Standing stones

This Blog is full of dangers, digression being the worst. It's going to end up being stream of consciousness stuff, with the original aim lost in the process. On the other hand it's been said, "... it's the journey not the arrival ..."

I suppose Stonehenge in 1964 was my first awareness of standing stones. That was back in the days when you could touch them, in fact I think some of our school party climbed on them & mimed a sacrifice. In those days I had no digital camera to whip out & snap, nor was I inclined to draw anything! We rambled around Avebury too!

Scotland with the same teachers & again a stone circle, much less grand lurked near our campsite in Glen Lyon. Then came Ireland in 1966 where they seemed to be more densely packed than people! I'm not sure if I had a Box Brownie of not. Probably not, I was more concerned with life just washing over me than trying to catch any of it.

Climbing on Derbyshire gritsone brought a closer proximity to local stones & taking children walking put the boot on the other foot so to speak, from the early encounters when I was the pupil! Then I started to record them. These first 2 are the circle above Froggatt over 20 years ago. The main stone is still there - I visited it with children this year. The circle is still visible, but less of the stones stand, the passage of time having been speeded by the passage of feet.

The next one is a few miles away & has more stones. Had more stones ... I've not been back recently
This one is close by too, but a little lonely.

Then returning to Ireland reminded that there are more lonely stones. One overlooks Valencia Island, Killelan & Mortimer's campsite at Mannix Point, Caherciveen, Co. Kerry. Looking for these photos took me through others that belong in this blog, but were not of standing stones & only reminded me that we did not go last year & probably won't go this year either ...

We searched out loads of them over the years. Some were in spectacular places, some were almost inccessible. Cycling across bog on an ordinary touring bike is not recommended. Kath had one of the early steel frame "mountain bikes." I managed a complete somersault at one point when the front wheel dug in. Good job it was a dry year! When we got to the stone marked on the map it turned out to be one of the ones defaced by Christian influences. That was not the worst, on Valencia Island, one had been smashed & used to construct a shrine with a plastic madonna in!

The one at the back of Beentee behind Carhiciveen took the most spotting, but was worth it. It made me think of a petrified wizard. (As in turned to stone, not frightened!)

The colour treatment for a Christmas card was my favourite.

I had aimed not to write much in this blog, but you know how it is ...

I've got a tee-shirt that says "Mick - can talk for England," it's a good job the person who gave it me doesn't read everything I write!