A little while ago we went walking on the moors with James Elkington. We passed Backstone Circle on the way back at the end of the day… it has always been an odd place with a strange reputation. In this reblogged post, James shares the story of his own experiences there…

As I write this post I know some of you may find difficulty in believing what I am about to tell. But I assure you it is all true. I have passion for weird places and coupled with my love for archeology, walking and photography it was inevitable that I would be drawn to one of the most eerie of places on a very eerie moor. I had little idea what I would encounter there.

Very few people have heard of ‘Backstone stone circle’ on Rombalds moor. It just isn’t very well known – and besides it is very difficult to find. You don’t see it until you are a few feet from it – and it is nestled in very long grass. The circle stones are 3 to 5 ft high and there are about a dozen of them. Also, there is almost nothing about it on the internet.

I first heard about the circle from Paul Bennet when I accompanied him and a couple of friends on a walk across the moors a few weeks ago. Paul is a well known expert on all things Neolithic and the author of several excellent books on the subject – including ‘The Old Stones of Elmet’ and others. It was Paul and a couple of friends who first discovered the site in 1989. It was quite dark when Paul brought us to it and I wanted some shots of it in daylight – maybe some atmospheric black and whites.

I next visited the circle on a gorgeous Sunday morning with my camera. I could see a couple of walkers about in the far distance and the sun was shining. You don’t see the circle until you are almost on top of it, and as soon as I approached it I had an overwhelming feeling not to enter the enclosure. It was as though something inside the circle wouldn’t allow me go in. I know this is hard to believe but I swear it is perfectly true. I don’t suffer from ‘the vapours’ or have an over active imagination.

But something definitely didn’t want me to be there. It wasn’t evil or malevolent – but it was a very very strong feeling. Like something secret was going on and I wasn’t supposed to witness it. And it happened very suddenly – like walking into a brick wall…

Continue reading about James’ experience at Walking with a Smacked Pentax

Have you had a strange experience?

If you have had a strange experience or encounter that you would like to share, please get in touch with me at findme@scvincent.com (or my usual email if you already have it) and we can discuss a guest post.

I am not looking for sensationalism or fictional tales… but in light of the response to some recent posts, I think it would be both useful and reassuring to others to realise that none of us are alone in these strange encounters and experiences and perhaps we can open discussion on what they may be or may mean.

If you would like to share your story but prefer to remain anonymous, we can discuss that too. If you would like to share your beliefs and opinions on the nature of these experiences, I would be happy to talk about a guest post. Through sharing with respect we may learn to understand our world and each other a little better.