Stone'enge

At the end of August my youngest sister and I went on a little roadtrip.  We visited our grandparents in Dorset, our other sister in Bristol, and then made our way back sightseeing historic National Trust houses through Hampshire and Surrey.  However, with a small detour into Wiltshire, we got to see something neither of us have ever seen before...





For such a quintessentially British historical site, it seemed a bit odd that we'd never considered visiting before... until we checked out the entry fee.  Fortunately Nation Trust members can get in for free and we both had membership cards still in date.  And I'd say that's the best way to do it.  For what it is - a circle of very old rocks - the price tag is extortionate.  But if you've got some kind of voucher or deal, it might be worth your time.

There's a big visitor centre that explains the significance of what might otherwise just look like a load of rocks.  There a diagrams of the site, notes on how the stones were assembled, with a pin-and-slot system that's pretty impressive.  And even more impressively, notes on where the horizontal bluestones came from.  The nearest site where that type of stone can be found is in Wales, which means they were carved out there, or maybe even further afield, and then transported probably by boat and then finally over land just to be raised here in Wiltshire.

There are earthworks from about 3000BC, and then the standing stones themselves began to be erected around 2500 BC.  Actually any circle of uprights like this can be called a 'henge' but, like the Icelandic waterspout 'Geysir' that gives it's name to all the others, this one stone henge is now thought of as THE Stonehenge.

There are exhibits of objects that have been found there; ceramics, flintwork, bones.  The skull of an Auroch, four times the size of the cow skull behind it.  A wall full of quotes, although most of these remark upon the enduring mystery of Stonehenge and how we'll never really know what it's really all about.  One of my favourites is up there, a line from the mockumentary 'This Is Spinal Tap'...  "No one knows oo they were, or wot they were doin'."

It's a very big and impressive looking centre, and there's a bus to ferry visitors to the stones, but we felt it would be easier to accidentally spend more time in the visitor centre than experiencing the actual site!  So instead of taking the 5 minute shuttle bus we chose to walk along the path, despite the spitting drizzle.  It took about twenty minutes, and there are trees and the curve of the land that mask the surprise of the henge appearing until you're quite close.

Even after all the hype and build up, they're still imposingly large to see in person.  The taller stones are over twenty feet high, which is a lot when you picture that they had to be moved by hand.

The stones are roped off for most of the year, with a path round it.  There's a crush at the beginning of all the tourists, us included, as everyone stops to gawk and take a hundred selfies.  But then everyone relaxes, realising that the view isn't going anywhere, the crowd thins out, and you can enjoy Stonehenge from all sides.  I actually liked the south side best, the last section you view.  You can see a complete section of the outer circle, which gives you a better idea of how the whole structure would have looked.

We strolled back through the free-access 'Stonehenge Landscape', which walks you through a row of barrows - burial mounds raised in sight of Stonehenge.  Nod politely as you pass, and don't stare.





Thanks to my Grandad, and his generous insistence on providing us with snacks for the road, we now have a personal connection here too.  After getting over the initial awe, and finding a little spot for ourselves to one side of the path we marked our visit by the ceremonial eating of fruit-filled bun with jam and cream...  Sconehenge!