From the moment you drive into the parking lot of Mystery Hill, (a.k.a “America’s Stonehenge”) in Salem, New Hampshire,(the other Salem in the New England region) you know it’s a special place.
There are strange rock formations and….
…a bridge in the front entrance welcomes you from the past.
and brings you to the future
But, the front entrance of America’s Stonehenge is only a tease. Once you exit the gift shop (it costs $12 for adults and $7.50 for kids), you are greeted by some Alpacas on the right. They are fenced but they are very friendly.
There are also a variety of time keeping devices which, to this day, still keep correct time.
But, some of the things I liked best were not the structures or rock formations but the statues, flowers, decor and the hollowed out canoe.
But, the main attraction are the rocks and rock formations. The name “America’s Stonehenge” is somewhat misleading. There are no structures that bear any real resemblance to the actual Stonehenge.
Even though Mystery Hill bears no resemblance to Stonehenge, there are some interesting facts about the site. Some of the rocks used in the structures at Mystery Hill were quarried using primitive stone-on-stone techniques and have been carbon dated as far back as 2,000 B.C.
Mystery Hill is a children’s play land. Forget about all of the rock climbing. They are also able to walk in some of the structures, such as, the Oracle Chamber and they wouldn’t have to duck to be able to walk in the smaller spaces.
There is a sinister legend that overshadows the light atmosphere of the attraction. According to legend, the area here was a spot for sacrifices. Stories of ghostly apparitions and huantings have been reported. I decided to go and see for myself.
I didn’t see or hear anything unusual, at least not of the other worldly variety. But, the legends still persist.
The area is pretty expansive. It claims to be 30 acres but feels much longer. The best parts of the area were the random rock structures and the views. And, of course, the foliage.
There is also an area where it is believed the Nov. 1st sunrise was watched from. It is amazing when you consider they could identifty the best place to view the sunrise, way before we had scientific devices to use.
Although the rocks and rock formations were impressive, my favorite part of the attraction was the alpacas.
New England Nomad 
October 22nd, 2015 at 12:05 am
Alpacas look like over sized poodles. I enjoyed the post!
LikeLiked by 2 people
October 22nd, 2015 at 12:08 am
Yes they are so cute! Thank you, lemon!
LikeLiked by 1 person
October 22nd, 2015 at 1:16 am
Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful!! Please send me a plane ticket so I can come visit. 🙂 What an amazing place. I get so irritated by both Americans and others who say that we have no history – what about the Clovis people? I adore alpacas – they remind me of the camels in Egypt and their predilection to spit at you!
LikeLiked by 1 person
October 22nd, 2015 at 1:23 am
Thank you Kerry! I love discovering these hidden jewels in my own backyard!
LikeLiked by 1 person
October 22nd, 2015 at 3:07 am
Love the photos!! 🙂
LikeLike
October 22nd, 2015 at 10:44 am
Thank you!
LikeLike
October 22nd, 2015 at 11:34 am
I’ve never heard about this! I’m going to have to check it out! Thanks.
LikeLiked by 1 person
October 22nd, 2015 at 11:36 am
Thank you for reading! Yes, it’s a must see for anyone in the New England area!
LikeLiked by 1 person
October 22nd, 2015 at 11:44 am
My foster brother lives in NH, so I’ll get there eventually!
LikeLiked by 1 person
October 22nd, 2015 at 3:34 pm
Very beautiful place, thank you for sharing 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
October 22nd, 2015 at 3:52 pm
Thank you, Irene. Yes, I agree. I found the foliage and nature to be more interesting and certainly prettier than the rock formations.
LikeLiked by 1 person
October 22nd, 2015 at 5:29 pm
I like the rocks too 😉
LikeLiked by 1 person
October 22nd, 2015 at 5:42 pm
You got some great pictures. I’ve been to this place during the summer, fun to see it in fall. That white alpaca looks quite personable!
LikeLiked by 1 person
October 22nd, 2015 at 7:51 pm
Thank you, Marcia! I think that was Trooper. http://www.stonehengeusa.com/alpacas.html
LikeLike
October 23rd, 2015 at 1:28 pm
Reblogged this on The Missal.
LikeLiked by 1 person
October 24th, 2015 at 11:00 pm
Thank you, Jack!
LikeLiked by 1 person
October 23rd, 2015 at 4:21 pm
Wonderful pictures! Always fun to take a tour of where you’re visiting through your photos.
LikeLiked by 1 person
October 23rd, 2015 at 4:33 pm
Thank you! It’s fun sharing my experiences with everyone!
LikeLike
October 23rd, 2015 at 7:47 pm
Beautiful shots!!! This place looks amazing once again thanks for taking along on this journey I appreciate it. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
October 23rd, 2015 at 9:22 pm
Thank you! I’m glad you came along with me!
LikeLiked by 1 person
October 24th, 2015 at 2:39 am
I love seeing these local places that I had no idea about and those alpacas look very fancy with their fluffy legs.
LikeLiked by 1 person
October 24th, 2015 at 11:01 pm
Yes, I wanted to take home one of those alpacas! Thank you and I look forward to reading your recipes on your blog!
LikeLike
October 24th, 2015 at 10:02 am
Wonderful post, beautiful photographs. Its part of the world that I have always wanted to visit. Hopefully one day.
LikeLiked by 1 person
October 24th, 2015 at 11:02 pm
Thank you, mystifiedghost! Yes, there are so many wonderful areas in New England! ( :
LikeLike
October 26th, 2015 at 7:16 pm
Thank you for sharing with us. Looks like a beautiful place. I would love to visit New England but I don’t see that happening any time soon. The alpacas are so cute! They would be my favorite thing there as well.
LikeLiked by 1 person
October 26th, 2015 at 9:07 pm
Never knew this existed. Cool place! And I love the alpaca pictures.
LikeLiked by 1 person
October 26th, 2015 at 9:21 pm
Thank you. It is a cool place with some beautiful views.
LikeLike
October 31st, 2015 at 12:23 am
I am a Mainer by birth but came of age in NH so consider that more of my home. I have wanted to visit America’s Stonehenge for quite some time now but just seem to to forget to go when I am “home”; it could be that my hometown of Newport, NH seems so far north from the flatland of Salem- hehe. Thanks for this post, there is so much more to see than I realized and the alpacas… so cute, I will for sure visit the next time this Yankee makes her way back north. Great post.
LikeLike
October 31st, 2015 at 1:49 am
Thank you! New Hampshire is vast. So, it is understandable if you never made it there yet. It is worth going if you get the chance. I didn’t include it in the blog because I didn’t want to bore the reader or get too much into the weeds on it but there are some very interesting theories regarding the structures and rock formations. Many of them are extremely accurate regarding the solstice and predicting other seasons and times which is all explained in their handouts they give you before you go out onto the trails. I was more taken with the beauty of the area. And, yes, the alpacas are awesome!
LikeLiked by 1 person