Why Gateways Are the First to Go

Every winter, the same patch of ground lets you down. It is almost always the gateway — the spot where your horse stands to be caught, where the haynet gets hung, where the field shelter meets the track. A horse walking through a gap concentrates every hoof print in the same square metre, and once the grass roots are gone, the soil structure soon follows. Water pools, hooves churn, and within a fortnight you have a knee-deep bog that never dries out.

That matters for more than clean legs. Deep mud pulls at tendons, hides stones and wire, and creates the perfect conditions for mud fever, thrush and cracked heels. A horse that has to lunge through suction every time it comes in for feed is also far more likely to tweak something. Fixing the gateway is one of the best-value jobs you can do on a yard, and it pays you back every single winter.

Assess the Site Before You Spend Anything

Stand at your gateway in the wettest week of the year and work out where the water is actually going. Most mud problems are drainage problems wearing a disguise. Look for the lowest point, the direction of the fall, and whether run-off from a track or yard is discharging straight into the field.

• Slope: Aim for a fall of about 1 in 20 across any hard surface so water runs off rather than sitting on top.
• Size: A gateway pad of roughly 3m by 4m suits most horses and gives room to turn without stepping onto bare soil.
• Traffic: If the gateway is also your hay-feeding spot, plan for a larger area or move the feed to a separate hardstanding.
• Run-off: A shallow cut-off ditch or drainage channel upslope can divert water before it ever reaches the gate.
• Access: Check you can get a small digger or tractor and trailer to the spot before committing to a delivery of stone.

Doing this properly first time saves you re-laying the same gateway every spring.

Hardcore: The Most Durable Solution

If you want a gateway that lasts for a decade, build it properly. A well-constructed hardcore pad is the gold standard and, per year of service, often the cheapest option.

The method is straightforward. Strip the soft topsoil back until you reach firm ground — usually 150mm to 200mm. Lay a woven geotextile membrane over the exposed subsoil; this stops your stone sinking into the mud below and is the single step most people skip. Then bring in a good compacted stone, typically MOT Type 1, in layers of around 100mm, compacting each layer with a plate or roller. Finish with a finer topping of 20mm clean stone or Type 1 dust so the surface is firm but not slippery under hoof.

Keep the finished surface slightly proud of the surrounding ground and crowned so water sheds to the edges. One word of caution: horses standing for long periods on hard stone can bruise soles, so if your horse loiters at the gate, consider rubber mats over the top of the hardcore. Avoid smooth concrete, which becomes treacherous when wet or icy.

Rubber Mats: Comfortable and Quick to Install

Rubber mats are the practical middle ground and are especially good over an existing firm base. Heavy 20mm to 25mm rubber mats designed for stables and yards will take a horse's weight, protect the surface beneath, and give a non-slip, comfortable standing area.

• Base matters: Mats flex and sink if laid on soft ground. Level the area with compacted stone or hard-packed earth first.
• Interlock or pin: Where mats are available with connecting lugs, use them; otherwise pin or batten edges so they cannot shift under a shod hoof.
• Lift and clean: Mats can be lifted in spring, pressure-washed and relaid, which makes them a flexible long-term choice.
• Coverage: In very wet ground, use mats as the top layer on a proper hardcore and membrane foundation rather than as a standalone fix.

Second-hand mats are widely available and perfectly serviceable if you check for splits and missing edges before you buy.

Woodchip and Bark: Budget-Friendly With Caveats

Woodchip is the quickest and cheapest way to make a gateway usable this side of Christmas, and it is kind on the legs. Lay a geotextile membrane first — otherwise the chip simply disappears into the mud — then spread 100mm to 150mm of chip over the top, topped up as it compacts.

Use fresh, clean chip rather than sawdust or fine shavings, which pack down and hold water. Bark is longer lasting but can be slippery when wet, so keep it topped up and mixed with coarser material. Never use material from a source that might contain ragwort, yew or other toxic plants, and avoid chip that has been treated with wood preservatives. Woodchip is a two to three season fix, not a permanent one, and it needs raking back into place after windy weather.

Whichever surface you choose, a small load of chip kept under a tarpaulin for mid-winter top-ups is worth its weight in gold.

Managing the Gateway Through the Season

Good groundwork still needs a bit of discipline once the rain arrives. Skip out droppings daily — they smear into a paste under hooves and hold moisture. Avoid feeding hay right on the pad if you can, and rotate the access point if your layout allows, so hooves are not always landing in the same spot.

If mud starts to build at the edges, dig a shallow grip to lead water away rather than letting it pool against the pad. In spring, lift mats, re-level any hollows, top up stone and reseed the bare ground around the gateway with a hardy grass mix. Restricted turnout — a smaller, well-drained area used during the wettest weeks — does more for your fields than any surface treatment, and it stops the gateway deteriorating before the hard work has a chance to pay off.

Sort the gateway and the rest of the winter becomes noticeably easier: cleaner legs, calmer turnouts, and a field that recovers instead of rutting.