Brief route description
This final section of
the South of Scotland Way once again follows Hamish Brown's route from
his book, "From The Pennines to the Highlands". Apart from a diversion
over Bar Hill the first half of the day is spent once again following
the towpath of the Forth-Cyde canal. In the afternoon, however, Hamish
takes us on a bitty yet interesting route of back lanes, footpaths and
golf courses across the rural outskirts of Glasgow. You would never
know that you are so close to one of Britain's principal cities.
Croy is, of course, conveniently reached by train from either Queen
Street or Edinburgh. Today's walk begins from the north end of the
village where you emerged yesterday after finding your way off Croy
Hill. Bar Hill is a lesser eminence and its only real similarity with
Croy Hill is that it, too, was traversed by the Antonine Wall and was
also the site of a Roman fort. Walk north out of the village towards
Kilsyth. You reach a road junction where the main road goes to the
right (north) while a minor road heads off south (left). Take the north
road and walk for about 100 metres to find a rough track heading off to
the left. This is your route to Bar Hill and it's following the route
of the Antonine Wall.
Basically you just need to follow your nose. After running straight for
600 metres your track curves left, right and then left again to reach
the access point to Bar Hill. This route to the hill seems to be
largely unfrequented for it's not until you reach the top that you
start to encounter information boards and direction posts. As well as
the Roman fort the hill is also the site of a more ancient earthwork.
The latter fort lays at the hill summit while the site of the Roman
fort is immediately to the west. The route to Twechar is signposted but
still a little tricky to negotiate; apparently you are meant to head
westwards off the summit then go round two sides of the Roman fort
before finding a path heading briefly northwest to an old mineworking.
A track from here heads southwest to the locality of Bar, where you
come out onto a road; turn right along this road to reach a bridge over
our old friend the Forth-Clyde Canal and then turn left to follow the
A8023, here acting as the towpath, along its north bank.
Twechar lays on the other side of the canal. An odd little place, it
has the appearance of a detached suburb, an isolated housing estate
with no town. At Shirva Farm on the west end of Twechar the canal
curves to the left and leaves the road; here we resume our walk along
the towpath. The course of the Antonine wall is never far away and, a
mile beyond Shirva farm, we reach te site of yet another Roman fort on
the outskirts of Kirkintilloch. This town has some extensive suburbs
and its centre is almost two miles further on. It's worth leaving the
towpath for a bit to take a look at the town, which has some useful
amenities as well as having a bit of character. It makes a good lunch
stop.
Four more miles of towpath lay beyond Kirkintilloch and yet again you
cross the line of the Antonine wall at Glasgow Bridge, which carries
the A803 across the canal. Glasgow Bridge is two miles beyond
Kirkintilloch; after a third mile you reach Hungryside Bridge, which
was once a drawbridge that had to be lifted to allow canal traffic to
pass. Nowadays it's fixed. The final mile of towpath walk is
accompanied by a ribbon of trees. We're close to the city of Glasgow
now but your immediate surroundings are very rural and there is barely
a hint of the urban sprawl to the southwest.
The canal now bends sharply to the left to reach Cadder, a locality
that nowadays lays on the very edge of Glasgow. The towpath comes out
onto a minor road leading to Cadder church; leave the canal here for
the last time and wave it a fond farewell, turning right. Immediately
beyond the church the road becomes a track. Stay with it. The track
bends to the right and crosses the grounds of Keir golf course; fear
not, it's a right of way. At the far end of the golf course our track
reaches the river Kelvin, which it crosses by a footbridge. The
succeeding track briefly follows the north bank of the river before
turnig away right to head for the village of Balmore.
Our next objective is Balmore golf club, and that's reached by crossing
the A807 and walking north through the village, going straight on at
the crossroads where the main road goes off right, then turning left
after 200 metres to follow the access road to the golf course. This
turns right in another 500 metres and crosses the Branzier burn by a
bridge. Past the bridge go straight ahead for 100 metres then follow
the edge of the golf course around to the left. After 450 metres go to
the right, heading for a house known as Temple by a stand of trees at
the foot of a knoll. From Temple the path goes clockwise around the
foot of this knoll. At the ten o'clock position find the track off to
the left that passes a school and emerges onto the road network once
more.
The remainder of the walk is on tarmac and all the "bitty" sections of
route are behind you. Your immediate destination now is Baldernock, not
quite a mile away, and from there it's a straight run down into
Milngavie (pronounced "Mill-Guy"). Turn left onto the lane at the
school, and a short distance further on take the right fork. This lane
runs clockwise around the base of another knoll before bending sharp
left at Baldernock House. At the road junction beyond turn sharp right,
then turn left at Baldernock war memorial a little further on. This
lane runs southwestwards and downhill to another junction in a dip.
Turn right here. That was your final road junction. The road ahead runs
mainly straight, through a quiet and rather pleasant area of forest, to
emerge almost unexpectedly into a built-up area. You've reached
Milngavie. Just two hundred metres beyond is a crossroads, and just two
hundred metres further on is Milgavie railway station and the town
centre. To complete the walk stroll into the pedestrianised high street
to reach the marker at the start of the West Highland Way.
That, of course, is for another time. Or maybe tomorrow.
Maps: OS 1:25000
Explorers 349 (Falkirk), 348 (Campsie Fells), 342 (Glasgow)
