Stripple Stones

A Bronze Age stone circle on Bodmin Moor, roughly seven kilometres south-west of Bodmin town itself. Twenty-eight stones arranged in a rough circle - some upright, others toppled or buried - and the whole thing somehow feels more genuine than the famous circles you might visit elsewhere. No gift shop, no barriers, just moorland and stones and the wind cutting across the granite plateau.

Walkers will get the most from this. It's not a car-park-and-stroll situation - you'll want proper boots and the kind of weather awareness you'd apply to any moorland trek. The approach takes about forty minutes on foot from the nearest access point, which keeps the crowds down to near-zero even in summer. Families with young children might find the walk tedious without the payoff of obvious facilities or interpretation boards, though older kids who are into ancient history will find it genuinely atmospheric.

The circle itself is modest in scale compared to, say, Stonehenge, but that's rather the point. You're standing where people stood four thousand years ago, and the landscape around you hasn't changed dramatically. Bring a map and a compass - or use your phone's navigation before the signal drops. Allow a full morning if you're doing this properly, including the moorland walk both ways.

If you're based at Camp De Lank a few miles north, this makes a proper expedition. Go in spring or autumn when the moor isn't waterlogged and the light's better for photography. Free, obviously. No facilities whatsoever.