So during lockdown we have done rather a lot of hikes in the Kilpatrick hills now. It’s still over a month before the travel restrictions are (hopefully) being lifted, so we’ve been getting pretty desperate for new walks.

Today we looked on google maps for some ideas. We had already seen a post on our Scottish Hillwalking group on Facebook about Lucifer’s loch, so we decided to see if we could find it today.

The easiest route appeared to be from Auchnacraig car park at Edinbarnet, hiking up first to Jaw/Cochno reservoirs (which we have done a few times now), and then crossing between these two reservoirs and following the footpath to Black loch and then the (sometimes rather indistinct) footpath on to Lucifer’s loch.

The thing about hiking in the Kilpatricks is that even if you get a bit lost, it’s compact enough that you will sooner or later find a route either to where you want to go, or back to where you came from. Having google maps on your phone also helps too, of course.

There are lots of forestry tracks, most of which are marked on google maps, so once you hit one of them you can get a good idea of where you are and which direction you need to head.

After the Black loch, we hit one of the forestry tracks which took us to a high point overlooking Lucifer’s loch. From there, we followed a rough track left by other hikers, through the heather heading along the loch.

We followed this for a bit, before deciding to loop back to Jaw via another route, and from Jaw follow our original route back to the car park.

Luckily we wore our welly boots, as usual, as it was very muddy in places.

Just before we got back to the car park, we walked down to the Cochno burn to wash off most of the mud, and to photograph this cute wee waterfall…

In total our walk was approximately 5.8 miles and 1,000 feet elevation gain. Please note that if you follow our route exactly, we had a wee “blip” which involved having to get over a barbed wire fence! It was quite a low fence, so it was ok, but probably not the best idea ever! Below is our route…

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We already have a page on our website under “Around Glasgow” for the Whangie walk via the traditional route. Today we decided to take an alternative, from the big car park at Edenmill Farm Shop, bagging a small hill (Auchineden, only 357 metres high) on the way.

There is a useful free App called “What3Words” which I have used to show the start point and turnoff. Please do NOT rely on this alone for navigation.

The Whangie is an unusual rock formation that resembles a very narrow ravine, which goes on for around 100 metres, passing through steep sided rocks up to 20 metres tall. Local folklore says it was caused by the Devil’s tail carving through the rocks. It is a very popular walk with locals and dog walkers, and fairly easy with the exception of winter when the traditional path can become treacherously icy.

The route that we took today was easy to follow, but boggy in a few places. We tend to wear welly boots by default when walking the hills, and we’d recommend these, or waterproof hiking boots.

It was roughly 2 miles to the trig point (summit) of Auchineden hill, and roughly a further half mile to the Whangie. There are lots of options to extend the walk, including a circuit round Burncrooks reservoir, however, today (after returning to the main path which leads to Burncrooks) we took the gravelled forest track past the near side of Burncrooks and then Kilmannan reservoirs and back down to Edenmill. This was 6.5 miles in total.

To park at Edenmill is easy. There are plenty of spaces, and even just now, during lockdown, the butcher shop was open as was the cafe for takeaway coffee etc. W3W for the turnoff from Stockiemuir Road to Edenmill – helpfully.sage.eliminate / W3W for the car park – reforming.shows.blink.

Walk back out of the car park the way that you drove in, continue for around 200 metres and then take a sharp left (W3W – decently.wink.covertly) along the private road (you will most likely see other walkers) which takes you all the way up to Burncrooks reservoir.

The path we took up Auchineden hill was on the right at “approximately” W3W – placidly.trendy.gifted. You will see a slightly muddy but fairly defined path, it’s fairly obvious and the path remains clear to follow all the way up. Not many people were using it, but there were bootprints in the mud, and we did see a couple of other people up ahead of us. This photo is on the path looking up the hill.

Looking back downhill you start to get nice views of Burncrooks, and further away, Kilmannan, reservoirs. The hill in the distance is Duncolm.

The weather was rather overcast today, so it was difficult to see Loch Lomond in the background of this photo taken near the trig point at the top of Auchineden hill.

From the trig point there are a few paths, the one to the Whangie goes left and heads Northwest (pretty much in the direction our camera in the above photo was pointing).

There’s a little bit of downhill to go, and when things level off again you are pretty close. The Whangie “entrance” can however be a little hard to see, and it would be quite easy to pass it without noticing. The photo below will give you a good idea where it starts (on the right of the photo, with just a little bit of a scramble up). W3W approx – offstage.castle.formed.

As you walk through the Whangie it is pretty easy, just the odd rock to clamber over or around.

Once we had walked through, we took the path along the outside of the Whangie (running parallel) to head back, which also make for some nice photography.

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Last night we set up our new Winnerwell fire pit for a “test run”. It has great reviews and is really handy as it folds away flat.

Paul had got a couple of nice Scottish single malts for his birthday last weekend (Glenlivet and Inchmurrin) so once the fire was roaring he settled down to enjoy a wee dram.

Our verdict – the fire pit was excellent and quick to get going, it has ventilation holes to allow the fire to really roar, and it gave off a good heat. It’s also rust resistant and can be used with a rack as a bbq (you can either buy one that’s specially made for it, or just buy a cheap one like you get in your oven/grill). Two-thirds of a bag of logs lasted almost 3 hours.

Paul’s verdict on both whiskies – both were excellent – very smooth and enjoyable, he likened the Inchmurrin to the Macallan, which was previously his favourite (although I don’t think he’s ever had a single malt that he hasn’t been impressed by!)

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So today our car went in for it’s service and MOT over at Mazda South Street. Due to Covid, and unlucky second time around, they were not offering their free collect and return service. We decided therefore to walk back home the “long way”, avoiding the roads and pavements as much as possible.

First we had to head up through Partick, not one of Glasgow’s prettiest or most desirable areas. But after about 25 minutes we reached the entrance to Kelvingrove park. From there we were able to walk through the park, head onto the Kelvin walkway, sidetrack up into the Botanic Gardens, and then back onto the walkway to return home.

I’m on a diet and fitness plan, and was happy to get just over 15,000 steps in on our walk.

We saw the grey squirrels, a couple of cormorants, lots of Spring flowers (mainly crocuses) and looked down on the remains of the old railway through the ventilation shaft within the botanic gardens, where it used to run through.

Here are a few photos – enjoy!

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At last we are coming out of our winter, and tomorrow is the beginning of Spring. The days are getting longer now and on today’s walk there were even some rhododendrons in bloom, which is very early. The snowdrops are still out (they were quite late this year) and the first few daffodils are almost ready to open, perhaps sometime next week.

We had to wait patiently to see the parakeets today, but it was worth it to get a photo of one on the tree trunk (no twigs or branches to have to angle the camera around).

Here’s just a few pics…

So, I’m sure many of you (in the UK and elsewhere) who have been in lockdown for quite some time now, are finding it increasingly difficult to find new places to go out for some exercise. We certainly are, despite being very lucky to have quite a lot of nice local walks, pathways, parks, and even the Kilpatrick hills near enough to us, we are now really craving a change.

On Facebook we are in a group for Scottish hillwalking and wild camping, so I put a post out to the group asking for some ideas that would still keep us within the legally allowed limit. Most of the suggestions we received, which were places we haven’t been before, were on the south side of the city (we live in the west/north).

Therefore today we picked a couple of parks that were across the city from us, but close enough that we could visit both in one day.

We started with Linn Park and the recommended walk to Snuff Mill bridge. We started on the side of the river where we had parked, next to the golf course. It was a short walk and paved on that side. Once we crossed over the bridge it was a different story! Very muddy, and ankle deep in several places, so we were very glad to have worn our welly boots! The path followed the river, using quite a few muddy steps going up and down hill and past a waterfall before continuing on to Linn bridge. The photos below are from this part of our walk. We strolled around some more and up to an open grassy spot, before heading back to the car and on to Cathkin Braes.

From the golf car park at Linn Park, it was under 3 miles to Cathkin Braes country park. The walks here are a mix of open meadow and woodland. There is also an abundance of mountain biking routes. From the open areas there are some fabulous views across the city as far as the Campsie hills in the north.

One very noticeable landmark at Cathkin Braes is the huge wind turbine. We have never been close to one of these before, just seen them on the hills from afar. We were pretty much in awe of just how huge these things are! We’re sure it was way taller than the high flats you see all around the city, and the sound of the blades was like being next to an airplane, just without the engine noise. The path we took went right past it, and we couldn’t help but hope the blades didn’t come loose as we were passing! The photo below is the turbine from a distance, taken on our return loop.

So all in all, it was a good day. We “ticked off” two parks that we hadn’t been to before, and both within the city limits. The weather was good, and felt more Spring-like today, with a mild temperature of around 11 degrees.

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The snow is melting and rain forecast, so we decided just to do a short walk this morning to say “hello” to the parakeets. It looked like they were enjoying their Valentines Day lol

So today we decided on another walk up the Kilpatricks, this time to Loch Humphrey from Old Kilpatrick. The last few days had been beautiful with white snow and blue skies. Today was very overcast with more snow forecast.

We headed off just after midday from the car park near the train station. Google maps had indicated that our walk was 2.8 miles each way, however the sign just after the car park said 2 miles. Google was correct.

It started off with a gentle gradient, which then became steeper and harder going. The views looking back over the Clyde would have been great in clearer weather, but today they didn’t really warrant a photograph.

Finally the path levelled off again and the last bit headed gently downhill to the loch.

It was very windy during much of our walk, that kind of wind that cuts right through you. We were pretty well layered up, but our legs were numb by the time we reached the loch.

After a “selfie” and a couple of other quick photos we decided to head back rather than go any further. We were so cold that our hot tub was calling!

Actually they probably never left, but its been a while since we have seen them, so we were pretty excited to see them during our walk today.

The snow is still lying, getting just a little slippery in places now, but mostly it’s still nice and soft. More forecast for Saturday, but after that we’re due to go back to rain, so need to make the most of having the “white stuff”.

Here’s a few pics…