North of Edinburgh

In the center of Edinburgh, a beautiful canal leads towards Glasgow. The canal had been built in the times of the industrial revolution to transport large amounts of coal into Edinburgh. Alongside the water runs a towpath which had been used to pull the boats. It is now a walking and cycling path.
The canal is quiet and beautiful, winding through the landscape, at times leading over high and ancient viaducts. I am astonished by the art of engineering that had been used to construct the canal. And then I am baffled: the canal running over aquaducts - ok - even the romans had thought of this. But a tunnel?! Suddenly the chanal plus towpath disappear under a massive hill. And boats actually go underground. Lots of fun!

The British are not only masters of canal building, they also love to erect fences and walls wherever there is an empty space. The public has a "right to roam" though - land owners have to grant access to their land. This means there are millions of gates all over Britain that facilitate that lifestock stays put while hikers and bikers enjoy their freedom.

But sometimes I find gates in comical positions. The gate on the picture above has no fence, leave alone any area that would make sense to be fenced in: it is situated right between a road and the ocean. Building a fence would allow for about 10 suare meter of pasture... that would be sufficient for ONE sheep or maybe - twenty hamsters?