We arrive at our campsite late in the afternoon. As soon as we get there we see the cairns. The piles of rock at the top of the hills above us. We are fascinated by this landmark but we are tired so it isn’t until the next day that we make the journey to explore them in more detail.

Over night rain falls heavily, but in the morning it is dry so as soon as we are ready for the day we set out to climb to the cairns. We start with a sense of expectation. We are all interested in archaeology in one way or another and we excited to explore whatever we find up there.

Our walk starts with a flight of 55 steps that we count as we go. By the time we get to the top R is already tired and doesn’t want to walk anymore. Negotiations begin and it is decided that I will walk ahead whilst R stays with J to rest. I don’t want to walk alone but I agree because I know that R hates being left behind and will be encourage to carry on by the sight of me making progress without him. I only walk for a short distance before, as predicted, they run to catch up and we continue together.

I am not sure what to expect when we clear the brow of the hill, but as we do a small fenced area comes into view with a gate in the corner. We go through this gate and as soon as we do that the peculiarities of this landscape really become apparent. Hummocks of grass that feel not quite natural, large pieces of rock in surprising configurations, and at the centre of it all a big pile of rocks which seems to be the most intact and recognisable structure in the space.

The place is magical and what makes it especially striking is its location. A small hill, but the biggest for many miles around so from this point you can see for miles across the country. The world rolls away in all directions and it and it feels like it is possible to see past, present and future emerging simultaneously in front of you.

It is not hard to appreciate why people came here 5000 years ago to create this place. And why they returned year after year over many generations to engage with it in many ways.

The sense of connection here is immense. It’s impossible to define to what exactly, but being here it feels like the force is irresistible.  The draw of the people who conceived this place thousands of years ago. As I run my fingers over rings and waves carved using stone into stone I try to imagine the effort that would have been invested in the creation of this place, and the decisions that would have been made in order to make it happen.

It is, of course, impossible to say what this place meant, or what its purpose was but even now when I am many miles away from those cairns I am drawn to the gift of that place given and held over time. And to the connection it inspires to place, to plant, to other people, and to the universe that it is one miniscule part of.  Being on that hill it is as though it is possible for moments of harmony to exist where everything is momentarily in balance.

Taking in this heap of stones placed with such precision and care on this special hill, by many hands, there are infinite things that I don’t understand, but one thing I feel clear about is the pull that inspired those people to place these things here. And that if I had been there then I would have helped them do it.

The people who created this site seem to have been making connections across a landscape to each other and to the earth making me wonder what are the monuments and rituals that allow us to do this in our lives today? And if they don’t exist anymore how may we start to recreate them?

This piece was originally shared on Substack on 8th July 2023