luncarty, and then onto the B9099 to Stanley to see my parents.
After lunch, I set off on my bike once again, up to Kinclaven and across both rivers - the Tay and the Isla - on my way round to Cargill. Just after crossing the bridge over the Isla, I noticed again a phenomena which has struck me here before. The road appears to go downhill initially before climbing, but try free-wheeling and you slow down as quickly as if you were going uphill - something of a reverse Electric Brae.
At Cargill I turned up the steep road that heads between Gallowhill and Newbigging, and followed it down to Collace. Having passed through the village, I stopped at the field where the path up Dunsinnan begins, and lifted my bike over the gate. No sign of the bull this time, one of the things that had thwarted a previous attempt.
Pushing my bike up the hill, the sun disappeared to be replaced by light rain, and looking back I saw a family that had been following me up turn and walk back down to their car, obviously not happy to be walking in the rain in their t-shirts and trainers. I pressed on, and soon I had to shoulder my bike as the farm track turned to a narrow path through bushy heather. I passed what I took to be Macbeth's Well, now apparently just a puddle straddling the path.
From here the path starts to climb, as you pass the first line of fortifications. The fort originally consisted of an outer wall around the flat plateau upon which the main fort sits, a middle wall, and then a massive rubble-filled stone wall on the edge of the final flat summit. The path picks it's way through the lower defences which have been extensively robbed, and then up onto the top of the central citadel.
As I reached the summit, the rain stopped, and while the views over Strathmore were much reduced by the low clouds of moisture, the view east past Black Hill to Dundee was stunning, with Balgay Hill, the Law and the railway bridge over the Tay all clearly visible. I spent a long time up here just standing taking in the view, then began to wander around, looking at the various lumps and bumps left from countless excavations by antiquarians searching for items related to Macbeth.
Leaving my bike within the fort itself, I walked down bewteen the lower ramparts in search of the cup-marked rocks. Unfortunately I hadn't marked them on my map, and I'd only looked briefly at the information board down at the start of the path, so although I was looking in the right area, my search was fruitless. I now have them marked on my map, and will come back another time.
Climbing back up to the summit to get my bike, I took one last lingering look over towards Dundee, then began my descent. Back down on the road, I cycled round past the quarry, opting not to visit the nearby Bandirran stone circles again this time and followed the road in the shadows of Dunsinane Hill, Black Hill and the King's Seat, and past the Long Man's Grave. I took the road by North Pitkindie, South Latch and Newton Gray, hitting 50mph as I sped down the steep hill past Newton Bank before slamming on the brakes and heading for Knapp.
Beyond the village I cycled past the Falcon Stone, and before dropping down to Longforgan, I turned off into Huntly Wood to have a look at the cairn known as the Market Knowe, which I'd spotted on the map. The wood itself is quite atmospheric - fairly close to the busy A90, but at the same time very still and calm. A series of paths criss-cross the wood, and it wasn't difficult to find the cairn, which is of an impressive size.
The large central mound has been robbed and now has a flat top with a slight dip in it, and around its base there's a clear ditch and bank. The cairn is cleared of vegetation by the Woodland Trust but it's surrounded by overgrown brambles, ferns and nettles, and despite the atmospheric setting, it struck me as quite a sad site.
Heading back out of the wood, I cycled down to and through Longforgan, then joined the path along the edge of the A90 back to Dundee in time for tea.
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just depends how hard you look
First on the list today was Craigiedun, the remaining stones of a stone circle on the golf course to the west of Moulin and north-west of Pitlochry.
I parked in the centre of Pitlochry and cycled up the West Moulin Road past the Pitlochry Hydro where a stone circle once stood on Cnoc Dubh, taking the road behind the Scottish Megaraks' favourite haunt, the Moulin Inn. To the north of this road stands the mighty Dane's Stone, but sheep were in grazing around it's base, so I carried on for the golf course.
On a quick look from the path that skirts the north edge of the golf course, I couldn't see much in the way of suspicious-looking stones, so I decided to press on up the path to the summit of Craigower and to have a better look for the stones on the way back down.
When I went up Craigower, I had no idea what to expect as I didn't know much about it, but it was well worth the incredibly steep climb that meant pushing my trusty steed most of the way up. Not only is there the bizarre site of a winter adder sanctuary, but the views are just stunning. There's a viewpoint indicator on the west side, but if you go to the south side there's a bench which looks out over so many stones it's untrue!
From this bench you can see the remains of the stone circle at Dunfallandy and the original site of the stones I was looking for on the golf course, Craigiedun. If you could take away the extensive modern tree cover and return the landscape to it's state at the time the circles were built, you would also be able to see the stone circles of Faskally Cottages, Cnoc Dubh and Clachan an Diridh. Craigower is often described as an old beacon hill, but I haven't been able to find any references to its use in more ancient times.
Having spent ages climbing the hill, the descent on two wheels seemed disappointingly short. Lifting my bike over the wall onto the edge of the golf course, I set off on foot to look at where the Craigiedun circle originally stood. If I got my bearings and dsistances right, the spot is marked by a couple of bushes next to a small clump of trees. Rustling through the undergrowth under these trees in search of stones, I was spotted for the first time by golfers.
I made my way back up to the very end of the golf course where there's a deserted hamlet amongst the trees. It was here that the stones were said to have been dragged, on to the boggy ground that one of the greens rises out of like a huge green helipad. Stones that had stood for hundreds and hundreds of years were knocked down and dragged away so that they didn't obstruct the golfers' view of the 6th green! Which, surprise surprise, is named "Druids Stones"!
Poking around in the long grass, I found several large lumps which were too solid to be mud or tree stumps. Clawing away at the turf exposed several large stones, but the golfers were getting ever closer and ever more suspicious, so I made my way out of the trees, stopping only to confirm the name of the hole with one of the golfers, who didn't realise that the stones were still there at the end of the course.
I continued my descent back down to Moulin, parking up by the edge of the field containing the Dane's Stone. The sheep had moved further up the field, so I jumped over the fence to get some new photos. The last ones I had taken were at night on a Scottish Megarak trip, when the pull of the Moulin Inn had been too strong, and we hadn't made it round the corner to the stone before nightfall!
Back in Pitlochry, I headed down for the river, and crossed the Tummel on the footbridge over to Port-na-Craig. Just beyond the caravan park and the tiny collection of houses that is Ballinluig is what at first glance appears to be the tree-grown cairn of Dunfallandy. There was at one time a circle of stones around this maginificently-situated mound, but these were removed around 1840 to shore up the nearby river embankment.
This was my last stoney-visit of the day. I continued down the narrow, twisty, hilly road along the south side of the Tummel to Logierait and the confluence with the Tay, crossed on the bridge, then took the B-road up from Ballinluig, passing the beautiful wee circle of Tigh na Ruaich on my way back to the car. I'd timed it just right, and was home in time to see the mighty Celtic stick 4 past Partick Thistle!
Two seperate authors writing in the 1920s in books about Pitlochry mention stones from a destroyed stone circle lying at the end of the golf course. The land is marked on the Explorer map as marshy, so perhaps predictably CANMORE found "no trace of these stones" as they are some distance from the car park, and it's just possible you might get your feet wet looking for them!
However, the stones are here, some of them turfed over, but here nonetheless. A bit of poking around and scraping away of long grass and mud revealed 4 large stones. I didn't find the ten foot long stone described in 1925, as a party of golfers were getting more and more suspicious. But there were several long bumps in the ground which could do with another look. I will no doubt be back sometime soon. Although there's no evidence left of there being a circle here, what it lacks in stones it makes up for in location. It sits out in the middle of a large flat floodplain in a sweeping bend of the Tummel, and can be seen for miles around. At the time of building, with the landscape free of trees, caravan sites, farm buildings and the A9, it must have been an even more impressive site! This is the tree-covered cairn that can be seen to your left across the river as you drive into Pitlochry from the south.
The cairn originally had a ditch and embankment around it, with a "row of upright stones round the mound". These stones were apparently toppled around 1840 and used to repair the nearby river embankment.
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sunny Perthshire?
Having had such fun last weekend trying to cycle through foot-deep snow drifts in the Allean Forest, last night's weather forecast predicting more snow above 1000ft, but also bright sun and clear blue skies helped me make my mind up for today's destination - to the hills!
As usual, the bike was dismantled and stuck in the back of the wee car, and I set off just as the sun started to come up on a glorious Perthshire day. A couple of hairy moments on the way to Murthly confirmed that it was icy under foot, so slow progress was made to Dunkeld, where I crossed the A9 into the dark tree tunnel along Strathbraan. Turning up Glen Cochill, the sun behind me turned the hill-sides golden brown (texture like sun?), and I pressed on, stopping opposite Griffin Forest to take a photo of Schiehallion, rising above Aberfeldy with it's snow-capped peak glistening in the morning light.
Aberfeldy was deserted except for a lone paperboy cycling down towards the bridge, which I crossed on my way to Weem and beyond towards Schiehallion. Instead of parking in my usual spot by Loch Kinnardochy, I continued on a bit further to the car park at the Tomphubil lime kiln. As I assembled my bike, Schiehallion disappeared before my very eyes! I had managed to come to the only place in Perthshire that wasn't bathed in glorious winter sunshine!
As the sleet began to fall, I set off for Tummel Bridge, another place that seems to empty of people in the winter, although it was still before 9 o'clock on a freezing morning. The river was high, and the power station had it's sluices open, adding to the volume of water rushing by. As I cycled beside Dunalastair Water, the sleet stopped and Schiehallion was revealed in her full glory as the clouds lifted.
Kinloch Rannoch had a bit more life about it as I passed through on my way to the timeshare complex on the north-east shore of Loch Rannoch. Leaving my bike at the side of the road, I was viewed with some suspicion by a timeshare guest on the running machine in the glass-fronted gym - this is surely the only place in Scotland where you can work out while looking at a standing stone! The stone in question is the Clach a' Mharsainte or Pedlar's Stone, where an unfortunate merchant sat for a rest one summer many years ago, and didn't get up again - he rested his pack on the stone without actually taking it off, it fell over the back of the stone, and he was hanged by his wares.
I also had a look for a stone called Clach Ghlas, which was marked nearby on the 1867 OS map. I found a large flat-ish stone in the right area, but it was covered in 2 inch-thick moss, so I don't know what it's significance is. It may well be cup-marked, but I can't find any reference to it other than on the old map.
I had been planning to cycle along the side of the loch to Rannoch Station and take some photos of over towards Lochaber, but the colour of the sky and the rain hitting the water in the distance made me turn around and re-trace my route back to the car. And sure enough, as I made my way back down to Aberfeldy, the sun was blazing in a clear blue sky, which was the same all the way back to Stanley. I had managed (again!) to find the only place in Perthshire it was raining!
Visited here today during a perfectly-timed break in the rain. The stone stands just off the road in front of the timeshare complex - you can't miss it, it's right next to a huge blue sign! The stone is a fairly regular cuboid in shape, but the top has a point to it. Standing behind the stone (with the timeshare behind you) you'll notice something striking - the top of the stone appears to mirror the shape of Schiehallion's peak. Checking the compass shows that Schiehallion is exactly to the SE.
There is a plaque affixed to the stone which suggests the stone may have been moved in some way by builders many years ago, but it seems to imply that it was re-erected in it's original position, so it's alignment with Schiehallion may have been unaffected. I visited here today after stopping at Clach a' Mharsainte nearby. I first spotted this stone on the 1867 OS map, and haven't found any reference to it anywhere else. I originally listed it as a standing stone, but it is in fact a earth-fast flat-ish boulder. It was covered in two inch-thick moss, and I tried to scrape some away, but the heavens opened and it would take a while to clear the whole stone, so I left it. I've changed this site to Natural Rock Feature until someone can investigate further, but I wouldn't be surprised if under all that moss there were some cup-marks. |
a wallaby?! in Perthshire?! in winter?!
For the second day on the trot I set out to work off some Christmas cheer, this time heading west for Comrie. The family were having a little get together at my grandparents' in Crieff, so the idea was to get some stone-related cycling in, then head there.
A late night last night had put an end to the plan to leave before dawn, so I set off at a much more reasonable 11:30, the bike still in the back of the car from yesterday, stopping at the Broxden services for petrol and provisions. Driving out on the A85, I passed the cairn and it's standing stone at New Fowlis, which I'd decided to save for a return trip to Fowlis Wester. On through Crieff I went, until I reached the standing stone at Lawers, two thirds of the way to Comrie. Parking at the layby just beyond it, I walked back and had a quick blether with the very friendly equine residents of the field before jumping the fence to get a better look at this big stone.
Back in the car, I continued on my way to Comrie, parking at the car park beside the school, where I assembled my bike, and added to the layers of clothing I was already wearing. A freezing wind was rushing down the River Earn from Ben Vorlich's snow-capped peak, which made the going tough as I set off for the remains of a stone circle at Wester Tullybannocher. After stopping to take a few photos, I didn't hang around long at this very exposed site, and struggled on to the Dalchonzie turn-off.
It was still cold, but the wind behind me made the ride back much easier as I followed the Earn down to Comrie. Crossing the river into the "suburb" of Dalginross, I made my way to the "Roman Stone" close to West Cowden Farm. Several standing stones around here have been attributed to the Romans in the past, presumably by those believing the Romans brought us civilisation!
Continuing along the B827, there was a fantastic view over Cultybraggan camp to Glen Artney ahead of me, the snow-covered peaks set against a crisp blue sky. Next stop was Auchingarrich wildlife centre. On the long climb up the track to the park I passed the wallaby enclosure, which contained a pair of wallabies looking none too amused by the temperature. Stopping in the car park to look at a large sign showing a map of the centre, I couldn't figure out where the standing stone was. According to my OS map it should've been right here. As I walked away to find someone, I realised it was right behind the sign! This is a huge stone standing on a large mound, spoiled only slightly by the covered walkway behind it, which provides protection from the elements for people looking at the chickens.
I cycled back down to the main road, stopping on the way to take some photos of the none-too-distant wintry mountains. And I also stopped at the bottom to have my sandwiches and crack open the thermos, much to the amusement of passing motorists - sitting on a wall in sub-zero conditions having a picnic. My fingers began to freeze as soon as I took my gloves off, and the Snickers bar that had been in an outside pocket of my rucsac was actually frozen - I couldn't bite into it, and when I tried to break a piece off, the caramel snapped clean off! Who needs a Snickers ice cream when you live in Perthshire?!
I thought about continuing on a wee bit further to the stones at Dunruchan and Dalchirla, but by now the temperature was beyond a joke, and I turned back for Comrie. In the car park out of the worst of the wind, I took the gloves off and poured myself a cup of tea to defrost my fingers before trying to get the wheels off my bike. With the bike safely stowed in the back of the car, and the heater on full blast, I re-traced my steps past Auchingarrich, then drove to Dunruchan. I must confess that the heat inside and the wind that was buffeting the car conspired to make me drive on past with thoughts of returning in summer for these stones.
By this time I was dreaming of the warmth I would find in my grandparents' house, and so I drove on past Dalchirla, Concraig and Dargill without stopping. Looks like I could well be back over here next week, only after I've warmed up though!
Visited here today on a bitterly cold day. The Roman Stone - the big one, as Mr Brand mentions below - leans at an alarming angle over it's smaller neighbours. The cup-marks on the flat stone are quite shallow, but very obvious nonetheless.
The name Roman Stone presumably comes from the fact that in the field nearby was a Roman camp.
Historic Scotland lists this as the remains of a stone circle, but as Fred Coles pointed out in 1911, there is a lack of any evidence to suggest that these stones ever formed part of a circle. Directions - head west from Perth on the A85 for Crieff. Keep going straight into the centre of Crieff, and as you start to go down the steep hill, take the right turn (signposted A85 Lochearnhead, I think). Keep going on the A85 for about 7 miles and you will reach Comrie. In the centre of Comrie you will see a turn off to the left over the river, signposted "Wildlife Centre" amongst other things. Head down here to the bottom of the village, where you follow the road round a sharp right turn to leave the village. About 200m outside the village the Roman Stone is clearly visible by the road, on your left next to a sign for the footpath to Muirend. This was definitely a circle rather than a pair. Four stones were originally marked on the old OS map, and when Fred Coles visited in 1911, he was told that up until around 17 years previously, three stones had still been standing. The third then fell, and the farmer dragged it away.
The site now consists of the two remaining stones standing approximately 6m apart on the circumference of a circle that appears to have been cleared - the surrounding land is rough and overgrown with long yellow grass, while within this circle is smooth ground, with short green grass. View the site on the old OS map. Directions - head west from Perth on the A85, right through Crieff and Comrie. Approximately a mile outside Comrie, you will see a sign for Twenty Shilling Wood caravan park to your right. Carry on round the next corner, and you will see a double-gate into a field on your right, with the stones visible in the field. There's space to park by the gates. View the site on the old OS map. View the site on the old OS map. I visited here today, and met the horses that Mr Brand mention below. They behaved themselves with me though - I asked them to stand in the top corner of the field so that they wouldn't be in any of my photos, and they duly obliged. A lovely pair of horses!
But back to the stone. It stands on a very slight mound, and what appears to be a few packing stones can be seen at it's base poking through the grass. Fred Coles described this in 1910 as the last remaining stone of a stone circle, although he didn't offer any reasons as to why he thought there were more stones originally. Directions - head W from Perth on the A85 through Crieff towards Comrie. Approximately 4 miles after Crieff, not long after the signs for the Braincroft Bunkhouse, you will see a long thin field on your left, flanked on either side by an avenue of large trees. The standing stone is clearly visible 100m into the field, on the left hand side, close to a small wooden stable. Carry on past the field, and you will come to a layby you can park in, and walk back to the field. The easiest way in, without disturbing the horses, is to head to the left edge of the field boundary wall, and climb over the wooden fence. There is a fence within a fence here, so walk down through the trees until you are level with the stone, then hop over the inner fence to get to the stone. Visited here on a cold winter's day today. The stone stands next to the shop and café of the Auchingarrich wildlife centre, on an obvious round mound which looks like it could be artificial, or at least an artificially-enhanced natural knoll. Some large stones, which may actually be bedrock, can be seen poking through the grass at the side.
The stone itself is huge at 8' 7" tall, and is certainly an impressive specimen, rising from the centre of the mound. It commands good views of the surrounding area, and stands at a height of 450 feet above sea level. View the site on the old OS map. Directions - head west from Perth on the A85, passing through Crieff towards Comrie. In Comrie, turn left over Dalginross Bridge (where there's a sign for "Wildlife Centre"). Continue on to the bottom of the village and follow the road round a sharp turn to the right. After approximately 1 mile there is a road off to the right signposted Cultybraggan, but continue straight on here, following the sign for "Wildlife Centre" again. After another half mile, Auchingarrich Wildlife Centre is on your left - you can't miss it, huge sign! Follow the steep track (suitable for cars) up to the centre's car park. The stone is to the right of the shop and café building - ask permission in here. Auchingarrich Wildlife Centre is open all year round - in winter the shop and café aren't open, but there's an "honesty box" for your entrance fee. The OS Name Book in 1860 said that the stone was "Supposed to mark the grave of one of the heroes who fell at the battle of Mons Grampus"
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Hi!
I'm a freelance eyewear designer in Edinburgh, exiled from my beloved Perthshire. I also run a website which includes a section on Scotland's many standing stones, stone circles and other old things:
Stravaiging around Scotland
Some things I like:
cake
ale
music
Perthshire
Moscow
You can read more of my ramblings here: http://www.stravaiging.com
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