Tuesday, October 09, 2007
Monday, October 08, 2007
Platform Pile - Hopkinton MA
Here are two views of a nice-sized pile which looks out westward over a wetland. This is from the same site I was reporting on last week.
Saturday, October 06, 2007
Ulster County, NY, near the Ashokan Spillway
By Geophile
An incident in the life of a rock pile enthusiast.
We were in Ulster County last Sunday, and I was dressed to go out for our anniversary dinner: nice skirt, brand new blouse, etc. Then he asked, "Can we wait until the Phillies game is over?" The game was barely half played, but okay. I'll just take a walk around the property with the camera. First I found the above, which is probably modern, but pretty, and it drew me in.
Down into the woods, I found this. Certainly a rock pile, who knows what kind . . . I'll look a little further, see what else is around.
Then some rock on rocks, like the one above. I kept going further into the woods, finding new things. There was a marsh, and some not-very-straight low walls. I couldn't go back at that point, not without following the walls!
One of the walls curved around, with this in the curve.
I found the standing stone you see above, and other curious features. What an interesting area! I was down there until almost the end of the game, always meaning to go back, "after one more picture." I have more which I'll share later.
Most people I know would not understand this, but maybe some of you will: I'd forgotten I was in good clothes. When I got back to the house, my skirt had burrs in it. My new blouse was covered with seeds and leaf bits. I had to change clothes completely, but--I had rock pile pictures. By the time I had changed, the Phils had won the NL East. Unbelievable! We enjoyed our dinner at the Gypsy Wolf, discussing stones and baseball. Not a bad start for our vacation.
An incident in the life of a rock pile enthusiast.
We were in Ulster County last Sunday, and I was dressed to go out for our anniversary dinner: nice skirt, brand new blouse, etc. Then he asked, "Can we wait until the Phillies game is over?" The game was barely half played, but okay. I'll just take a walk around the property with the camera. First I found the above, which is probably modern, but pretty, and it drew me in.
Down into the woods, I found this. Certainly a rock pile, who knows what kind . . . I'll look a little further, see what else is around.
Then some rock on rocks, like the one above. I kept going further into the woods, finding new things. There was a marsh, and some not-very-straight low walls. I couldn't go back at that point, not without following the walls!
One of the walls curved around, with this in the curve.
I found the standing stone you see above, and other curious features. What an interesting area! I was down there until almost the end of the game, always meaning to go back, "after one more picture." I have more which I'll share later.Most people I know would not understand this, but maybe some of you will: I'd forgotten I was in good clothes. When I got back to the house, my skirt had burrs in it. My new blouse was covered with seeds and leaf bits. I had to change clothes completely, but--I had rock pile pictures. By the time I had changed, the Phils had won the NL East. Unbelievable! We enjoyed our dinner at the Gypsy Wolf, discussing stones and baseball. Not a bad start for our vacation.
Thursday, October 04, 2007
Goodbye to the hilltop - final vistas
Rock piles on the Ledge outcrops
We are approaching an outcrop and towards the northeast:
These rocks are looking out proudly to the east, making a strong visual impression:
Other piles along that same drop-off.
And going around to the top and looking back, southeast I guess:
This is part of the larger hilltop site but a separate cluster of structures. All visible from several places nearby.
These rocks are looking out proudly to the east, making a strong visual impression:
Other piles along that same drop-off.
And going around to the top and looking back, southeast I guess:
This is part of the larger hilltop site but a separate cluster of structures. All visible from several places nearby.
The hilltop at last
Last Sunday I found a fair sized marker pile site on top of a hill in Hopkinton MA. At first, in the approach, it was just a minor site until I got to the eastern shoulder of the hilltop and started seeing more substantial piles and clear relationships between the piles:
And here is one with a quartz blaze - supported rock pile, the same distance from the next pile in the background as I was seeing between many of the piles. But this was the only one with a noticeable piece of quartz.
And then I see a big pile and know this is a more substantial site that I realized.
And then here is a house foundation. I should stop at the State Park station and ask if they know who lived up here.
And then I found some nice ledges, which I'll report separately. And then although the rock piles seemed bounded by a stone wall, I went across the wall into a blank area just to see if the piles respected the boundary of the wall. Walking westward at first there were no more rock piles but then I did get to some other rock piles, and the western shoulder of the hill. There, larger boulders near the edge were strung together like jewels on a stone wall necklace which zig-sagged around the hilltop in an orderly fashion.
Sitting on top of one of these boulders, here is the view roughly north:
And the view roughly southwest:
Maybe the wall enclosed 5 acres and more than fifty rock piles? There were also some straight walls coming in from the sides into the enclosed hilltop area. There were some nice piles in there:
And the kind of rock-on-rock that would have required main strength to create.
Imagine how happy I was to discover when I came home that this hilltop was actually the smaller of three hilltops forming an massively larger hill than I realized. Did I just scratch the surface? Stay tuned for next Saturday's report.
In the meantime, I promise a post about the ledges on the east side and another about some of the vistas in there, where you can see from pile to pile with a sense of regular spacing suggesting as it does an astronomical purpose. I do not believe this has anything to do with burials.
And here is one with a quartz blaze - supported rock pile, the same distance from the next pile in the background as I was seeing between many of the piles. But this was the only one with a noticeable piece of quartz.
And then I see a big pile and know this is a more substantial site that I realized.
And then here is a house foundation. I should stop at the State Park station and ask if they know who lived up here.
And then I found some nice ledges, which I'll report separately. And then although the rock piles seemed bounded by a stone wall, I went across the wall into a blank area just to see if the piles respected the boundary of the wall. Walking westward at first there were no more rock piles but then I did get to some other rock piles, and the western shoulder of the hill. There, larger boulders near the edge were strung together like jewels on a stone wall necklace which zig-sagged around the hilltop in an orderly fashion.Sitting on top of one of these boulders, here is the view roughly north:
And the view roughly southwest:
Maybe the wall enclosed 5 acres and more than fifty rock piles? There were also some straight walls coming in from the sides into the enclosed hilltop area. There were some nice piles in there:
And the kind of rock-on-rock that would have required main strength to create.
Imagine how happy I was to discover when I came home that this hilltop was actually the smaller of three hilltops forming an massively larger hill than I realized. Did I just scratch the surface? Stay tuned for next Saturday's report.In the meantime, I promise a post about the ledges on the east side and another about some of the vistas in there, where you can see from pile to pile with a sense of regular spacing suggesting as it does an astronomical purpose. I do not believe this has anything to do with burials.
Wednesday, October 03, 2007
Approaching a larger rock pile site
I had been climbing up the hill and not seeing much - happened on a trail that led one direction down a long slow boring slope, so I went the other way on the trail, following a stone wall. I saw a solitary rock-on-rock over on the other side of the wall and was happy to take at least one picture:
And I looked around a little bit more and saw a couple of low decrepit rock piles:
(A detail in this rock pile, a bit of lighter colored feldspar with quartz on it, centered in the pile)
Looking further, another pile:
And then some other small things, but now the structures are beginning to seem related the one to another:
And then some slightly more substantial but still badly damaged rock piles:
And I was struck by how many of the piles seemed to incorporate one larger rock. In the last picture of a split-filled rock, the 4th rock in is slightly pointed and sticking upward. These sorts of things - piles with single larger rocks and piles in relation to one another - begin to suggest a familiar pattern.
And some pretty things, in the beginning of fall colors:
And then I thought: "Well that is about it, nothing else to see. As an after thought: but I really should just check up hill from here...."
And I looked around a little bit more and saw a couple of low decrepit rock piles:
(A detail in this rock pile, a bit of lighter colored feldspar with quartz on it, centered in the pile)
Looking further, another pile:
And then some other small things, but now the structures are beginning to seem related the one to another:
And then some slightly more substantial but still badly damaged rock piles:
And I was struck by how many of the piles seemed to incorporate one larger rock. In the last picture of a split-filled rock, the 4th rock in is slightly pointed and sticking upward. These sorts of things - piles with single larger rocks and piles in relation to one another - begin to suggest a familiar pattern.And some pretty things, in the beginning of fall colors:
And then I thought: "Well that is about it, nothing else to see. As an after thought: but I really should just check up hill from here...."
Tuesday, October 02, 2007
Videos from a Hilltop rock pile site
There is a slightly triumphant tone in my voice. I was feeling well pleased with myself with having found rock piles after walking 1/4 mile uphill through the woods to the hilltop looking for them.
Monday, October 01, 2007
Hopkinton State Forest - another appetizer
I am supposed to save this for later in the week but this is such a neat photo:
I always wanted to see ledges like that.
I always wanted to see ledges like that.
Rock piles and Maiden-hair ferns at the foot of Barret's Hill - Bolton, MA
Maiden-hair fern is not common this far north:
It is a delicate fern with an unusual leaf shape. The black stems are favorites for colored basketry. Here was a simple rock-on-rock a few feet from the ferns.
And here are a couple of views of a solitary rock pile that seemed out of context. It did line up with one of two walls that made a corner nearby.
If you care to go poking around at the edge of the wetland there, along the edge of the western foot of the hill, you'll probably find these things.
It is a delicate fern with an unusual leaf shape. The black stems are favorites for colored basketry. Here was a simple rock-on-rock a few feet from the ferns.
And here are a couple of views of a solitary rock pile that seemed out of context. It did line up with one of two walls that made a corner nearby.
If you care to go poking around at the edge of the wetland there, along the edge of the western foot of the hill, you'll probably find these things.
Big Old Maple Tree on Barret's Hill Bolton, MA
(Not rock pile related). Barret's Hill is one of the newer Bolton Conservation Lands. This particular woods is all grown up to trees that are probably 30-40 years old. But scattered around there are some larger trees, the ones that would have been all that was around 75 years ago. Here is one, a maple: 
Down along Danforth Brook - Bolton, MA
I was going to explore the Barret's Hill Land in Bolton and, parking near a headwater of Danforth Brook, I first walked down along the side of the brook, in the woods behind the houses. After all, this is Bolton where it would be surprising not to find something. And there were a couple of supported rock piles looking out over the shallow valley of the brook:
There was also a low extended tumble of rocks, that did not look particularly ceremonial. 
The brook is to the right. In these pictures we brook north south and we are on the west side.Another little feature: four rocks in a row heading downhill towards the wetland (the fourth is in the sunlight to the upper right in the picture):
Feel like checking out a hilltop for us?
Any readers from Mass. but south of the Mass Pike? I am wondering if every hilltop down there has a rock pile site? So far all the ones I checked do. I'll check others as time permits but if you live near a southern MA hilltop perhaps you could take a look?
And speaking of easy pickings, how about this spot, north of the swamp?
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