Ann Gate

Stiles with little gates are my favourites says A Gate 😂

And here are my collages of the Round 1 winners of #StileCup2026 showing the distribution of successful stile types for your new stylish followers in this place 🤩

Stone step stile with mini gate near Ullswater
An iconic specimen from the #StileArchive for @lakesstiles.bsky.social

Curiouser and curiouser
Someone posted this owl from a 15thC book of hours on the other side today 🦉🦉🦉👻

Thank you 😊
And yes, I’m a fan of Murder Must Advertise 📖

I will stow it away in the drawer again with other treasures

Now this is spooky 👻
Clearing stuff yesterday I found tag with “keepable owl” coloured in by sister in 1980s; today in village café I saw this tag and wrapping paper
Psychedelic Owls rule 🦉😵‍💫😱

Synchronicity 😊

This has reminded me that I found this wee book when tidying recently: my pencilled note shows I bought it in Cockermouth for £4 in 2023
Would you like it? It’s probably common up your way but dm me if you’d like it

Another lesson in the series Stile Types and Terminology from the eponymous expert

Foggy morning

I would be inclined to restrict it to religious contexts, but of course Stile novices are being initiated into a mystical cult 🤣

It’s from this, which I picked up in Oxford the other day; first published 1876, this is 1939 impression

I cheated - the second sentence is “The coast is iron-bound” but the third is quintessential @lakesstiles.bsky.social geological nerdery 😈

Nearest book, p42, 2nd sentence:

“The coast is iron-bound; strangely contorted schists and sand-stones stretch away northward in an almost unbroken line of rocky wall to the point of Hartland; and to the south-west a bulwark of cliffs, of very similar character, extends to and beyond Tintagel…”

Knobber and mud in West Oxon #SnecklifterTuesday 🤪

I had a video of one of those in Caerwent in the summer, in the other place I think

Rooks on wires last week
Similar today

*almost goes out into yard in rain to locate length of rusty barbed wire dug up along wall of sports field, but decides not to 🤣

And South: West Oxon anyway

Dual personality village stile on path between houses leading to field

Important explanation for the 🌌 newbies 😂

Surely a Recreational Stile has to be in splendid isolation?
@brendar.bsky.social has the perfect example with a sea view

Educating novices in stile etiquette

I have the same problem 📚📚📚

Sunset, West Oxfordshire

Evenlode eddies

Oh yes, like that social media person who used to do famous person in clothes matching toilets etc.

I’m not an enthusiastic fruit eater: apples sometimes, bananas occasionally, raspberries in summertime

Bibliophilia and bibliomania are separated by a wafer-thin margin