Tag: Iron Age
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Another day, another dùn
Yesterday, I was unaware of the term “galleried dùn,” but today I came across another one. This is Dùn Ardtreck and is located at Ardtreck Point, near the entrance to Loch Harport. I must say, it is even more remarkable than yesterday’s. To be honest, I’m not entirely sure about the difference between a galleried…
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Birchdale
I had a faint recollection of crossing Newton Mulgrave Moor before and indeed I had. It’s still a bit of a haze though. Lying north of the A174, it’s an unfrequented area. Very flat, and exposed to winds from all directions. But a relatively deep valley provides a welcome incision — Birchdale or Birk Dale…
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Middledean Camp
Viewed from across the precipitous Middledean Burn, the double earthbanks of the Iron Age fort known as Middledean Camp stands out against the smooth rounded hills of Breamish Valley in the Cheviots. Double earthworks such as this are termed ‘bivallate’. Promontary hillforts are those which are defended by steep slopes on 2 or 3 sides.…
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Percy Cross Rigg
Without looking at the map, I would have said the track along Percy Cross Rigg, or to use its Medieval name, Ernaldsti, on its journey south across Great Ayton and Kildale Moors, and on to Westerdale follows a pretty straight route. But this telescopic photo shows just how sinuous it actually is. The name is…
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Dùn Bheolain
I find walking along the western seaboard of Scotland extremely exhilerating. More so that bagging summits in the clag. This is from Rubha Lamanais or Smaull point, just north of Saligo on Islay. It offer superb views of a trio of sharks teeth peaks, sometimes called Smaull Rocks or sometimes Opera Rocks. The latter must…
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Carradale Point
A Brobdingnagian finger pointing due south into the Kilbrannon Sound. The headland is protected by a jungle of rhododendron and populated by feral goats. A narrow dyke of igneous microgabbro 23 to 66 million years old runs down the centreline of the isthmus but the dominant rock is much, much older, heavily banded Schist, folded…
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In search of an Iron Age “encampment” on Highcliffe Nab
I was intrigued by this view of Highcliffe Nab that has been opened by the felling in Guisborough Wood and particularly with what appears to be a distinct earthwork descending diagonally from the nab to the col of Highcliffe Gate. First thing when I got in was to have a look at the Lidar mapping,…
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Crown End, Westerdale
The rigg separating Westerdale and Baysdale is mapped as Crown Head. That’s it on the right, rising to 236 metres (774 feet) at its highest point. Baysdale is the nearer valley, Westerdale straight ahead. Crown Head is best known as a site of pre-historic remains, representing activity between the Bronze Age and late Iron Age.…
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Arthur’s Seat
I think half of Edinburgh must have been up Arthur’s Seat today, a hill described by Robert Louis Stevenson as “a hill for magnitude, a mountain in virtue of its bold design.” The poor old King of Britain asleep in the depths of the extinct 250-metre high volcano must have been turning in his glass…
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Cairns of Yarrows
I seem to get more of an awareness of the history of a place if some effort is needed to get there. A car park close by and manicured grounds somehow sterilises a site. Yarrows Broch was quite an adventure, through bogs, under fences, and detours to avoid over-friendly horses. 2,000 years ago, the broch…