A double row of barbed wire. They very obviously don’t want visitors.
Image credit: A R Cane
A R Cane
View from the South West. The flag just to the left gives the game away.
Image credit: A R Cane
Looking East. This section is near the main road from the car park at West Stoke (nearest parking for the Kingley Vale Nature Reserve).
Image credit: A R Cane
As you can see this section is reasonably tall, just about two metres high at this point, but there are places where it’s barely visible and actually a ditch in other sections, as it’s name suggests.
Image credit: A R Cane
Panorama looking South West. Shame you can’t see the fantastic view below because of the trees, but they were quite welcome that day as it was blowing a gale up there!
Image credit: A R Cane
Looking East to the (very close!) main road from the back of the barrow.
Image credit: A R Cane
The re-opened tump with small concrete stumps and additional wooden posts. I guess these are to stop the infringement of agriculture and slightly better than the old fence that once surrounded it.
Image credit: A R Cane
Long shot from the rear of the tomb back towards the entrance.
Image credit: A R Cane
Rear left stall with the notch in the stone and, presumably, some new graffiti.
Image credit: A R Cane
The more Easterly and slightly larger barrow of the two bell barrows hidden in the forest.
Image credit: A R Cane
Western barrow viewed from the top of the Eastern barrow.
Image credit: A R Cane
Looking Eastish from the top of the Western barrow.
Image credit: A R Cane
View of both bell barrows with the more easterly barrow in the background.
Image credit: A R Cane
Possibly quite exciting this. The darkish area in the middle between the path on the right and the lighter line running sort of diagonally from left to right indicates the edge of either a small earthwork or a very large disc barrow hidden in the Brighstone forest.
Image credit: A R Cane
Looking back in an Easterly direction. The dark line in the middle-ground showing the barely perceptible ditch and bank.
Image credit: A R Cane
Looking West. There are, according to the OS map, three barrows here, but it’s difficult to make them out individually and you could be mistaken for thinking it was a rather ragged long barrow.
Image credit: A R Cane
Looking North West back towards Brighstone Forest.
Image credit: A R Cane
This, I think, is the isolated barrow near the footpath.
Image credit: A R Cane
View from the top looking West. The soporific sunset belies the barrow’s somewhat ugly history.
Image credit: A R Cane
The strange juxtaposition of ancient and modern. The view, from the top of the mound, back to the main road with the set up for ‘Bestival’ taking place on the left and an old quarry on the right full of skips!
Image credit: A R Cane
Some of the flint tools held in the collection of Rochester Museum.
Image credit: A R Cane
Looking North back towards the mainland. Shame about the barbed wire fence around it, but the field was full of cattle so maybe the farmer was trying to preserve it.
Image credit: A R Cane
Looking East. Sure must be a lot of dead Frenchmen in there!
Image credit: A R Cane
What a wonderful place to be buried! This barrow, the largest, still retains a small ditch around it and Mrs Cane for scale.
Image credit: A R Cane
View looking north from the valley below. These are possibly the most prominent barrows on the island, visible for miles around.
Image credit: A R Cane
Wide shot of the NE stone with one of the many massive recumbent stones in close proximity. Was there ever another structure here as there are a lot of massive stones close by in the hedgerow which have gradually been cleared?
Image credit: A R Cane
NE stone with SW stone just visible on the hedge line and in alignment with the Merry Maidens just down the road.
Image credit: A R Cane
