Jacob’s Ladder, Caterham, Surrey, England.
The 199 Steps.
Halfway down the stairs
is a stair
where I sit.
There isn’t any
other stair
quite like
it.
I’m not at the bottom,
I’m not at the top;
so this is the stair
where
I always
stop.
Halfway up the stairs
Isn’t up
And it isn’t down.
It isn’t in the nursery,
It isn’t in town.
And all sorts of funny thoughts
Run round my head.
It isn’t really
Anywhere!
It’s somewhere else
Instead!
Halfway Down – AA Milne
Which Way Is Up ?
~
Stairs like that… how long has it been?
Imagine the stories if they could talk
The earliest reference I can find is 1906 so they’ve been there over 100 years. They are in a town called Caterham and I lived there until my early 20s and I used to walk up and down them regularly from a young age. And sometimes run. The steps are known locally as Jacob’s Ladder and not my personal term for them.
Again there is a ‘Forever in Aspic’ and ‘Frozen in Time’ feel to the place. Very little has changed since I was a young boy.