Quick Lunch at Scary Prehistoric Site
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- Опубліковано 28 вер 2024
- Trying to get a bit more rambling and hiking in to deal with the excesses of the festive season, and thus this expedition to visit a little known prehistoric site in Gisburn Forest, Lancashire.
The going was tough on account of the public footpath being largely non-existent on the ground. It seems the Forestry Commission only cater for bikes.
Well, we got there and it is a spectacular Neolithic or early Bronze Age burial ground. Fascinating, but also unsettling as the light faded on a wintry afternoon. What would our ancestors make of what has happened to their sacred site?
If you do wish to try to visit - and good luck with that - you're looking for Brown Hills Beck.
#gisburnforest #forestofbowland #neolithic #bronzeage #burialbarrows #bowlbarrows #roundbarrows #hiking #rambling #britishhistory #historywalks #wc21ukproductionsltd #forseriousramblinghikersandscramblers #brownhillsbeckeast #brownhillsbeckwest
Credits (Where due)
WC21 (UK) Productions Ltd theme tune: Keygenerator - Freesound
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The Almanac theme tune: Rush - DJI Mimo
For Serious Rambling Hikers & Scramblers theme tune: 514178 danlucas - Freesound
Coastal Catalogue theme tune: Just Like Magic - Epidemic Sound
The Time Tunnel theme tune: Micro - Epidemic Sound
Compendium of Curiosities: Underbelly - Epidemic Sound
All other music: Epidemic Sound
Lead presenter and producer: Darren Spratt
Cameras
iPhone 13
DJI Pocket 2 Creator Combo
GoPro Hero 8
HoverAir X1
Gimbal
DJI Osmo 6
Tripods
Telesin Mini Selfie Stick
Phot R Camera Video Tripod
Synco Smartphone Video Set Vlog kit
Manfrotto MMCompactADV
Microphones
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Power
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Smatree 2022 Power Bank with Tripod for Pocket 2
Charmast Power Bank
Editing
VN Editor
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Movie Maker
Some places just have a ‘dark’ atmosphere, often for no apparent reason. Anyone who says they’ve never felt that possibly has limited imagination. Excellent video, as always an interesting take on the past.
Thank you Mike. I think that's right and this place certainly had a strange vibe to it on that cold, Winter's day. I was glad to get away from there!
It is always best to bet out when it's light. The terrain changes so much in the dark. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks Chris - there was no way I wanted to be at that location in failing light! Thanks for watching.
As always totally enjoyed this and learned something a win- win watch--Thank you Darren
Thanks James! A difficult, but fascinating location. Appreciate your support!
This has just appeared on the algorithm.....Seems you're going viral ....I forgot about this'n.
Just before the weekly views stepped up a notch. I really like this video!
From an unashamed mumbo-jumbo perspective I think you were wise to trust your instincts about that location.
Yes. I can’t adequately explain the sense of discomfort that I felt there. I didn’t relax until I was back in the car.
@@WC21UKProductionsLtd I imagine it was a surprise to be suddenly put on 'alert' to get away.
Yes it was very sudden. I just knew I wanted out!
@@WC21UKProductionsLtd Perhaps the local Yorkshire goblins heard you make reference to Lancashire .... have you had a similar experience previously, wanting to remove yourself pronto?
@@esoomynona5813 not for years and not that I can remember clearly.
It had been much tougher to find these barrows than I had imagined - the paths on the map were not there, so there was a lot of boggy scrambling to get to them. I'd left late in the day and the light was already fading when I got there.
When I climbed up the valley side to get a view of them, I was really struck by the awfulness of the forest, and how in a twisted way, this mimicked the Neolithic landscape - with the part-felled, part-cleared valley.
Considering how big the largest barrow was, my mind was running away with ideas about the chieftain not being at rest because of what had happened to his burial ground!
Interesting location, and I get the whole "wanting to leave" feeling when you feel a lot of obstacles between yourself and home. Very large barrows and some lovely drone footage. I am in two minds about these kind of woodlands- I actually like the look of a coniferous woodland but you can't help but wish someone would rip it out and replace it with native trees such as oak.
Thanks Hedley. This is really interesting - 3 comments so far about the size of the barrows - I thought they were pretty big, but can't claim to be an "expert" on the relative sizes of these things.
They keep saying they'll go for more mixed planting in these forests, but there's precious little sign of it. I did suddenly feel very isolated on account of the tough route I knew I faced to get out of there!
Forestry Commission pine plantations feel 'spooky' because of their lack of light and life. I've slept in enough to know. However.....do not dismiss your natural reaction to your environment. It is there to protect you. I have lived in a haunted house and never wish to experience that again. Real, natural fear rises from within and is inescapable/undeniable. Don't dismiss it because others may ridicule you.
I think there were a range of things going on here that day and yes, I probably did experience some natural fear. I just knew I wanted to leave. Was that linked to the barrows, or simply the difficult terrain and fading light? I will never know, because as great as the barrows were, I won’t be going back!
@@WC21UKProductionsLtd I have run mountains morning, noon and night. I have slept in ruined castles and ancient sites, alone. I have heard sounds in ancient buildings that struck me with an undeniable, primeval fear which cannot be denied.
I am not a 'beardy wierdy hippy type'. I am a 'short back an sides' ten year TA Light Infantryman. Recce Team Leader., Sniper.
Physical Training Instructor.
I sweated uncontrollably in my bed night after night. This fear went beyond the ability to control it.
You trawl ancient sites. Do not deny your basic instinct. These things are real.
i will happily tell you face to face. Although I could never tell you officially about the house I lived in as I sold it and would be liable if it was known to be 'haunted'.
Monetised too ..ads therein.
Great. They should all be now. You’ll get to see what a video earns this Sunday!
"Little known, little visited, difficult to get to... and I'm going to have my lunch there." Brilliant! I knew I was going to love this video from the title alone.
Very nice use of your flying camera gizmo as always - I'm still pondering getting one of those.
Those barrows seemed a lot bigger than most bowl barrows I see, I wonder if it's partly that they're in a fairly remote site and just haven't been disturbed much? The ones I recently saw near the Thames had apparently been eroded (?) away over time and were much smaller than it's assumed they were originally. They're obviously in a site very close to human habitation, whereas the ones featured in your video weren't. All of that said I doubt there was any standardisation to the dimensions used in barrow building in the Bronze Age or Neolithic. Which begs the question why make it that size and not half the size (or indeed double the size)? Did they just keep piling up the earth until they got bored?
Thanks for taking us there, particularly given the hard work to get there!
Thank you, Tweedy!
Interesting that you've commented on the size of the barrows, as others have. I thought they were pretty huge, but didn't know what I was comparing them to. I know that many I've seen in Wessex are smaller, and as you say, the ones you took us to on Cock Marsh the other day were nothing like these in scale.
It does beg the question as to whether many of them were this size originally, before the land was intensively farmed for centuries. I would guess this site was just rough, moorland grazing before the Forestry Commission covered it all in trees 100 years ago.
Possibly these were always biggies in the scheme of barrow construction, and if so, it does possibly suggest this was a very important place back in the Neolithic/Bronze ages. I found it very intriguing, if unsettling and tortuous to get to!
Thanks for the feedback on the HoverAir - it is so easy to use and I do think it adds something - especially with places like this. I think you'd enjoy using one - you can even just send it up 15m to take a picture.
Would you wild camp somewhere like this?!
@@WC21UKProductionsLtd I suppose there is a natural one-upmanship by which barrows might have been expected to get larger over time - I think there's a similar phenomenon with the pyramids. So perhaps whoever built these particularly large specimens was competing with a rival tribe...? Or perhaps they were reused and extended with subsequent internments?
I don't think I've ever camped in a pine forest - I find them less welcoming places than broadleaf woodlands. Partly because they're usually a bit more dense so it's harder to find enough clear ground, and that can also make them darker and gloomier... but also they typically feel more managed / man-made, like the example you showed here.
That’s quite a big barrow! Wonder who’s in there
As an amateur antiquarian, not up to speed on barrow sizes, but yes, it struck me as pretty big. Would assume this land was rough pasture before the Forestry Commission came along, so it hasn’t been denuded by ploughing. Thanks for watching.
I know that feeling...i have had it a few times, like something bad has happened here...the worst was many years on the Stiperstones...i couldn't get away from there quick enough
It’s a weird thing, isn’t it? I had planned a piece of comedy lunch business, but I suddenly just had to get out of that place!
I watched this video a couple of months ago , you inspired me to take the trek and see for myself . What a trek it was . Non existent footpaths, ankle deep mud , 2 retracing of steps due to impassable routes. . Forestry Commission putting up signs banning pedestrians from cycle paths . Paths marked on one side of the beck which were actually on the other side . Overall it was arduous but absolutely brilliant . We really enjoyed the barrows when my friend and I finally got there . Found and ate a bilberries on the east barrow. Thanks for tracking down this lonely and peaceful spot. The eastern "round " barrow seemed more boat shaped than circular
@@cappuccinodriverno1 oh thank you so much for letting me know - it’s very rewarding to know I inspired this!
Yes, “arduous” is the word! I’m glad you enjoyed it and didn’t get spooked out like I did on that icy January day!
Hi Darren, thanks for taking us out there, it looked a very cold day. I guess the beck would take you back to where you started? Not a good place to be in bad light and no path.
What amazes me about these are there size, they seem to be gigantic it makes me wonder if there is some prominent feature in the valley that was used and then covered over. Imagine the work involved if there wasn't.
Can't remember the last time I saw a hand warmer, this one looked like a mouse. Do you also post on the instathingy?
Great outro, brave man living in a haunted house!! Anyway, Happy New Year!!
Thanks David. The beck leaves the forest via private land, so you do have to try to find a public right of way. It was tortuous!
I’m glad you’ve commented on the size because I think they’re pretty big as barrows go. As you say, the effort to construct them was massive, so it does suggest this was considered an important place. Very intriguing - and never investigated!
Alas Instagram has never won me over. I do have an account, but I don’t look at it or use it. Bit more active on Facebook.
Thank you as ever for your enthusiasm - it is much appreciated and I’m glad you enjoyed the video.
@@WC21UKProductionsLtd One day I will get around to posting some of my stuff down here on UA-cam. In the meantime I do post on the instathingy. At the moment I'm doing a series on the watermills in Cordoba. Nothing special, a few photos of mine and a bit of history that I've found. In this case all taken from the Roman bridge, they certainly did something for the people of Cordoba!!
@@davidberlanny3308 just dusted off the app and found you!
@@WC21UKProductionsLtdJust been looking at the OS map courtesy of Historic England, which has the location clearly marked. It's really in the middle of nowhere, perhaps as far from civilisation as you can be in England
@@davidberlanny3308 fascinating isn't it? Obviously lived in 5000 years ago!
I could see, from the shots, how beautiful that place could be without the brooding and intrusive presence of thousands of non-native conifers. A suppressed land under the Christmas tree jackboot.
That’s an excellent description of this landscape. “Brooding” perfectly conveys the uncomfortable feeling of the valley with the barrows. I’m not usually susceptible to that sort of thing, but I felt deeply unsettled there.
You are absolutely right - it is “suppressed” and could be so beautiful! Thank you.
A beautiful and interesting location! Wonder if the Forestry Commission’s plantings are native to the area. Thanks!
Thank you. I don’t think they are. There was some sign of more mixed plantings on that bank I had my lunch on.
Despite the monoculture, the landscape is possibly more similar to the Neolithic than at any time since.
Thank you!
That was brilliant, nice to see these barrows. Odd that they were missed by the victorians.
Thank you - they’re amazing aren’t they? Incredible that they weren’t pulled apart in the 1800s!
Super site, didn’t know about those, they are amazing. I would probably get lost if l tried to find them.🤣 The Bowland fells are not for the faint hearted. I can see them from my back door but rarely venture there. Beautiful scenery but not a welcoming place. The RSPB and game wardens are always watching each other.
Thank you Jennifer - much appreciated. I totally agree with you - I always approach this area with a sense of dread! Glad I did, though, these barrows are incredible.
In my experience, Yorkshire Water/Leeds City Corporation is just as bad for taking over large tracts of land and removing farmers from the land. The washburn Valley has four reservoirs (Lindley Wood, Swinsty, Fewston, and Thruscross). To the west of the middle two is Timble Ings, a forested area full of pines, old crumbling dry stone walls, abandoned sheep folds, and a small abandoned farmhouse on the north side of Gill Becks. The thing that always perturbed me was that Timble Ings is a fair distance from Fewston Reservoir, so I have always wondered why they acquired so much land.
Of course, Thruscross flooded the hamlet of West End. A place I've wandered around more than once since 1996 with our ever warming summer's. Then that's a story repeated again and again across northern England and Wales as the cities staked claim to water supplies.
The huge tracts of land they acquired is something to do with the catchment area required, I believe. Is it needed to control what happens on it?
In more recent years that has led to the removal or reduction of sheep grazing, which has potential upsides for wild flowers etc.
But the clearing of people out of these landscapes makes them have a distinct feeling, doesn’t it? Not necessarily positive.
@WC21UKProductionsLtd They feel empty and desolate at times. I consider myself rational, but the only words that seem to fit are hauntingly empty. I've had a few wonderful wildlife experiences on Timble Ings. I stumbled across a Greater Spotted Woodpecker nest complete with clamouring chicks in a dead birch. On one of the ponds, I watched a Common Darter dragonfly emerge and take flight. Finally, if you lay quiet and still enough, teeny tiny Gill Becks (I'm not sure why it's spelt as a plural. There's only one beck) has wild brown trout. They are only small, but they are there.
These amazing barrows - and they are exceptionally well preserved - had the weirdest of atmospheres. As I mentioned in the video, on a superficial level, the part-felled landscape mirrors the Neolithic landscape, but it was dead. Utterly dead.
It is hard but we are doing ourselves good. It is getting lighter about a minute a day, we have passed the hump of winter lack of light. The modernity vs real landscape thing I feel in my bones but there are so many pros and cons I can’t definitively say I am for or against. It is a dead monoculture but then we need wood. We definitely need water in our cities.
As you’ve been commenting on in your videos lately, it’s that argument between what we need vs. just doing things purely from an ecological perspective.
I don’t have an issue with the great reservoirs of the 19th and 20th centuries. I’ll show you Stocks Reservoir at this location one day. At the time, the people of Stocks-by-Bowland weren’t so keen.
Likewise, I don’t have an issue with the development of the forest here - we’ve got plenty of open moorland left - but I do find the industrial felling process unsettling. Annoyed they’re not maintaining the public right of way here too. It’s totally planted over.
I would value your opinion on the size of these barrows. Do you think they’re unusually large, as others have commented?
@@WC21UKProductionsLtd i think they are magnificently big. Strikingly so.
@@AllotmentFox thanks for confirming. They really should get the geophysics on these - never excavated!
@@WC21UKProductionsLtd I’m looking at Gisborne Forest and Stocks reservoir on the map but can’t find your barrows
Catlow has caught my attention as a placename …