Stone Circles
Richards Mountain Pages


Stonehenge The most impressive of Britains stone circles is undoubtedly Stonehenge in Wiltshire. Standing on high ground its huge upright stones dwarf the visitors that throng around its base. How the capping stones were placed across the top of adjacent uprights is still very much a mystery. Even shifting these multi ton rocks would have been a massive undertaking. However for all its grandeur, Stonehenge is marred by the ugly concrete visitor centre, and the high wire fences placed to stop people even getting a photograph for free from the roadside. My tip is to use the footpath on the far side of the monument for free.
Calanish/Calanais This is not strictly a circle (more of a cross really). In contrast to Stonehenge, this monument (almost as important as Stonehenge) has far fewer visitors due to its remoteness, yet to many is equally impressive. They are free to view, and have an unobtrusive visitor centre nearby. The stones are Lewisian Gneiss, and so have a remarkable texture that gives them an organic look. This is most notable in bright sunlight after a shower. My tip for these is to approach them in a shower, when everyone else is seeking shelter. This will give you a few minutes to appreciate them in sunlight and solitude when the shower has finished.
For a quick tour of these visit my Lewis page

Machrie Moor Over on the Isle Of Arran lies a set of six smaller stone circles that receive few visitors. One of the circles has a few large stones, but most are quite small. One particular circle drew my attention - its stones alternated between granite and sandstone - the two local rock types. Is this a decorative style, or is there more meaning in this?
My tip for here is to take a round the island (or half of it) bus, stopping off for an hour or two. If you miss the bus back, walk to Blackwaterfoot via the coastal caves - another historic site. Entry to the stones is free, but there are no facilities. Shelter cna be found in a nearby barn.

Brodgar Ring and Stone Of Stenness These are two contrasting stone circles a couple of miles apart on Orkney. the Brodgar ring is a large circle of fairly large stones, one of which is marred by grafitti from the 1700's. The stones of Stenness is a much smaller ring of taller stones. To reach both take the tourist bus to Skara Brae from Kirkwall (Summer only). This gives ten minutes at Stenness and twenty at Brodgar, before dropping you off at Skara Brae for four hours.

Avebury Otherwise known as the village of the stones, Avebury is famed as the village inside a stone circle. Few buildings are left within the ring now, as Victorian archeaologists demolished many of the houses in an attempt to restore the site. Indeed many of the buildings contained stones taken from the circle and broken up as building material. Those of a certain age group may remember a creepy childrens TV drama in the 1970's - Children Of The Stones was filmed here. To reach Avebury take the hourly bus from Salisbury / Swindon, which stops at the Red Lion in the village centre. From here you can also visit Silbury Hill and the nearby West Kennett Long Barrow - a chambered burail mound.

Castlerigg This circle in the Northern Lake District is not known so much for its stones, but for the setting. It is surrounded by hills, and higher peaks, which make for good photographs - particularly at dawn and dusk. Because of this you'll be lucky to get them to yourself - even for a 4am sunrise.

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