S Chamber of King’s Cairn (Water of Deugh).
S Chamber of King’s Cairn (Water of Deugh).
N Passage of King’s Cairn (Water of Deugh).
N Chamber of King’s Cairn (Water of Deugh).
Low Curghie Standing Stone (but not for long ...)
Low Curghie Standing Stone with a curious onlooker. (09.07.11)
Low Curghie Standing Stone guarded by stirks (09.07.11).
Google Maps Glenesslin Schoolhouse
Glenesslin Schoolhouse Cairn near Dunscore.
Glenesslin Schoolhouse Cairn viewed from the roadside.
Glenesslin Schoolhouse Cairn has two mature trees sprouting from its summit.
Glenesslin Schoolhouse Cairn is a small cairn located in a narrow wood 2 miles W of Dunscore. The cairn is c.100 yards SE of Glenesslin Schoolhouse in a patch of woodland beside the road. It measures around 50 feet across by 5 feet high. It is covered in vegetation with 2 mature trees sprouting from the summit.
The cairn is listed as Canmore ID 74892 (go to Links).
Directions: From the centre of Dunscore take Kirkgate which leads onto Black Brae at the outskirts of Dunscore. Keep on Black Brae for 1.5 miles then take a R turn to Corsock after a row of cottages. Go through a crossroads after 0.6 miles, continue straight for 500 yards until there is a narrow wood on your L just before a dead end R turn at Glenesslin Schoolhouse. The cairn is in the wood 50 yards back from the junction.
Google Maps view of Arden Fort
Arden Fort near Twynholm.
Arden Fort is an oval fort 0.5 miles W of Twynholm, a village in Dumfries and Galloway. It is situated on a natural hillock covered in gorse and hawthorn. The interior measuring c. 25 by 10 yards is protected by double ramparts and ditches and an elevated location. The fort measures c. 60 yards on the NE-SW axis and 40 yards on the NW-SE axis.
Canmore ID 64045 (go to Links) describes Arden Fort in more detail.
Directions: Take the A75 then turn off into Twynholm. From Twynholm Main Street take the minor road to Kirkcudbright on Burn Brae beside the Star Hotel. Stay on this road for 0.25 miles passing a church to reach the crossroads on the edge of Twynholm. Turn R into Arden Road. After 0.25 miles you pass the last house on this lane to reach the 60 mph speed limit. Around 250 yards later there is a wide gateway on the L with room to park. Arden Fort lies around 200 yards SE of the gateway, hidden under gorse and hawthorn.
A large enigmatic carving on the Idol Rock.
A graffito, possibly a Masonic Blazing Star, on the Idol Rock
Hough Stone Circle S viewed from N. The hill in the centre background is Carnan Mor, the highest point of Tiree, 5 km away.
Hough Cairn is not a large cairn however its proximity to Hough Stone Circle S gives it a greater significance in the landscape. What is the relationship between the cairn and the stone circle? Which site was erected first?
Canmore ID 21432 assigns the Hough Stone Circle S to the Neolithic or Bronze age but Canmore ID 21433 leaves the age of Hough Cairn unassigned. Excavation of the Hough Cairn would provide the answer but there are no archaeological records. The mystery remains.
Hough Cairn looking WNW across Hough Stone Circle S.
Hough Cairn close-up. Note the exposed stones on the W kerb and E interior.
Hough Cairn, Isle of Tiree
Hough Cairn is a cairn on the Isle of Tiree. It lies within 10 yards E of the edge of Hough Stone Circle S. It is a small robbed-out cairn measuring around 7 yards across by up to 0.5 yards high. There are two large stones exposed through the turf which covers the cairn. One stone is in the W kerb, the other in the E of the interior of the cairn. The grassy interior of the cairn has a lumpy profile probably concealing underlying stones. The incomplete perimeter has a kerb measuring 1.0 feet high by 2 feet wide running from NE to SE and a kerb measuring 1.5 feet high by 2 feet wide running from W to N.
Hough Cairn is described in Canmore ID 21433 (go to Links).
I had the same doubts as CARL about the authenticity of the stone circle at Holm of Daltallochan. The stones were not earthfast, they were a variety of sizes and the location round a small hill is unusual.
At best I would describe it as a Stone Setting.
The substantial ramparts of Hilton Wood Castle, up to 14 feet high, are covered by vegetation.
Hilton Wood Castle’s sloping interior has been populated by trees.
I have added Glenterrow Cairn, an almost destroyed cairn 50 metres SE of Glentirrow/Glenterrow Stone circle to TMA. All signs for the stone circle have been removed so after some trial and mostly error I would recommend the following route for visiting Glentirrow/Glenterrow Stone circle.
Directions: Take the New Luce turn off the A75 at the E end of Castle Kennedy village. After 3.5 miles there is a gateway on the L at NX 1478 6240. I would be cautious if there are beef cattle in the field as they can be dangerous. There is a farm track leading N at first then bearing NW into a gateway at a boggy corner. Go through the gate and head SW up the field parallel to the fence for 350 yards. Glenterrow Cairn is in the SW corner of the field. Glentirrow/Glenterrow Stone circle lies 50 metres NW in rough moorland and can be seen from the field corner.
Hardcroft Cairn
There are few things in life as welcome as an unexpected cairn. I was searching for an enclosure in moorland and daylight was running out when a cairn shaped mound lit up the gloom. I had accidently stumbled upon Hardcroft Cairn. It was then that I discovered that my phone had died and daylight was running out. I plugged in my charger hoping that the camera would work before the light disappeared. Fortunately my phone only took 5 minutes to recover so I was able to capture Hardcroft Cairn in the fading light.
Hardcroft Cairn is a turf covered cairn measuring 20 yards across with an earth bank perimeter up to 4 feet high and 4 feet wide. The interior is a robbed-out hollow with little original structure. It lies around 500 metres SE of Hardcroft Farm on the edge of moorland.
Canmore ID 61593 (go to Links) provides further details of this site.
E Arc of Glenterrow Cairn. Glenterrow Four Poster is in the top L of the picture.
Possible Kerb stone on NW point of Glenterrow Cairn earthbank.
NW-SE Axis of Glenterrow Cairn. Glenterrow Fourposter is visible top centre of frame.
Glenterrow Cairn, adjacent to Glenterrow Four Poster.
Glenterrow Cairn is an almost destroyed cairn 50 metres NW of Glenterrow Four Poster. It is in the SW corner of a rectangular field on the edge of moorland. The cairn, 20 yards across, has been reduced to ground level with the exceptions being a 1 foot high earth bank running 90 degrees from SW to NW and a 2 feet high earth bank running 45 degrees from E to SE. The cairn has been stripped of stones except for a clump of stones at the NW point of the bank. There is a large boulder measuring 0.9 x 0.8 x 0.4 metres, a possible kerb stone, with three smaller stones.
It is only a matter of 50 metres SE to Glenterrow Four Poster lying in moorland beyond the fence. This is the easiest and driest route to Glenterrow Four Poster which is now un-signposted and unloved.
The real significance of this cairn is not its condition but its location. Its proximity to the four poster raises the question of the relationship between the two monuments. Were they built at the same time or do they represent different phases of occupation?
A Canmore search for Glenterrow produces Glenterrow Cairn as Canmore ID 61689 (go to Links) as well as two other destroyed cairns within a 500 metre radius.
This changes Glenterrow Four Poster from an isolated site to a site surrounded by other monuments.
Directions: Take the New Luce turn off the A75 at the E end of Castle Kennedy village. After 3.5 miles there is a gateway on the L at NX 1478 6240. There is a farm track leading N at first then bearing NW into a gateway at a boggy corner. Go through the gate and head SW up the field parallel to the fence for 350 yards. Glenterrow Cairn is in the SW corner of the field.
Pennance Entrance Grave (chamber centre frame) viewed from SE.
Pennance Entrance Grave has been used as a dump for large field clearance stones.
The Heaven Stone with Trumpan Church as a backdrop.
There are significant cracks in the top half of the Heaven Stone.
Pennies for Heaven: coins inserted into a crack in the Heaven Stone. Too many appeals to Heaven may lead to its destruction.