Near Crundale, Kent – 5/10

For the sake of context, these photos were taken on a particularly damp and bleak winter’s day, and so perhaps it can be argued that on a warm summer’s day this stile may look much better and more inviting. The fact that the wood is soaked through and the steps and beams mud-stained may make them look like they are feeling sorrier for themselves than usual, but there is no getting away from the fact that it is still a poor stile that is functional at best.

Soaked through or not, the fact is that wood used is still a real hodgepodge of the odds and sods left over, and the ‘steps’ are way too small, making for rather uncomfortable negotiation and potential balance problems for the user.