Tair Carn on the Black Mountain.

A Cairn at Tair Carn Isaf.

Prehistoric Burial Cairns are still much in evidence across the uplands of Carmarthenshire. But if your looking for the best return for your time and effort, then Tair Carn is probably the place to go. There are around 7 separate cairns to visit, all over a relatively small area.  From the road on the south side, a large cairn can be seen on the hilltop, and to reach it there is a gradual path leading up from a car-park. Once there the other cairns can be seen stretching out before you.

 
There are in fact two parts to the Tair Carn complex: Tair Carn Iasf (Lower) with 4 cairns and Tair Can Uchaf (Upper), with a further 3. The two parts are located on separate hilltops and there is a gently rising path leading from one to the other, and if you're lucky you may have dotterel, wheatears or golden plover for company. In all, the journey from the car-park to the furthest cairn and back again is about three miles.

The Trig point at Tair Carn Isaf with Tair Carn Uchaf in the distance.

The reality of a burial cairn is a pile of stones similar to those dumped by fly-tippers in lay-bys and various amenity sites. But being at Tair Carn they take on another dimension. It is hard not to be impressed with the historical ambience of the place and get a sense of the pageantry that must have played out here those many years ago. It was obviously the resting place of choice for the great and good among our early ancestors, and taking in the grandeur of the place and the magnificent views all around you, it is easy to see why.