Posted by Suzanne McMinn on December 1, 2006 @ 9:27 am
Globetrotting
While I was in England, I didn’t tour a single stately building. I did, however, spend a lot of time climbing over hedges and stone walls and fences to look at the prehistoric remains of Britain’s past.
Hello, my name is Suzanne, and I am addicted to old rocks.:yes:
The best part about stumbling around the English boonies looking for old rocks was driving through all the picturesque villages surrounded by rugged, windswept cliffs and gentle rolling moorland. The West Country is truly magnificent and if I’d done nothing in England but drive around Cornwall, I’d have been happy. Oh, wait, I did do almost nothing in England but drive around Cornwall, LOL.
Amazing to me was how all these incredibly dramatic relics are just sitting in fields on the side of remote, narrow country lanes, often without any sign to indicate they are there. Without a guidebook or a helpful “petrol station” attendant, they are hard to find, and I wondered how such unsupervised monuments would fare in the U.S. I imagine ne’er-do-wells in America taking sledgehammers or spray paint to them….. Following the spectacular coastal road out of Penzance, we managed to find the Merry Maidens just over this hedge.
We climbed over a wooden gate into a farmer’s field to see what is known as the most well-preserved circle in Cornwall. The Merry Maidens circle is believed to be complete, which is rare. Made up of 19 granite stones, the Bronze Age creation is neat and regular, forming a perfect circle. Legend has it that the stones are the remains of 19 girls struck by a mighty thunderbolt and turned to granite for stopping in the field to dance on their way to Sunday vespers. Presumably, this story was promoted by the early Christian Church to stop the pagan Cornish peasantry from carrying on with their wild ways.
Most likely, the circle was used for some long-lost religious purpose, but I like better the explanation of controversial British archaeologist Thomas Lethbridge who claimed to have felt electric shocks from the Merry Maidens stones and theorized force lines beneath the ground served as guidance beacons for UFOs. Kinda like in my PAX League book Third Sight!!
On another country lane, I climbed over a hedge to get to the prehistoric chambered tomb of Lanyon Quoit. I just about killed myself scrambling onto the top of this hedge, then teetered along it to get to a spot where I could get down, only to discover…..
…..this lovely little stone step entrance, LOL.
Quoits, also known as dolmens or cromlechs, are typically made up of large standing stones supporting a capstone. It is believed quoits were once covered by mounds of soil removed by time and would have been used for burials and religious ceremonies.
The Nine Stones, near the village of Winterbourne Abbas in Dorset, is a small stone circle thought to have been constructed about 4000 years ago, also for religious purposes. The circles and nearby barrows may have flanked a prehistoric trackway now followed by the modern road, and the locals seemed quite in tune with the controversial British archaeologist as the first thing our host at the bed-and-breakfast in East Lulworth told us was that it was part of the magnetic grid.
I think I need to send a PAX agent back to England. Hmm. I should definitely go with!!!
Posted by Suzanne McMinn on December 1, 2006 @ 9:27 am
10:28
am
Well, it looks as if you had a great time!
When my parent and I went to England and Scotland, it also was mostly for the nature. It’s sooo beautiful there!!!:heart:
10:36
am
What beautiful pictures, it looks so intriguing, someplace I would love to visit. Yes, I think you should have a PAX agent go to England, with you naturally………
11:06
am
Sounds like you had a wonderful time. What a wonderful journey.
11:47
am
Love the pictures. I’d love to go there some day.
12:49
pm
I would love to spend time travelling all over England. It would be fascinating and a wonderful experience. Your pics are amazing andI have been enjoying them.
1:47
pm
What a wonderful trip you had! I’m enjoying your comments and pictures.
1:58
pm
Your trip looks unbelievable and I am so caught up with the gorgeous pics, scenes and travel. Love it all.
2:23
pm
It would appear that you had a great trip. I have always wanted to trave abroad. (Doesn’t that sound romantic?) My favorite dream is to visit Greece. Not so much the cities but the small villages and countryside as well as the small islands. Oh well, it never hurts to dream. The pictures are fantastic. Can’t wait to see more. Have a great day and hugs to all.:wave:
2:25
pm
Your pictures are great. It all looks beautiful.
2:46
pm
Great pictures, Suzanne!
3:00
pm
I am totally loving your pictures and trip report!!!
3:01
pm
Oh! Meant to ask if you saw in pirates while you were in Penzance.
4:42
pm
I’m fascinated by the history overseas — we’re such a young country! I’d love to go visit, but my DH was in the service and says he’s done with world travel.
Thanks for the pictures — they’re the next best thing to being there.
5:13
pm
I am very envious of your travels…I wish I could visit England. Great pictures.
5:27
pm
I’m totally enjoying the slide show and tour
Would love to win Third Sight too 
8:04
pm
Cool! Thanks for sharing your pictures and story. I’d love to go there. I’ve always wanted to visit the Pride and Prejudice locations.
2:40
am
What a beautiful trip you took. I would love to be able to take a whole year off to check out an area like that.
11:43
am
Looks like you had a great time. I would love to go to Ireland someday.
12:09
pm
So glad you had a wonderful trip. Love the pictures!
12:12
pm
I went to England on a literary tour in college. LOVED it and completely fell in love. I admit, I’m an Anglophile through and through (which explains why I adore James Bond and especially Daniel Craig).
Unfortunately, when I went to see Stonehenge, I was the victim of a bad hangover (too many bitter beers at the pub the night before) and threw up on the bus right when we got there. I stumbled outside, took a few pictures, looked at the rocks for mere seconds, then went back into the bus and went to sleep.
It sucks being sick when you’re on vacation, even though it was mostly a self-induced sickness.
2:21
pm
Great photos, Suzanne. I’m going to have to get dh to take a trip like that soon. We tend to never make it outside of London. :roll:
6:39
pm
Wow i’m very envious of your trip looks like you had a wonderful time. I never knew rocks could look so beautiful. Some pretty awesome pictures. Glad you had a good time.:thumbsup:
7:54
pm
Lovely pictures
Glad you had a good time.
9:04
pm
The only “stones” I saw in Britain was Stonehenge. But in France we saw dolmens and a lot of other standing stones around Carnac in Brittany I think it was. That’s an amazing field too. I’d never heard the word “quoit” before. Now I’ll know what it means.
I think we must have similare interests. I love all these prehistoric sites. We were in several mound graves. I was glad we didn’t have to stay underground for lond.
So I hope you got a really good rest. Doing something you enjoy–unless you’re rushing around–is better than a rest. I never did get to Cornwall. It’s supposed to be quite different from the rest of Britain. Really great photos again. By the way, how far are you from Wheeling? It just came up in a quiz.
9:16
pm
I enjoyed all the photos. Those stones are very interesting.
4:47
am
Oh, I’d love to visit England someday. So far I’ve only seen the Heathrow Airport.
7:29
am
Ruby, Wheeling is a long way from here. I’m not sure exactly but several hours!
7:47
am
Wheeling is about 3 1/2 hours from Walton.
10:25
am
Cool pics and stories! Thanks for sharing.
1:10
pm
Great pictures…looks like a fun and interesting trip!
2:26
pm
Great pictures! I’d love to visit there.
10:00
pm
The pictures are absolutely gorgeous. And I love the tidbits you learned. Sounds like there might be potential for perhaps another Pax book related to Third Sight?? http://www.suzannemcminn.com/blog/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_yes.gif
12:01
am
Wow, those pics are beautiful! I want to be there!