Before you begin reading the rest of this article, please take a quick look here for some breathtaking photos of Castlerigg. These are some of the most breathtaking photos of Castlerigg I have ever seen. The last picture on the page is the one that is the closest to taking my breath away like the actual experience did.

Castlerigg Stone Circle is located near Keswick in the Cumbria Lake District area of England. It is the most impressive stone circle location I have seen to date. The views are simply breath-taking.

Each year thousands of visitors journey to the plateau of Castlerigg Fell and to Chestnut Hill to see these stones. The area where the stones are located is the raised center of a natural amphitheatre created by the surrounding fells. While standing at this site you can see some of the highest peaks in Cumbria: Helvellyn, Skiddaw, Grasmoor and Blencathra. I found a photo taken from Blencathra looking down onto Castlerigg. It is the links below. It is a must-see.

The stones are set in a flattened circle approximately 100 ft in diameter. The heaviest stone weighs around 16 tons. It is estimated that it was constructed around 3200 BC which puts it in the late Neolithic or early Bronze Age. This makes it one of the earliest stone circles in Britain and possibly Europe.

I wasn't aware of this tradition when I visited Castlerigg, but evidently it's a tradition to attempt to count the number of stones within the stone circle. Every attempt results in a different answer. This is due to some of the smaller stones believed to be packing stones now appearing over time. The number counted ranges from 38 to 42. However, the official number listed with the National Trust is 40.

Of course, with all stone circles, we seem to question what their intended use was. It is believed that Castlerigg was somehow linked to the Neolithic greenstone Langdale axe industry in the nearby Langdale fells. The circle may have acted as a meeting place where these axes were traded or exchanged. Evidently, ritually deposited stone axes are often found all over Britain.

Another theory is that this site was part of a memorial assembly place where kings came down to mourn their dead.

The earliest written record of Castlerigg Stone Circle was in 1776 in Itenerarium Curiosumby William Stukeley.