Boulder

A good day out. First stop Bantry market for some olives, essential oils and a new jersey. Fortified with a coffee and croissant we then headed off to the Borlin Valley in search of ... yes you guessed it, a holy well.  The Borlin is incredibly scenic and remote and the first stop was a roadside grotto, in memory of a priest.  The main stop was on the side of the road, dense with briars but with remarkable foresight I had brought my secateurs and some gloves. The site is the rather forlorn remains of what might be an 11 stone circle, now with a field fence running through it and many stones toppled. What is especially interesting is against one of the stones an altar has been erected, probably during Penal Times when Catholics were forbidden to hold Mass. Of course Mass continued but in wild and secretive places like here. What's even more interesting is that there is also a bullaun stone - a manmade scoop in a rock - which was probably used as a holy well or font. Both these monuments were covered until I got cracking. What it means is that this site has been used for literally thousands of years in one way or another. Mind blowing.
Because we were sort of in the vicinity we carried on to Mill Little - an incredible site comprising a flat valley overshadowed by a mountain containing three massive boulder burials, a tiny 5 stone circle and some standing stones. This is one of the boulder burials. It's huge. But what's even more interesting (just how interesting can a blip be??) very few of these monuments once excavated have been found to contain human remains underneath them, so what is going on here?  The sheep were especially thrilled by our presence in their field. Sheep also featured large in another site I tried to find but was thwarted by ferocious barbed wired fences.
On our way home the shopping was done at Lidl. I've just made a rather good artichoke risotto and now we are about to watch the final episode of Peaky Blinders.It will be tense. It will be dark.
The extras will be going shortly as I am madly recycling.