Forum menu
Going to have a look on our way down to the Isle of Wight, or the Island of White as my 7 year old calls it.
Is there much going on there? We’re EH members so value for money isn’t an issue.
I’ll start a separate thread later for all of the Spinal Tap jokes.
The visitor centre is good, the cafe indifferent.
The stones themselves are much smaller than you'd guess but the landscape worthwhile. It's evocative if you walk the half-mile from the centre to the stones via the Cursus rather than directly.I'd go in November for preference, as the place is absolutely heaving in summer.
Massive game of Angry Birds innit.
I would recommend going to [url= http://www.visitwiltshire.co.uk/things-to-do/avebury-stone-circle-and-avebury-manor-and-garden-p134483 ]Avebury[/url] instead.
you have missed the acid and mushroom fest I'm afraid, although I imagine one or two summer solstice parties are still going.....
We are heading to the south cost too this weeekend with our 7 yr old.
Mrs FD has mentioned Stonehenge, but at £40 to see some rocks I'm not convinced.
I aim to suggest that the Bodmin Tank Museum will be much more fun !
So how did they manage to drag them from West Wales?
"Stonehenge LOL vandals strike again"
[img] 
[/img]
I live nearby, and can remember picnic'ing in them and climbing them in the years of cultural vandalism (the 70s). Last time I went in was in the run up to 2012 - the barriers were removed, and fire sculptures lit up with some ambient french techno dj playing - was very nice actually.
As EH members you should take a look just the once, but I'd struggle to justify paying the entrance fee when you can get very nearly as good a view from nearby bridleways. Seems like a bit of a diversion from more or less anywhere on the way to the IOW though, that part of the 303 is crappy from May to September virtually all day.
So how did they manage to drag them from West Wales?
Mostly by river
cloudnine - Member
So how did they manage to drag them from West Wales?POSTED 17 MINUTES AGO # REPORT-POST
[img] 
[/img]
I aim to suggest that the Bodmin Tank Museum will be much more fun !
To save you a bit of driving I suspect you mean Bovington 🙂
but at £40 to see some rocks I'm not convinced.
to see the stones is free, the visitor centre and bus down to see is that the charge is. As has been mentioned there are public bridleways that very nearby, you could even cycle past!
To save you a bit of driving I suspect you mean Bovington
Spoil sport. I was looking forward to a good rant thread.
One thing worth mentioning is that you can "see" the stones in the sense of "they're over there," but they're fenced off. Too many tourists chipping off little souvenirs I expect. it was understandable but I was quite disappointed when I went.
I would drive past Stonehenge and go to Avebury, which is far bigger, more spectacular and mysterious.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avebury
This place is amazing, kids can enjoy climbing over the ruins. There's some sort of smart phone app to guide you around. No food available but there's a huge grassy area by the ruins which is ideal for a picnic overlooking the lake.
http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/old-wardour-castle/
Best thing to do is study the visitor center and then go out to the stones but look around the landscape. The roadway that goes down to the river is quite evocative I think. When you consider that the rivers were the highways of tha time, you can start to see how they used the landscape and what it meant to them, how they saw it.
The stones themselves are simply stones.
While I ponder over maps can someone please save me time and outline a likely river route between northern Preseli and Salisbury Plain?
to see the stones is free, the visitor centre and bus down to see is that the charge is. As has been mentioned there are public bridleways that very nearby, you could even cycle past!
You can even hop over the fence. You may however get met by security guards...
They flew them.
Woodhenge FTW!
Also, from the thread linked
Rusty Spanner - Member
There's a really good bike shop in Salisbury.
He's right. They have an occasional Saturday boy who is very good.....
Moses -
The stones themselves are much smaller than you'd guess
Iron age village at QE country park was good
+1 for Avebury (and then a walk down past Silbury Hill and up to West Kennet).
So how did they manage to drag them from West Wales?
Only some of them, the Blue Stones.
And they took them by raft around South Wales, across the Severn to Avonmouth, up the Avon, probably to roughly where Melksham is now, then dragged them across country to about where Pewsey is, and floated them down the South Wiltshire Avon to where Amesbury is, then dragged them the last bit across country to where they now stand.
The main Sarcen stones came from roughly the same place as the Avebury stones, Fyfield Down, but the Stonehenge stones were worked into shape, rather than left rough; they're easier and lighter to transport, and arrange into the henge.
Seeing as how the Stonehenge sarcens are about a quarter of the weight of some of the biggest Avebury stones, at 20-25 tones, they could possibly even have hauled two at a time, though that's highly unlikely!
Oh, and there's one stone at Avebury that's right by the gate on the left as you walk along the Herepath from opposite the pub which is reclining, and has a polished smooth surface, from many years of kids sliding down it...
They won't let you do that at Stonehenge!
We ended up going to the Boddingtons Tank Museum
Great morning had by all. Good value for money.
Jnr FD loved seeing the real tanks out training. Quite unbelievable amount of noise and dust they create. Nothing stealth about a tank !
Boddingtons you say?
Completely tanked.
[img] 
[/img]
I don't know where in the world that is - but they build their telegraph poles to last!
[img] 
[/img]
If you're fond of Eddy Izzard there is actually a 'Wood Henge' nearby 😀
http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/woodhenge/
Boddingtons?
'Wood Henge' nearby
So evocative - looks like field full of shopping centre concrete bollards
I should just say that thanks to the recommendations on this thread we visited Avebury for the first time on Saturday and thoroughly enjoyed it - cheers all!
Weird, i have spent much of my life driving past the stones.But today me and a work partner talked about them. I personally find them quite unremarkable, can you imaging seeing the Taj Mehal for the first time? Or, a few relocated stones from the centre of a once huge settlement, which are truthfully, if you have seen them, are a bit well....meh.......
Pop over the water to Carnac, theres fields full of them.
+1 for Avebury
Isn't that the only stone circle with a pub in the middle?
+1 for AveburyIsn't that the only stone circle with a pub in the middle?
Not just a pub, a whole village.
Although much of the original village was removed and the villagers rehoused in a new village a short distance away, called Avebury Truslo, the owner of the village, Alexander Kieller, of the marmalade family, never finished his plan to remove the entire village and reinstate all of the stones that remained intact.
We ended up going to the Boddingtons Tank Museum
A museum of beer tankers? It's a bit, well, minority interest, innit?
Oh, you mean the Bovington Tank Museum! That's a whole different kettle of chips. 😀
Been to a couple of winter solstice's there and was great to get among the stones, like Cougar says I didn't realise you generally couldn't get up close to them, I think that would be a tad disappointing.
In other news, there's a woodhenge type thingummy behind the Worth Matravers car park by "The greatest pub in the world"(tm) "The Square and Compass" if you're down that neck of the woods.
Looks a bit pony but at least you can sack it off and spend your money on a pasty and pint instead.
Cougar - ModeratorOne thing worth mentioning is that you can "see" the stones in the sense of "they're over there," but they're fenced off. Too many tourists chipping off little souvenirs I expect. it was understandable but I was quite disappointed when I went.
Nope - fenced off because hippies were enjoying taking drugs around them at the solstice. 80s?
Stonehenge my arse, come to North Yorkshire & see.......
http://www.megalithic.co.uk/article.php?sid=22515
Pop over the water to Carnac, theres fields full of them.
They may not be as big as the stones at Avebury/Stonehenge, but I've never seen so many in one place before! Wen't to Men-an-tol in Cornwall 2 weeks ago, very cool.
Castlerigg also awesome. Not because the stones are impressive, but because it's surrounded by mountains.
Carnac is well worth it for avid stone hunters, although they've fenced off some of that now 🙁 Bit of a detour from the Isle of Wight drive.
Avebury is much better than Stonehenge. The bonus there is some good summer solstice hippy drumming around the fire type all night type stuff. At least there was about 15/20 years ago, back in the day, etc etc.