stile

In spite of the intense pleasure all the wildflowers gave, it was the creative hand of man that was most striking on today's stretch of the Southern Upland Way (Knowe to Loch Trool via Bargrennan).

This was one of three such dry-stane dykes we crossed this weekend, beautifully built with a massive stone stile integral to the structure. The other, shadier, side of the particular one was thick with brilliant green mosses.

The alternative photo could have been of the effect of a more destructive kind: a stretch of clear-cut forest.