with a mighty cheer the Summer Solstice arrived at Stonehenge

Summer Solstice at Stonehenge 2014

Friday 20th to Saturday 21st June 2014
Stonehenge, Wiltshire, SP4 7DE, England MAP
FREE (including FREE car park)

Daily capacity: 20,000

In the very centre of the pulsating throng, sarsen stones towering over me, I stood pressed tightly up against those surrounding me. Our bodies moved in unison to the incessant beat of innumerable drums. Just as it has done for over four thousand years, in moments the sun would rise in line with a solitary marker stone, casting its light through the outer ring of stones and into the inner sanctum created by those the massive, iconic trilithons, The feelings of excitement and anticipation was overwhelming. As the very first tangerine-orange rays broke the horizon they were heralded by a chorus of trumpets, horns and conches which together with a mighty cheer created a truly joyful noise. What a dawn it was, within minutes the flaming June sun was clear of the horizon, had cut through the morning chill and was once more underway on its longest journey of the year through our skies.

Stonehenge as we see it now is a place where over millennia people have turned the phenomena of solar astronomy into a theatre,a theatre which is best up close and from within. To feel the stored warmth of the stones in the cold night, the furry lichen, the sheer imposing scale of the 24-foot-high Great Trilithon, the acoustics, these are all part of the experience. The tourists who pay to visit a preserved World Heritage site from a safe distance may fund English Heritage to manage and investigate the Stones for us, but to make sense they need the energy people impart to bring life to them.With the confrontations of the 80’s and 90’sfading into folklore, free but managed access seems well established. For this summer’s solstice the crowds were reckoned to be upwards of forty thousand strong, brought out by the fine weather and that this year solstice fell on a non-school night. Sure there were a handful of arrests for drugs, but no reports of violence or damage, which given the numbers does show that people can respect the site and each other.

There was certainly every type of people present, from cloaked and bearded druids bearing quartzite-pommelled swords to overseas students from a School of English.Various tongues could be heard - Mediterranean, Asian, Oriental and all sorts of English accents.Drunken lads from the town chanted along with Hare Krishnas, in a kind of lower league terrace version of the Krishna mantra. Travellers, skate punks, Rastafarians, hippies, every kind of subculture were represented. There were good many families with younger kids. Inside the bank and ditch of the henge it was a genuine melting pot, and wonderful to be part of.By and large people’s behaviour remained social. Even around the busiest, central parts of the monument people took care of one another, looked out for those asleep on the ground or propped up against the stones. People seemed to naturally respect each other’s space. There were warm greetings and great conversation to be had. I met several people for the first time but felt I’d known them all along.

solstice 2014

Inevitably there was some thoughtlessness behaviour; in particular the rubbish left lying around was absolutely shocking. Despite people’s attempts to clear up after themselves and others it was a losing battle. After the great exodus which followed the sunrise the scale of the problem became very apparent, plastic bags, tins and spent hippy crack canisters lay strewn all about the place. I find it difficult to understand the mentality, it’s not excusable in the local park let alone this special place. Whoever let off a Chinese lantern also needs a head check, what were they thinking? With a landscape of open arable fields for miles all around, it was taking quite a chance.

Happily, the Police, with English Heritage stewards and security seemed to take a hands off approach to managing the crowds. They concentrated on checks at the access point which were heavily manned, and featured Griffin the sniffer dog. How Griffin could pick out individuals from the background hum was beyond me. It looked no more scientific than the handler pointing him at youths he didn’t like the look of. One chap who’d somehow climbed one of the outer ring of stones and seemingly fallen asleep for a few hours was somehow brought down from his perch by security and removed by police but that was the only time I saw any heavy presence within the circle. Once inside the site concern seemed to focus more on glass bottles than reefers.

Perhaps as a means of passive control a ring of immensely bright lights mounted on gantries surrounded the henge. In the middle of the night their light washed out most of the stars and gave the stones a sort of fibreglass quality reminiscent of Spinal Tap set, which was unfortunate. English Heritage also provided a respectable number of porta-toilets and a decent bus shuttle service to and from Salisbury train station. They didn’t fill the site with stalls to recoup the cost either which was commendable. There was just enough catering to keep us going – a pizza place, Veggie Delights and some good coffee.

There’s clearly a balance to be struck to keep Stonehenge for the people both now and for future generations, It seems to me the balance was about right. The attendance was at least as high as back in the 1980s when the full blown Festival was at its peak and about to fall foul Thatcher’s government, but there was hardly any trouble. I think everyone has moved on since those days, both in authority and counter-culture. These days they’re accustomed to us gathering together and we’re better at communal organisation. The Brew Crew have been replaced by Canadian’s abroad, brutal cops by friendly English Heritage stewards. This year largely down to the people and the perfect dawn the experience was blissful and deeply refreshing for the soul. The pleasures of Yogic flying in the warm sun will stay with me for quite some time.

Thank you Stonehenge.

solstice 2014