Harelaw Crags featured as the bonus site at the 2006 Rock Art Meet, and as such probably saw more visitors in one afternoon than it had in the previous year.
One of the most frequently remarked observations was that the carvings on this low ridge of outcrop seem to be the survivors of quarrying. Leading to much speculation about how much rock art may have once been there.
Another much noted aspect of the site was the fact that the trees do not half get in the way of an otherwise excellent view of the Cheviot to the south.
As was discovered at RAM06, if you keep walking down to the bottom of the cleared patch between the trees, there is a gate, saving much snagging-on-the-wire.
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The suspiciously flat bottomed cup just has to be an enhanced natural feature. No-one could peck such a flat cup.
Midway between the two panels, is a possible 'sname', (a shallow, fire-reddened bowl). Or something that looks like one. If they exist. Which they might not. And even if they do, they might not be archaeologically significant. And even if they are, they might not be prehistoric, let alone contemporary with the rock art.
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Visible from the road leading to Doddington, this bit of carved outcrop has been pretty heavily weathered, it's in a very exposed location. But this means the view over the Millfield plain is excellent, in the olden days, this would have overlooked a henge or three, as there's shedloads of the on the plain. The view also gives a nice profile of the Cheviot and her pals, whilst maintaining a visual link with the other rock art sites on Doddington Moor.
It's currently used as a soapbox by sheep who want to bleat at the passing traffic, and for target practise by the local avian community (Maybe they're actually aiming at the proseletising sheep?)This post appears as part of the blog post " A week in Chatton" |
Gled Law is the name given to the southern side plateau of Doddington Moor. From the moor, up on the hillfort, or by the main panel of rock art at Dod Law, Gled Law seems to be low lying, but this is deceptive. From the fancy panels on the edge, the view across to the Cheviot massif gives the opposite impression.
It's possible to approach from the north, dipping down off the edge of Dod Law via the path down from the sheperds house, or it's just as straightforward to park a car down at the bend between High Weetwood and Weetwood Hall.
The path up from Weetwood involves clambering over a strange raised metal sheep-baffling device, which also serves to make buggy/wheelchair access a bit of a serious (but not insurmountable) problem.
There were once a number of cairns in the field, which were still there when Canon Greenwell did his stuff, but which are now untraceable.
The carvings are excellent examples, and in a good light are easily spotted, amongst some of the finest in Northumberland. In a poor light, they seem to recede into the surface of the rock, not in the same ghostly way as those at Chatton, seeming more camouflaged than faint.This post appears as part of the blog post " A week in Chatton" |
As well as the rock art on the hill, Ros Castle (as the name suggests) also is the site of a prehistoric fort. The hillfort earthworks are difficult to discern, not helped by being sliced in two by a boundary wall, with a lot of heather on each side. The road runs quite close, and whilst there are a couple of steep patches, it's probably worth a detour this way for anyone heading from the Cheviots to the A1. The ground underfoot is loose sandy soil with rocky protuberances, not suitable for wheeled contrivances, and looks like it would need extra care in the wet.
The view is excellent, with the most of Bewick Moor stretching to the south, I think it's just possible to make out Old Bewick Hillfort. The vista is edged on the south east by Hepburn crags, with it's cupmarked cairns, cists, and a small hillfort. To the east, the coast is easily visible, and Bamburgh castle stands out like a sore thumb. To my minor chagrin, the long cairn at Ox eye isn't visible, though it may well have been if the trees weren't there. To the north, the lost carvings of Amerside Law also hide behind conifererous screening, with the Lammermuirs clearly visible on the horizon, I'd think it would be possible to see as far as Edin's Hall broch. To the west is the Cheviot Massif, an omnipresent silhouette, best viewed from the smaller hills to the east, such as Ros Castle.This post appears as part of the blog post " A week in Chatton" |
The cottage is now inhabited again, so it's the sensible place to ask for permission to go check the gatepost.
The gatepost is at the far side of the field to the left of the cottage as you approach from the road.
Shame it's not in situ, as the vicinity affords good views down Allendale and along the Tyne valley, so there may have been more. It does look as if the marked stone this gatepost came from was bigger.
It's got to be possible that it came from a cist rather than the presumed outcrop, as it's reminiscent in form to the cist cover at Stanniston Hill, which ain't all that far away.
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Visited July 1998
Small thing, but with some nice quartzy bits. I remember a poor choice of route, assuming that following the path through the (now feled) plantation just uphill from the ford at Wester Gorton was the shortest route. Piffle is it. It means yomping uphill through serious heather and boggy bits. There were traces of seashells on the peat, presumably part of some long forgotten farmng. Much more sensible route is to head straight up to the crest of the ridge and walk down. It makes a circular walk taking in the nearby cairn and cist more of a 'T' shape than a circle, but I reckon it'd be quicker than the yomping.
Seem to remember there were also traces of a large carnivore in some of the hut circles. Which is partly why I legged it back home before it got dark. Just in case.
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Visited July 1998
We were well chuffed to see the signpost on the main road. Bonus stones! At the time I was under the impression that it was a bona fide stone circle, and was mildly puzzled by the extra bits off to the side. Not putting two and two together, and unlike the sensible Ms Mofflinson - not reading the plaque, it wasn't for a couple of years that I saw it in a list of Clava cairns and the penny dropped. Given it's proximity to the houses, it makes a lot of sense that the remains of the inner bits were turfed over.
It's a nice set of stones. But in retrospect I'm niggled at by the thought that there may have been a cup marked stone, and it might still be hiding somewhere nearby. I shan't bother to check though, as a negative result would spoil my enjoyment of the possibility. That and the fact that it's miles away.
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I'll echo TomBo's comments below about memory overlap. I lost track of which of these circles was which, and after 6 months I'm left with a sense of jaggedy swirly silhouetted shapes that makes me sigh contentedly to recall.
I will also heartily endorse the Clarkian nomenclature for those unable to pronounce the proper names. 'Gary' is so much nicer than a soul-less roman numeral.
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Sited on the edge of the MoD firing ranges, in an area dripping with prehistoric remains, the Drake Stone is a 30 foot tall sandstone erratic perched conspicuously on a ridge above Coquetdale. It's prominent profile makes it easily visible as you travel through the valley, and affords the stone itself an extensive view north to the Cheviot massif. It's not far from the road, but the last 40m or so are very tricky going. It's easiest to take the path through the trees, and circle around the stone making the last approach from the west rather than the obvious, but very awkward route from the east.
A short distance (10m or so) to the NW is a circular depression in the outcrop which may have been metal-tooled, it's difficult to say as nearby outcrop bears the same marks, which could be the result of erosion through the strangely convoluted matrix of the sandstone.
Alternatively, just to the west of the stone (Altitude:273m NT 91985, 04435, accuracy: 7m, Garmin E-trex) is a earthfast boulder which could fit the bill for a small bullaun type basin, similar to those described by Beckensall as enhanced natural basins, of which there a couple, each associated with rock art, one a couple of miles to the east at Lordenshaw, and another a similar distance to the NE at Football Cairn.
Neither of the basins near the Drake Stone have been recorded on the Beckensall archive, but if that's because no-one has heard of them, or because no-one has looked, or if it's because they looked and discounted the basins, I do not know. See the reference to a 'Drudical rock basin' in the folklore post below, either of these basins could be the one mentioned by Murray, although it's possible that neither of them are the thing he mentioned. To my mind, the smaller of the two is the more likely of the two presented here, as there were faint traces of what could be interpreted as peck marks consistent with those seen on other prehistoric carvings on similar stone. There is the possibility that slightly different punctuation in Murray's description alters the location of the basin. If the sentence is read: "..the Draag Stone of the Druids, by a small tarn. Near it is a druidical rock basin." Then the basin is nearer the stone than it is to the lough. I couldn't find anything nearer to the lough than to the stone, though subsequent visits may prove otherwise (I'm still hoping that there may be there more definite rock art in the vicinity, as there are near the basins at North Lordenshaw and Football Cairn (e))
Regarding the significance of the Drake Stone itself in prehistory, in conjunction with the local folklore about healing children, it seems to me to have been a very likely spot for use throughout the ages. The outcrops around the erratic form natural shelters, making it a high quality vantage point and suitable for Mesolithic wanderers keeping an eye out for animals drinking on the edges of the gravel terraces of the river Coquet. It's placed on the putative edge of two Bronze Age territories, as is evidenced by the cross dyke a mile or so to the east, for whatever that implies. Equally, it could be just as useful as an Iron Age lookout, having a good view of a major route from the hills to the sea, with intervisibility to a number of beacon hills. This possible use could presumably have continued as recently as the 17thC when one takes into account the endemic Border Reiver activities in the area. Given the position as a good route to pass unobserved from Coquetdale to Redesdale across what is now the MoD ranges, this seems fairly likely.
Regarding any possible 'ritual' significance in prehistory, the 19thC reference to druids is obviously an artefact of the predilections of the Victorian craze for all things druidic. But then there's the tentative idea that the stone's proximity to Harbottle Lough may have afforded it significance to anyone to whom lakes were somehow connected to the underworld. It would also have been one heck of a platform for any priestly character who was nimble enough to climb it. They'd be silhouetted very well when viewed by a crowd in the valley below. I can see why Murray was happy to accept it as a 'druidical' site; it just has that kind of feel to it. If the druids didn't use this stone, well shame on them, they missed a good venue for a gig. These days it displays a mysterious offering much different from those one normally finds at a bonafide prehistoric site. Instead of flowers, crystals or whatever left by neopagans, there is a small bundle consisting of a metal rod and two brushes tied with a shoelace, presumably left by a member of the strange cult of 'Bouldering'.
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After a child friendly visit during the day, we went back in the dark, with a big lamp, to see if side-lighting would pick out the putative cup mark on the central stone (See Kammer's photo). Unfortunately, no joy, the photos were blurry and filled with noise.
In retrospect, it was easier to see the possible cupmark in daylight. It's definitely a small circular depression, but is it natural or man made? Without other examples of cup marks in gneiss to use as points of reference, I think it's impossible to say one way or the other. A close study of the occurance of similar features may indicate statistical corellation, but even then I supppose that's not proof of artificial origin.
Stone circles are extra-wonderful places when experienced in the dark. Both here and Avebury give out a totally diffferent type of somethingness when visited at night compared to that which they give out during the day.
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August 2006
Summertime again, but this time low overcast, terrible light for viewing rock art. Headed home before it got properly dark, precluding fancy photos.
Still enjoyed it though. Made the acquiaintance of a couple of supremely weird looking Germanic fellas, who had visited not to see the rock carvings per se, but because they had been told that from this spot, the whirlpool of Coryvreckan could be seen. This ties in with thoughts of spiral motifs both here and at Templewood. For apparently Coryvreckan is a formidable natural feature, maybe worthy of note back in the days of rock carving and circle building.
August 2005
Summertime, clear sky, late evening, just before the sun hits the horizon, midge central, but the light hits at the perfect angle, and no-one else there. Lovely.
If you ain't into climbing over the railings, the camera-onna-stick method of monopod assisted photography can get some nice closeups. I was interested in some motifs which looked like they'd been 'had at' in ancient times. As if their meaning or creator had become unwanted, resulting in the deliberate and public desecration (if that's an applicable word?) of the carvings.
As far as I'm concerned, Achnabreck lived up to the hype.
(But it still dunt beat Ketley Crag for sheer CnR loveliness!)
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Even when it's windy, the walls are high enough to make a nice relaxed picnic quite possible.
This is such a wonderfully secluded and cozy valley, well worth the scary drive up the unfeasibly twisty-steep road to get here. It's a bit easier from Skye, via a slightly less twisty road, and with the added advantage of the spinning ferry.
Disabled access
Not good for wheelchairs, the incline is steep and uneven. It's close to the road though, about 20 yards, so quite visitable by those who can't easily walk far.
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August 2006 :-
Had a good mooch about here on a number of occasions over the space of a week at Slockavullin. The top couple of houses of Slockavullin are the ones visible up the bank from the circle. Not far at all, offering the opportunity to easily visit at night.
It has a much nicer atmosphere in the dark. Had the place to myself for hours. Must be careful on those loose cobbles in the nightime rain though.
Much of the time there was spent pondering the possible connection between the spiral carvings here, and the whilpool/waterspout at the nearby Gulf of Corryvreckan. Supposedly, it's sometimes possible to hear the roaring of the whirlpool from around Kilmartin.
I'm not convinced the double ring is totally artificial. It looks like 'enhanced natural' at best. Maybe it's one of these ones that needs the right light.
August 2005 :-
In terms of accessibility for wheelchairs/buggies, templewood is about as good as it gets. I was immensey chuffed to see it has it's own disabled parking bay, though it's also accessible via the car park for the Nether Largie stones (The great X), though this involves a substantially longer route, but then any route would be longer as the Templewood disabled bay couldn't really be any closer without being in the circle.
Oh, and the spirals are nice too.
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One thing that struck me about this place was the excellent view that standing the terrace to the north would give. I didn't have the time or inclination to run up to check it out, but I bet a good view of the remains of the cairn could be had from up there.
The ground around the cairn is ridiculously uneven, the fairly dry parts were ankle-twistingly rutted, the surface obscured by grass, and the boggier bits were at least 8 inches deep in quagmire (They may have been deeper, but I pulled my foot out).
Yet the cairn itself is rather nice. I'd love to see it in winter when the undergrowth is asleep.
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The way the outcrop seems to be the edge of a ledge, got me to wondering if the whole 'terraced' aspect of the Kilmartin landscape might have been subtly different in ages gone by. Particularly in that at some point, there may have been lots more outcrop, before the soil built up. The theorised processional routes may have been lined with stone ridges I got to thinking. Then again, it could be that the edge here is the result of quarrying at some point? That happens a lot with Northumbrian rock art, but I don't know if Kilmartin rock art ever suffered in the same way.
Wheelchair access is not good, even though the path is fenced off from here to Dunchraigaig cairn, it's on a serious camber, so chairs would probably tip to the side.
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The carpark opposite the cairn is the starting point to visit the cairn, then to the left north), Baluachraig and then to the right, Ballymeanoch stones and henge. Paths lead from Dunchraigaig to each of the other sites.
Disabled access to Dunchraigaig is possible, but involves a short hop over the main road, which could be a bit hairy.
Dunchraigaig cairn has a couple of cists, the outer one easiest to see, with another peeking from the top. There's also a small group of stones to the left of the cairn (as you're looking from the road), I have no idea what these might be, but they may be connected with the cairn in some way.
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We found this site barely accessible with a 3-wheeler buggy. It's pretty steep and rocky on the way up, and very rough, bumpy stuff up at the top. Some of the bumps and ridges between the two panels have hints of natural features used as enclosure/boundaries. Difficult to say though as he natural strata appear to just go their own way and not ay heed to what humans might expect them to do.
The first panel you come to is the one which is allegedly makes use of natural cracks in the schist to create a fishlike motif. It takes a bit of a stretch of the imagination, but I suppose it could be a fish, but only just. It's not exactly fishlike in the way that the Australian rock engravings look like fish, but I suspect the person who first suggested the fish theme may well have seen some of the Aboriginal motifs and may have just imposed the idea onto some otherwise random cracks in the surface at Cairnbaan.
The top panel is a joy to behold. I loved the way the different elements contribute and connect into the whole. High quality rock art.
Careful not to Park in the hotel car park, as the signs indicate that they might get a bit miffed. The space in front of the row of houses is fine though, the path up to the carvings is between the hotel and the houses.
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Despite being well known, well signposted and right close to the road, this site isn't really accessible to wheelchairs or buggies, though it would be no problem to carry a bairn the short distance from the road, it's on too much of a slope to get a chair to a position where you could see the carvings.
I wish I'd noticed Rockartuk's photo of Panel 2, which looks rather special. As it is, I didn't, so it will have to wait 'till next time.
I'm pretty sure there are also few cup-marks just above the main panel, outside the lovely metal fence.
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This stone is greeeeeeen. It also has bits of offerings on the top. In the form of coins, ribbons and a pebble with the word 'Futhark', written all runey.
No sign of any of the alleged missing stones, but on the edge of the trees, a very clear view of the silhouette of Simonside is visible. In this bit of the world, no prehistoric monument is complete without close proximity such a view. Shame the trees block it from the stone.
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I like the Prehistoric Rock Art of Northumberland:
Ketley Crag
Chatton
Weetwood Moor
Dod Law
Roughting Linn
Lordenshaw
Fowberry Cairn
Hunterheugh
Old Bewick
Morwick
Currently obsessed with waving torches at things, often including rocks, as a prelude to some serious waving of torches at rocks that will inevitably appear here on tma at some point :)
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