“…wintering out/ the back end of a bad year…” -Seamus Heaney, “Servant Boy” 

It’s said that on Hogmanay the Stones of Stenness walk to the loch of Harray for a drink—yet none have witnessed this—perhaps until now…

The first instalment of my field notes on Stenness is up at my Substack. I explore the accused witch Alison Balfour’s relationship to what is now known as the Heart of Neolithic Orkney. This one is for paid subscribers! Become a paid subsciber to read all my Orkney field notes.   Image is a picture I took of the Stones in the snow last January, 2023.