day 29

Day 29

“La vida te da sorpresas, sorpresas te da la vida”

Saturday morning in Holyhead, I had it all planned: wake up around 8:00, find a breakfast (yes, find one, since the owner of the B&B I am in have broken her forearm and therefore can’t cook) and get the 25 to Rhosneigr. By the way, yesterday I found a very good breakfast one, a funny little place but today I met the guy in front of his business and he told me he would take his breakfast before working! Too early for a Saturday.

I could find another one, and with much better and expensive food. I don’t mind, since my money situation is not bad so far.

BARCLODIAD Y GAWRES

Barclodiad y Gawres

In Rhosneigr I wanted to see the famous Barclodiad y Gawres (which means “The Giantess’s Apronful”) burial chamber. This is a remarkable seaside mound covered in turf, with internal passageway and carved stones inside. What is notable in this particular chamber – and other that I could visit this very same day, is the Irish influence in the carving stones. These are the only two examples known so far in whole Wales and England. The interior of the chamber is the bigger I’ve seem so far. It’s been built in a cross shape, with the stones around. The chamber was restored not long ago, and a new concrete roof was added. I must confess I don’t fancy it much, as it looks too modern, with all those ancient stones inside.

the entrance

inside de chamber

But I could not enter there actually, for two reasons. As the interior of the chamber been vandalized, two measures were taken to prevent further attacks. First, the inscribed stone were removed and sent to Cardiff Museum, so what is seen there is a copy. Not a shame, if you think in the importance of the piece, and the vulnerability of the site. Second, the entrance was closed and it is only possible to be visited in weekends between 12:00 and 16:00hs, which was not the case. I arrived there at 9:50, so I did not wanted to wait two hours in the cold, and it was cold.

just beside Barclodiad y Gawres, there were this strange mound

I decided take a walk instead and went far in the coast until get close to the next city, Abreffraw. There I could take the 42 to Lanfair Pwllgwyngyll to find a burial chamber over there. The Ordnance Survey has been very useful so far, as I can spot places with much greater precision, although sometimes is not easy to find then anyway, and I can find other ones that are not mentioned in other maps or guides.

also known as llan-something

DOLMEN

This was the case of this lost and ruined dolmen in a sheep field. It must have been massive judging by its remains. The capstone was really big. I’ve been imagining that the owner must have look at this bunch of stones as a Greek gift, as it only bring people to his property, and in the end it is just rocks laid on the floor. It is very difficult to imagine what it may looked like before it had fallen, but it look like it have been very tall, or had two part, like the one I will describe next, because the stones on the floor were very large.

dolmen colapsed

All along the south coast of Anglesey Island, there is an astonishing view of the Snowdonia mountains, which stand in the other side of the Menai Strait.

PLAS NEWIDD

plas newidd

Following the coast is possible to enter in a park in which there is another chamber, from the same category of the first, but in very different situation. The dolmen at Plas Newidd is beautifully cared, and stands in front of a castle, close to the Strait. It is not a usual chamber of its kind because it is composed by two dolmens altogether, one large enough to be stand under the capstone and a little one, no much higher than 1,50m. Both structures look like they were built to create an ascending line from the ground.

dolmen at plas newidd

isn't it photogenic?

BURIAL CHAMBER

Close to the park there was still another burial chamber that I almost missed, as it stands in another private property. With the help of the map and my intuition I found it. I had seem a mound with an oak tree chopped some yards ago in the road. When I realized I had walked too much to find it, I decided to come back for that mound. And there it was, with the entrance facing the Strait, so backwards to the road. I entered the property and been circulating the mound. It had fences around, and a gate which was locked, sign that it must have been vandalized. It is sad to see the chambers locked, because most of them are in open spaces until now, apparently with no major problems. But it look that is not always like that. The mound is big and had some trees planted on the top and beside. There is the remains of a big oak tree that been cut. It is not unusual to find trees on the top of burial mounds. In this case, the chamber does not enter into the mound, but marks a kind of gate, with nothing inside.

entrance of the chamber

BRYN CELLI DDU

Another of the most famous burial sites in Anglesey is Bryn Celli Ddu. Most of the sites I’ve been visiting here are quite unique. A fort that uses the mountain to create precipices, a bronze age village in two phases, two standing stones, a burial mound with inscribed stones, a double burial chamber. I could expected nothing less from this site, and I have not been disappointed.

parcially closed entrance

Bryn Celli Ddu is a burial mound with a curious history. It was first conceived as a stone circle, or a Henge sometime around 3000 BC. It had ditches around and a circle with 14 stones and probably other two in the center. Not much after that the Henge was deliberately destroyed and much of its stones were used to built a communal burial chamber with a passageway through it. The reasons for this are not clear. It may indicate a change in the beliefs of the people, or that the site were taken by another people with distinct religious costumes.

this single stone gave a completely new interpretation to the whole site

In front of one of the sides of the passage (the one which is not possible to enter), there is a stone with zigzag pattern carved on it, suggesting again the Irish influence on the area. That stone had around 1,50m and it was much wider in one direction than the other, as the two standing stones from yesterday .

Brynn Celli Ddu

the open entrance

this slab is quite impressive

inside the tomb

The site been excavated in 1928 and it was rebuilt again. In the reconstruction some structural improvements were made, like some concrete bars on the top. Probably the size of the mound was bigger than it is seem now, according with the information in the place.

needless to say, I did not eat these berries anymore

STANDING STONE

Close to Bryn Celly Ddu (translated as The Grove of the Dark Chamber) there is a standing stone inside a private area. As I had invaded two private areas only on that day, and another the day before, I just decided to go in. The stone is surrounded by a lot of smaller stones. It gets so close to Bryn Celly Ddu, that is difficult to imagine with no relation one to other. The menhir looks like the two standing stones I saw the day before, tall and thin in one direction. It was getting late and I was tired, so I decided take the bus back to Holyhead, via Llangefni, where I could take the 4X back home. Anglesey has a lot to be seen, and it is great to be here. I feel in the right place.

standing stone close to Brynn Celli Ddu