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A short walk report of a short, but attractive, walk. We've just moved from Aberdeen to the south side of Glasgow, so we thought we'd get to know the area better by visiting a couple of local tourist attractions - the David Livingstone Centre in Blantyre, and Bothwell Castle across the River Clyde. They're linked by a short section of the Clyde Walkway, which in full runs between central Glasgow and New Lanark.
Blantyre was the birthplace of David Livingstone in 1813. The cotton factory he worked in from the age of ten no longer survives, but the tenement building where he lived has been turned into an excellent museum run by the National Trust for Scotland, which documents both his early life and his travels further afield. A large statue on open ground near the Centre shows the moment in which Livingstone sustained an injury during battle with a lion while staying in an African village. The damage to the bones in his arm which resulted allowed his body to be identified when brought back to England after his death in 1873.
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Walking to Bothwell Castle is short but worthwhile - it's about 30 minutes walk each way, but allow an hour for looking around the castle (Historic Scotland) and a couple of hours for the David Livingstone Centre. Facing downhill, follow the road past the right side of the Centre, soon reaching a now pedestrian-only footbridge across the Clyde. There's a large weir on the upstream side, but the path turns off on the downstream side immediately after crossing the bridge. There are several junctions - you can't go far wrong as long as you stay reasonably close to the river. The branch closest to the water's edge is the flattest, but has been eroded by the river at a couple of points, and wouldn't be suitable with a bike, for example. Bothwell Castle can soon be seen ahead, above the inside of a river meander. The path rises to emerge next to the walls, build from striking red sandstone.
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Go around the front to enter the interior of the castle - there's an admission charge. The castle started being built in the 13th century although, like most castles, has had several reworkings and additions since then, and played an important role in Scotland's battles for independence. Huge numbers of swallows flew amongst the ruins, their nests littering crevices and corners in the brickwork.
We returned to the start making use of the many branching paths to vary the route a little.
