 Previous 20 | Showing 81-94 of 94 fieldnotes. Most recent first
Spectacular just doesn't do this site justice. The astonishing capstone matched with the curvaceous portal stones make this possibly the most impressive sculpture in Ireland, ancient or modern.
You enter through a gate behind the church in Kilclooney More village (not through the field directly behind the church which gets shoe-suckingly boggy very quickly). Ardara where I stayed is a bumpy ten minute drive away and makes a good base for visiting this area. Take some time to explore the amazing landscapes around Dungloe and Glenties while you here.
The small tomb is cute, the fact that its almost ruined adding injury to insult of playing second fiddle to the beast next to it.
In a pile of rocks along the pathway lurks a large suspiciously capstone-like slab resting on two boulders, perhaps it was a discarded capstone, quickly forgotten when the extraordinary present capstone was hauled onto the site.
Kilclooney Dolmen seems to be gaurded by a large black dog, at first I thought the dog came with some tourists who arrived but it turned out not to be theirs. The dog stayed with me until I left as it got dark. Next morning I arrived at 7am for sunrise and the dog was waiting at the tombs again. He seems quite friendly, certainly a bit more than the edgy bulls that were moving around the dense undergrowth like hippos in a pond.
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Exactly located as in The Megalithic European, I was on the way to Reanascreena when I stopped for a coffee and saw these stones in Julian's book. Going with my gut feeling I change my plans and I'm glad in a way.
The tallest of the group of three is superb, reminding me of the massive outlier next to Uragh stone circle, its nearest neighbour is wonderfully craggy and splintered. All the stones are well worn from cattle rubbing on their thin edges, the tall one is especially blade like.
The hedge beside the group of three is a top contender for most undesirable hedge of the year, being too close to appreciate the stones atop of the ridge and perhaps hiding remants of the rest of this monument. Some very large slabs are piled up beneath the bushes.
I was glad of the electric fence dividing the field in two, the bulls here were the most aggressive I've encountered, all stamping hoofs and snorting nostrils. Beware they aren't grazing in the same field as the stones because you cant see most of the field from the gate which looks like its part time electrified too.
The weather brightened up as I was leaving and I had to enjoy the sunset in the Cork traffic...
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Pick a nice day to come here, its really spellbinding in the late evening on a fine day. That bloody pallet is still there though...
I took a good wander around the vicinity today, I never noticed how steep the valley is below the tomb, I didn't go all the way to the bottom but it looks fantastic perched on the edge of the ridge. This is another tomb I find difficult to imagine a cairn around, there is the large platform remains there but it is such a perfect angular structure it would be a shame to hide it away.
There is now an area cleared across the road which, if it is going to be parking, would fit quite a few cars. Most likely another bungalow though...
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This was a nice surprise, the tomb gets little attention due to the spectacular Aughnacliffe Dolmen in the village but its very nice indeed. Even the locals downplayed it, saying it was better to see the other one instead.
The field it is in is down a very narrow boreen and there is very little room to park, best bet is to go past the field and park outside the next house on the right, its hard to tell whether someone still lives there. Its easy to miss as you drive past because in the field opposite there seems to be alot of stones sticking out of the ground that look like the ruins of something or other.
The tomb is larger than I had expected, its at a funny angle but this isn't as noticeable now that the field is so overgrown and it blends in perfectly in the warm evening sun. It clouded over as I was here but for the ten minutes the sun was out it was very nice indeed.
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This tomb almost made me laugh out loud when I saw it first, as you cross the field you can see the top of a luxuriant crop of leaves sticking up over the bank. The thought 'surely it can't be...' was going through my head but yes, there it stood like a peacock pining for a hen.
The tomb itself is great, even the broken and crumbled portal stone cant detract from this one. the construction seems odd, the two back stones form a V shape negating the need for a closing slab. It appers to sit in a long wide cairn but is not in line with it, the portals would have pointed off to the right. Maybe the low mound stretching behind it was not a cairn but it does seem like it.
I saw one ruined passage tomb near to the tomb and a possible second slightly higher above that, the side of the valley seems to step and the tombs are in a mini plateau.
If you are going here, the first thing to look for is not the tomb, its the grumpy bull and his family that hide in the next field until they can cut off your path and out-flank you. They seemed to wait until I was 50 metres away from my camera pack and tripod before launching the manouveres but luckily only the weeny little baby bull looked like he wanted to get physical. Only got a few photos as a result. I will be back!
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This is a beautiful circle and the stones look as ancient as they should do, covered with a thick layer of lichen. Some stones are very human like in stature and shape and get really creepy when it darkens.
It rained heavily while I was here and I was very glad a stone causeway of sorts has been laid to take you to the wooden step-over that brings you into the field with the stones. Its still a bit boggy in wet conditions but could be a lot worse. Unlike some sites the locals (landowner?) seem to encourage visitors, there is a little purple sign to point you in the right direction as its not immediately obvious which is the best way to get to it.
The views are spectacular, even in mist and drizzle, the fog blowing over the mountains above adding to the epic-like feel.
No photos this time though.
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As you can see in some of the photos above there is now a rope around the small cairn with a little sign ironically asking people to respect the moument. There was some small scale building work going on near the gate to the tomb at the roadside last time I was here and I had the horrible feeling they were building a turnstile or something to 'manage' visitors. Turns out its going to be a small wall probably with a plaque and some info on it. Or maybe a stall for selling "Mum went to Poulnabrone and all I got was this lousy T-Shirt made by a six year old in the Far East" type stuff.
While I was here I met some genuine bone fide idiots: two were dancing around it on one leg in their bermuda shorts making 'pow wow wow wow' noises and another was asserting to the older folk that sacrificed animals were placed on top to please the sun god. Marvelous.
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The extremely large Ballyganner tomb was the first visit today, this was the last, therefore I could appreciate the massive size of this with not too much of a comparison to the more visited site.
Its fairly easy to spot as you reach the top of the hill on the farmtrack, you can see the front edge of the huge capstone. As you get nearer though it dissapears from view and you have to keep your bearings to find it.
Its BIG! Probably second in size to BGS I. The capstone is in place but is either two seperate stones or has broken, the inside has cairn debris piled up. It now also has a large tree as a companion and it seems to be growing from the tombs rear end. In front is a small altar like outcrop.
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What a little gem this is, so close to the road too!
I noticed something interesting in the next field that got me excited, something I haven't seen mentioned before anywhere. In the next field south of the tomb there is a set of large stones in a rough line very close to one another. The middle stone has a very clear U shaped groove in it and on each side is a large boulder. If you stand on the south end and look through the groove from where the south boulder is, your looking straight at the tomb above! If you look from the north end (from the tomb entrance direction) the groove points directly at a notch in the horizon where two hills meet. Very intriguing. This tomb, as has ben pointed out before, is unusually aligned north-south.
See the image above for a view looking northish at the tomb.
I spent quite some time here, scanning the tomb and scanning the countryside for something that would make the little red dots on the OS map make sense. Too many thornbushes and too little time..
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It should have been perfect! Such a beautiful little circle in an amazing landscape, at sunset...
Its easy to find as long as you dont take the left at the fork in the lane, its signposted well apart from here. The little honesty box really bemused the people who were leaving as I arrived, I gave the 'subtley suggested' donation of €2. From the other photos I assumed it was very high up on a mountain side but its on quite a low ridge compared to the surroundings. The waterfall in the photos above seems to be very weather dependent as I could not see it at all but I could make out its path down the mountainside.
There had been glorious sunshine all day so I was a bit dissapointed that it clouded over as I made my way across the soggy bog. When the sun did eventually come out, so did the flies, the most savage swarm of the little buggers I've ever had the misfortune of walking into. They were truly vicious, they got in everywhere, down my neck, and up my sleeves. I had to retreat to the car defiantly taking zoom shots from the top of the hill on the way back.
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I don't usually get odd twinges at most sites. Maybe it was just the fact that the portal stones were as tall as me, but walking through them felt like the feeling you get going through a police checkpoint.
The electric fence is too damn close, other than that this is a nice circle with some odd bits and pieces lying around outside it.
The southern part of the ridge it sits on is rapidly becomming engulfed in briars, hopefully someone in the locality keeps it in check.
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I nearly hit a ditch on the main road to Rosscarberry when I saw this clinging to the side of the valley. I wasn't expecting it to be so near the road, in fact I thought I wouldn't have time to go and find it at all. It 'looks' accessible from the road and with all the gorse and bracken removed from around it, it stuck out like a sore thumb.
After a few minutes knocking on the door of the farm and shouting into the various barns I gave up looking for permission and directions and made my way downhill. I probably went the hard way, figuring it would be easier to see looking up the ridge rather than down, there may be a path there somewhere but it was a pretty hairy climb up to it once I finally found it.
It is a very nice tomb, the chamber is too collapsed to climb inside though and it leans at a seemingly dangerous angle. It has two plate like stones lying horizontally on the backstones supporting the capstone, careful planning and practical construction most likely saved this tomb from total collapse.
A nice tomb with plenty of character.
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Not as easy to find as I had thought, though it is well signposted once you get near to it. The portal tomb is fantastic, in a secluded little grove all of its own it seems to enjoy a little protection from the elements and agriculture/development. Because you cant see it until you are right beside it it seems all the more impressive and imposing when you do reach it after the anticipation of walking up the trackway and through the gate.
It has been rebuilt and supported of course, but most of the evidence is hidden inside the tomb or covered in moss and undergrowth so that from the outside it looks pretty much untouched.
While I struggled to get photos while crouched in the bushes and wearing a pair of gloves to stop my fingers freezing off (surely the one great advantage of plastic camera bodies!) I wasnt getting photos as good as this tomb deserves. I was about to pack up and leave when a torrential shower poured down on top of me, the choice was either to make a run for the car or get inside and hope for the best! The ugly concrete beam inside the tomb doesnt add much to the feel of the tomb, but it makes a practical seat right between two uprights, giving great shelter!
Once the rain had stopped I decided to try using the flash in wireless mode after fiddling around with it inside during the shower. The first few looked promising, part of the tomb is under the cover of a tree and shaded from the light, the photos looked a lot more balanced with a bit of illumination over this part to the front of the tomb, and under the capstone. Getting in closer and as low as possible from the opposite side, facing the sun, I could feel the tomb looming over me and with the widest possible angle I got a few shots that really show the carachter of the place and the dominance of the tomb. At last! All thanks to the rain and bitter wind :)
Photos here: http://www.cianmcliam.smugmug.com/gallery/353977
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Wow, what a place! The 'ring' is huge, a well preserved high bank with steep sides apparently used as a sports and recreation centre by the locals! Dozens of people walking, cycling, kiting, playing football and jogging, with a small army of children using the megalithic tomb in the centre as a climbing frame-cum-fortress. Great. At least it does have easy access and a carpark though I would have traded that for a less crowds and more quiet...
The tomb itself is very nice, it does have traces of grafitti and the stones are rubbed smooth from the feet of thousands of kids but at least its still standing and isn't enclosed by an ugly fence.
I've seen lots of great photos of this tomb (one won a stage of photographer of the year in a magazine) and it seemed the kids would prevent me from getting a few moments alone to study it and the surrounding henge (with nearby trees). Slowly circling a group of young children playing under the watchful eye of their parents isnt really a great idea so I took the opportunity to walk the entire circumference of the henge in the freezing wind, dodging dogs and joggers. The park has a sign warning that the gates are closed at 4 o'clock in the evening. It was a quater to. Marvellous.
Five to four and the crowds vanish into thin air, a couple and their kids arrive to fly their kite so figuring they must be wise to the gate times I made my way to the tomb in the centre as quick as possible unpacking the camera gear as I go. After the experiences using wireless fill flash at Gaulstown Dolmen, I pretty much knew what I wanted in my head so in the ten minutes I had the place almost to myself I got shots of every angle with different sidelighting arrangements, trees in the distance lined up nicely though the sunset was a bit of a damp squib.
I also realised why I should always carry the tripod with me, the angle of the flash from the ground is just too low and the little stand thing Nikon bundle doesn't work so great in the grass. In future I'll bring at least one if not two tripods to hold either the flash or the camera, this should hopefully avoid the bright patch of grass along the line of flash. Much better.
A great place to visit, though make it early to avoid the multitudes!
Photos here:
http://cianmcliam.smugmug.com/gallery/359909/1/14303199
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