Sunday 28th July saw Yvonne Luke leading an intrepid group of 15 IAG explorers to various
prehistoric sites in Cumbria.
Our first meeting point was Long Meg and her daughters stone circle situated to the NW of Penrith. It is huge and consists of 59 stones, some of which remain standing. Long Meg herself stands at 3.7m tall, outside the circle and is made of red sandstone carved with spirals, rings and circles on one face. At winter solstice the sunset creates a shadow from Meg aligned to an entrance in the circle.
Next stop was for an excellent lunch at the Mill Yard Café in the idyllic village of Morland. It was a rare treat to be able to eat outdoors in the sun.
Fully refuelled, we then made our way to view Castlehow Stone Circle. This was much smaller consisting of 10 Shap granite stones and on private land. However, we could view it over a fence, albeit partly obscured by the summer vegetation.
A short distance further on was Oddendale Cairn Circle. This consists of two concentric rings, with the outer one having 34 stones. The views from here were spectacular and we agreed it was a wonderful site for a monument.
Finally, another short drive to Gamelands Stone Circle which has 33 red granite stones with
one exception being limestone.
It was a busy but amazing day, with fascinating prehistoric sites, wonderful weather, stunning views and countryside, good food and lovely company. Thank you to Yvonne for organising it so well and for such clear travel instructions which made it easy getting from site to site. Thank you also to the weather gods!