Blue Bell Hill

Last year I decided to take a trip to Stonehenge, a site I had driven past a few times but never had the chance to stop at and spend any real time viewing the place. It was a long drive from Worcester but filled with the anticipation of what would be a mysterious and interesting place, the journey went by in a flash. Once there, all my preconceived notions of this place as being perhaps magical were shattered almost instantly. The stones were roped off, a roaring road passed close by and issued with distracting audio tapes blasting info into my ears I found it impossible to soak up what little atmosphere there was.

I had higher expectations for the somewhat closer (and somewhat more modest) Neolithic stones located on Blue Bell Hill - Kits Coty House, The Countless Stones and The White Horse Stone, three sites that make up part of the Medway Megaliths.

This group of megaliths are the only examples of megalithic structures to be found in the east of England and the only example of megalithic sarsen stone use to be found outside of Stonehenge/Salisbury Plain.

First up was Kits Coty House, located about halfway down Blue Bell Hill, a short walk from the Blue Bell Hill Picnic Site (No.28) at the top of the hill. At the site stands the remains of a Neolithic Long Barrow (a type of burial monument) that dates back to around 2500 BC. The Long Barrow itself as well as at least one other stone has long since been destroyed, however what remains is quite impressive. Three standing stones about 7ft high support a large capstone, making for what would have been a grand entrance to the long barrow chamber.

In addition to burial uses, sites such as this are believed to have served as territorial markers, landmarks for navigation and as meeting places.

Unfortunately the site is tightly fenced off meaning that no view or photograph of the megalith is possible without the railings getting in the way. However, compared to Stonehenge, the area was relatively peaceful and I encountered just one other person all the while I was there.

After taking a few shots I headed down the hill to Little Kits Coty House or the Countless Stones (so named as apparently it's not possible for two people to count the stones and come up with the same number).

Whilst not as impressive as Kits Coty due mainly to the fact that the Megalith has long since collapsed, I still found Little Kits Coty to be an inspiring and thought provoking place. Access here was still fenced but not nearly as tightly as at Kits Coty and if you ignore the huge electricity pylon standing nearby it is easy to imagine Neolithic communities meeting here in a simpler, less hectic time!

The third site I visited was a short hope across the A229 and into Westfield Wood where I found the White Horse Stone. Standing alone at the edge of a field, this stone is not associated with a long barrow and it is thought that it may have just been placed here by a farmer! Interestingly, in 2004 a religious group called the Odinic Rite began a campaign to prevent mobile phone company Orange from building a phone mast close to the site. Orange failed in its application and the site remains untouched (apart from the nearby High Speed 1...).

I've become quite interested in these sites and I'm planning to make Trosley Country Park (No.30) my next stop to take in the Coldrum Stones situated there as wells as Addington and Chestnuts Long Barrows which are situated nearby.