OBSTACLES

[julia-t]

We all come across obstacles relating to the Camino, whether it's in the planning, preparation, along the Way or otherwise. However in my training walks along some of the public footpaths near my home in the Cotswold Hills of England, I have to negotiate a certain type of obstacle - a STILE - every few hundred metres as they are often the only way of passing from one field to another. There is a knack to crossing a stile, as long as the step is in the right place! Here are a few of the physical obstacles I encountered today... (the link is to my Camino facebook page because I can't work out how to post an album here)

https://www.facebook.com/juliabeginshercamino/?fref=ts

Tell me about your training walks....

 

[SYates]

The good news it stiles haven't it made to the continent yet and are still firmly restricted to the British Isles, SY

 

[C clearly]

The good news it stiles haven't it made to the continent yet and are still firmly restricted to the British Isles

About 10 years ago I did a bit of walking in England. Early on our first day, we were following marks that led us to a fence and, with great surprise and delight I exclaimed to my continental walking partner "That's a stile!!" It was the first time I had seen one not in a book of nursery rhymes. I loved them.

 

[julia-t]

Stiles... View attachment 22867

 

[dougfitz]

The good news it stiles haven't it made to the continent yet and are still firmly restricted to the British Isles, SY

I don't think the British have a monopoly on stiles. I have found them in Norway walking there, and around Australia. I recall one in Norway on a rather steep descent where I leant back slightly too far getting down. It seemed to take forever as I tried in vain to stop myself falling backwards, but gravity had its way, and I ended up on my back with my head facing downhill and lying on top of my pack. I was glad at the time there was no-one there to see this.

 

[Rob the Slob]

Stiles...View attachment 22860 View attachment 22861 View attachment 22862 View attachment 22864 View attachment 22865 View attachment 22867 View attachment 22869 View attachment 22871 View attachment 22872 View attachment 22873

Multiple stiles, but only one style...
I miss stiles, here in the Netherlands. I never lost the sense of excitement I had as a kid whenever I encountered one.

 

[SYates]

I don't think the British have a monopoly on stiles. I have found them in Norway walking there, and around Australia. I recall one in Norway on a rather steep descent where I leant back slightly too far getting down. It seemed to take forever as I tried in vain to stop myself falling backwards, but gravity had its way, and I ended up on my back with my head facing downhill and lying on top of my pack. I was glad at the time there was no-one there to see this.

Thanks for correcting me! Glad to hear that you weren't seriously hurt (apart of your pride perhaps ) SY

 

[scruffy1]

True, one must have the knack to cross a stile with style. A loose boot lace, a floppy hat in the wind, an overburdened haversack, half an eye on the stile and all the rest on the pub just across that field will ruin the whole experience.

 

[domigee]

I have only ever encountered them in the UK...thank goodness On my last walk we were all excited because we only had to step over ONE, results, we thought. Usually, around here, there are loads!

 

[frida1]

We have them in the western U.S., and sometimes associated with barbed wire. Those have to be negotiated carefully! I don't remember seeing them on the camino, Frances or Portuguese.

 

[julia-t]

On my last walk we were all excited because we only had to step over ONE, results, we thought

Haha! I know exactly what you mean... if I stick to the Cotswold Way there are gates, but as soon as I head off on other small footpaths the stiles kick in.
The Cotswold Way is very muddy right now where it crosses fields, so I am trying to stay off it.
I only walked 5km today, yet crossed all those stiles I photographed, and some more I didn't take pics of. Not to mention all the kissing gates, proper gates and open gates I passed through, and the two little bridges over streams/ditches I crossed en route!

 

[purplesage]

The good news it stiles haven't it made to the continent yet and are still firmly restricted to the British Isles, SY

SY... we have this on the South Downs as well.. you'll get used to it

 

[SYates]

SY... we have this on the South Downs as well.. you'll get used to it

Last time I checked the South Downs were on the British Isles ... SY

 

[Icacos]

Oh, I envy you British Isles folk; you not only have your public paths (foot paths?) but stiles too. A few years ago I was fortunate enough to stay a couple of days in Kent with friends of a friend, and was thrilled to bits when I learned there was a public path heading off just a few steps from their home. Alas, there were no stiles on the small portion of it that I walked.

 

[Icacos]

About 10 years ago I did a bit of walking in England. Early on our first day, we were following marks that led us to a fence and, with great surprise and delight I exclaimed to my continental walking partner "That's a stile!!" It was the first time I had seen one not in a book of nursery rhymes. I loved them.

I'm loving this thread. Can anyone help me here with the missing lines of a nursery rhyme that my mother used to recite to us as children:

There was a crooked man
Who walked a crooked mile
He found a crooked six-pence
Upon a crooked stile
..................
..................
And they all lived together
In a crooked little house.

 

[C clearly]

Can anyone help me here with the missing lines of a nursery rhyme that my mother used to recite to us as children:

Just ask Mr. G:

There was a crooked man, and he walked a crooked mile.
He found a crooked sixpence upon a crooked stile.
He bought a crooked cat, which caught a crooked mouse,
And they all lived together in a little crooked house.

 

[SYates]

I'm loving this thread. Can anyone help me here with the missing lines of a nursery rhyme that my mother used to recite to us as children: ...

Happy to help:

There was a crooked man, and he walked a crooked mile.
He found a crooked sixpence upon a crooked stile.
He bought a crooked cat, which caught a crooked mouse,
And they all lived together in a little crooked house.

 

[SYates]

@C clearly and I are obviously in tune, SY

 

[purplesage]

Last time I checked the South Downs were on the British Isles ... SY

Yes, you're right. In England. Sussex to be sure. Kent also perhaps??? I don't know.... BTW, good for walking too. I take my dogs there very often Buen Camino

 

[purplesage]

I'm loving this thread. Can anyone help me here with the missing lines of a nursery rhyme that my mother used to recite to us as children:

There was a crooked man
Who walked a crooked mile
He found a crooked six-pence
Upon a crooked stile
..................
..................
And they all lived together
In a crooked little house.

There was a crooked man, and he walked a crooked mile,
He found a crooked sixpence against a crooked stile;
He bought a crooked cat which caught a crooked mouse,
And they all lived together in a little crooked house.

BTW, he didn't get any compostela for this !!! Buen Camino

 

[purplesage]

Thanks for correcting me! Glad to hear that you weren't seriously hurt (apart of your pride perhaps ) SY

SY... confidence perhaps. Or LACK of pride in not being able to cheat Ms Gravity

 

[Urban Trekker]

We all come across obstacles relating to the Camino, whether it's in the planning, preparation, along the Way or otherwise. However in my training walks along some of the public footpaths near my home in the Cotswold Hills of England, I have to negotiate a certain type of obstacle - a STILE - every few hundred metres as they are often the only way of passing from one field to another. There is a knack to crossing a stile, as long as the step is in the right place! Here are a few of the physical obstacles I encountered today... (the link is to my Camino facebook page because I can't work out how to post an album here)

https://www.facebook.com/juliabeginshercamino/?fref=ts

Tell me about your training walks....

Would this be something like the bocague, pardon my spelling, in France.

 

[scruffy1]

Would this be something like the bocague, pardon my spelling, in France.

Pulling out my Randonnée for Vézelay the closest thing in French is échalier and from my limited experience often more of a ladder or an even more construction for the same purpose.

 

[Wokabaut_Meri]

True, one must have the knack to cross a stile with style. A loose boot lace, a floppy hat in the wind, an overburdened haversack, half an eye on the stile and all the rest on the pub just across that field will ruin the whole experience.

Only second to one stile in Oz that straddles and just clears an operating electric fence. Excellent chance to practice mindfulness.

I've actually built stiles maintaining walking tracks here in Australia but I loved the English ones, especially through the Yorkshire Dales and yes, Scruffy, they usually led to a pub.

 

[domigee]

Pulling out my Randonnée for Vézelay the closest thing in French is échalier and from my limited experience often more of a ladder or an even more construction for the same purpose.

Look what I've just found under 'échalier' !
Maybe I'll stop complaining about the English ones now

 

[wayfarer]

Examples of stylish Irish stiles.

 

[koilife]

. . . and yes, Scruffy, they usually led to a pub.

Here's to more stiles!

 

[Icacos]

Examples of stylish Irish stiles.

Oooh, I want to go there!

 

[julia-t]

Ooh, thank you for the pics of French and Irish 'stiles'. Lovely to see the alternative obstacles some of you are confronted with.

With regard to the echalier, I am grateful to only have the English stiles to negotiate!

As for the Irish version,they are easy-peasy compared to English ones. All you have to do there is suck in your belly and raise your poles to pass through - no climbing involved!

Frankly, stiles are a nuisance. Others living in rural England will agree. When you cannot get into a decent walking rhythm because of having to stop, juggle your walking poles from hand to hand, climb up-over-down without slipping/catching your toe on the top bar/falling, and reorganise your poles every few hundred metres, the novelty soon wears off.

So if any of you fancy walking the Cotswold Way, or just exploring some of the thousands of footpaths in this part of the Cotswolds, let me know, and I will take you on a stile-crawl, and maybe manage to visit a pub or two along the way!

Goodness knows you need some sort of reward. Yesterday I treated myself to the new Star Wars film and a glass of wine!

 

[domigee]

Good for you! I do find the styles a challenge, more often than not they're slippery or worse...wobbly... I hate to say but it is still ok at my age, I do worry though should I live much longer and still living in this part of the world
Oh, and if you happen to walk in a group, as I do sometimes, it does slow you down considerably....

 

[Icacos]

So now the truth comes out! These quaint, sweet little stiles are a pain in the neck, or worse, and a danger to life and limb!!?

 

[domigee]

Ya ahhh!

 

[Icacos]

Ya ahhh!

Rats! Now my fairy tale, nursery rhyme outlook on life has been seriously marred.
However - joking aside - if the purpose of stiles is to keep livestock from wandering from one pasture to another, I am curious as to how the 'Irish stiles,' pictures of which @wayfarer posted above, actually work. Are they narrow enough to prevent the adult livestock from passing through, with the idea being that the babies, which presumably could get through, would not stray too far from the parents?

 

[Davey Boyd]

The good news it stiles haven't it made to the continent yet and are still firmly restricted to the British Isles, SY

Not stiles as such as in Europe but on the San Salvador there were tiny gates through fences with a step that there was no way my pack would fit through. I had to throw the whole pack over the fence!

 

[Wokabaut_Meri]

Went looking for a photo of the electric fence stile but no luck... did find a couple of Aussie stiles though

 

[julia-t]

if the purpose of stiles is to keep livestock from wandering from one pasture to another, I am curious as to how the 'Irish stiles,' pictures of which @wayfarer posted above, actually work. Are they narrow enough to prevent the adult livestock from passing through, with the idea being that the babies, which presumably could get through, would not stray too far from the parents?

That's the idea, the gap at the bottom is only about 4-6 inches wide, just enough for a boot to fit through.

 

[AlwynWellington]

more of a ladder

On a walk this morning (its early Summer after all) I purposely avoided a path that has at least two ladder type stiles. And neither has a pole to steady oneself.

I shouldn't have worried too much. The alternative route had two padlocked gates with at least five horizontal steel rails. And as I did not have the keys the drill was: drop the pack over the other side; climb just high enough to swing one leg over; gingerly rotate your position and put the first foot on a rail so it faces "south" while the foot on the other (arrival) side remains facing "north" holding on to the top rail; try to disengage the "north" facing foot and swing that leg over; after that just climb or jump down making certain you feet are clear of rails as you do; put pack back on. Say a prie a Dieu that your are still in one piece and carry on walking.

 

[julia-t]

Alwyn Wellington - well done - but just one thing to add...

ALWAYS climb a gate at the hinge end.

If anyone doesn't know why, think about it.

And if still in doubt, google it.

 

[Icacos]

ALWAYS climb a gate at the hinge end.

If anyone doesn't know why, think about it.

And if still in doubt, google it.

I did Google it and, before I lost my link, I came to the conclusion that the rule "Always climb a gate at the hinge end" is mainly for the benefit of the gate owner and/or the person who has to maintain the gate, and not necessarily for the safety of the climber....not that the latter should be uppermost in the climber's mind.

 

[julia-t]

Icacos - yes, it should always be for the benefit of the gate owner, part of the Country Code which 'most of us'* are taught in the UK from an early age.

But also for the safety of the climber.
A gate is attached to the gatepost by two hinges - top and bottom - at one end.
At the other end, it is attached to the gatepost by one fitting, usually situated at halfway or above.

Therefore the gate is most stable at the hinge end. It is less likely to buckle or sustain damage if weight is applied to the hinge end.

*if you live in the country. I don't think children growing up in towns and cities are taught this, but I could be wrong.

 

[Icacos]

Icacos - yes, it should always be for the benefit of the gate owner, part of the Country Code which 'most of us'* are taught in the UK from an early age.

But also for the safety of the climber.
A gate is attached to the gatepost by two hinges - top and bottom - at one end.
At the other end, it is attached to the gatepost by one fitting, usually situated at halfway or above.

Therefore the gate is most stable at the hinge end. It is less likely to buckle or sustain damage if weight is applied to the hinge end.

*if you live in the country. I don't think children growing up in towns and cities are taught this, but I could be wrong.

All this makes perfect sense, Julia; I was just being wicked. (My kids have moved out, and they do not visit this forum. )

 

[AlwynWellington]

ALWAYS climb a gate at the hinge end.

Having been on many farms I suspect I climbed at the hinge end without thinking about it. (like leaving gates just as you find them, talk to the cattle beasts as you walk past, stop to talk with alpaca and llama, don't worry about what sheep do, etc). Whatever, I would have chosen the more stable end.

I was in something of a quandary at one gate. I was uncertain of the stability of the gate itself and eyed up the short wooden fence with rails at the hinge end. This fence had cabling for an electric fence. I was pretty certain it wasn't live so decided to give it a go.

 

[AlwynWellington]

As I have a version of vertigo I thoroughly detest stiles of whatever design. My preferred way of passing through a fence line is to never leave the ground.

One means is a gate about 1.5 m wide. Opposite the hinged end is a three sided rectangle or a two sided V. The gate extends into this area. On the approach push the gate away from you and veer into the area. Once in, pull the gate past you to the side you have just entered, so leaving space to exit on the other side.

 

[Urban Trekker]

Pulling out my Randonnée for Vézelay the closest thing in French is échalier and from my limited experience often more of a ladder or an even more construction for the same purpose.

OK I was thinking the hedge rows that gave the allies a bloody nose.

 

[Robert V J Varman ofs]

Since this has become a thread on stiles. They've got all sorts of stiles on Norfolk Island (mid-west Pacific). The chief obstacles there are cattle grids because cattle have have right of way and free range in most public areas.

 

[scruffy1]

Alwyn Wellington - well done - but just one thing to add...

ALWAYS climb a gate at the hinge end.

If anyone doesn't know why, think about it.

And if still in doubt, google it.

Hinges are good, not too many places where you must cross a barbed wire fence on the CF unless you get really really lost but a similar rule holds too. Always climb over next to a post where the wire is securely fastened. Between posts where there may be some slack or hopping over invites disaster.

 

[AlwynWellington]

The chief obstacles there are cattle grids

They're good to keep most farm animals in their place. They're easy to walk over if you keep to the side. And vehicles can pass over without someone having to get out and open a gate. This is a boon when its raining. With a gate you've got to stay there and shut it again after the vehicle has gone through and then chase down the road to where it has stopped.

 

[Robert V J Varman ofs]

Alwyn, I agree they are a great idea for all those reasons.... plus you can always tell when unexpected visitors are arriving in a car (ke-clunk). They can get slippery when wet, especially the timber ones.

Now I'll be looking for cattle grids as I walk the Camino.

 

[Deleted member 43985]

There is an easier way...! We use this type in Canada, mostly in the prominent cattle areas. I must admit though, the Irish one have a true beauty about them!