Pastscape has information on a stone circle in this vicinity which I presume is the one Kelpie went looking for in 2002 when he submitted this site page. It is Monument 62885 and was last updated in 2012. The main thing to keep in mind is that they cite an English Heritage Alternative Action Report which states “Since the definition of the circle is poor and the interpretation is uncertain, the site is not considered nationally important on present evidence.”
It was first noted in 1949 after a moorland fire by R.H.Hayes who described it as the possible remains of a stone circle 97ft in diameter and gave its location as SE 8161 9812. It would appear he made an error and Field Investigations in 1974 deemed the more likely place was 100m further north at SE 81611 98221. The description they give of this circle is as follows “Amongst the visible stones and boulders there are several that appear to be earthfast. A low bank of earth and stone was identified describing an intermittent circle of approximately 30 metres in diameter, with substantial gaps in the perimeter to the west, northeast and southeast. The potential circle was most clearly identified at the northwest, where a 30 metre length was visible with stones and boulders apparently set into it. Two more segments were identifiable: on the southwest side of the circle, the bank was very ephemeral and had only one earthfast stone set into it, and on the east there was a concentration of stones, including some apparently earthfast.”
I could not make out anything like this at the grid ref (SE 81611 98221) and it is not the possible stone circle in the image (PID 967) submitted by Kelpie at SE 81728 98194 which is about 100m to the east. As regards Kelpies image and what he thinks is possibly part of a stone circle, I am afraid to say even with my vivid imagination I could not conjure up anything which looked like part of a stone circle at this location. By contrast in an area about halfway between Pastscapes Grid Ref and Kelpies Grid Ref (approx 100m apart) the moor is strewn with stones and it doesn’t take much for ones imagination to start seeing circles and parts of circles. However, though I could see stones set in low banks and what I thought were parts of circles I could not match anything up to pastscapes description but then again one has to keep in mind that I am an only an amateur with an untrained eye, experts will see things that I can not.
I ended up visiting this site four times in as many weeks trying to make head or tail of it, in the end I gave up. I sense there is something here it just needs a more expert eye than mine to see it, a good place to start is a large stone at SE 81654 98214, which possibly forms part of a southern arc of a large circle. Will post images of the area in question to see what others make of it
Something is not right. This message is just to keep things from messing up down the road