free to be able to rate and comment on reports (as well as access 1:25000 mapping).
Day 1: Stages 1 and 2I live in Glasgow so I caught the underground to Partick and walked to the riverside museum where the trail begins. I ended day one at the end of stage 2 which is Strathclyde country Park, I then just walked to Airbles station to head back to Glasgow central. Stopped in Uddingston for a cheeky gregs for lunch, I also recommend having a nosey at Bothwell castle while you're there
It took me 9 hours that includes a lunch break and walking at a leisurely pace.
Day 2: Stage 3,4 and 5 I caught the train back to Airbles to re-join the trail again at Strathclyde country park and finished at the Clyde Falls. Once I was finished I walked to Lanark station to catch the train back to Glasgow central. Its worth getting off trail to go and check out the derelict Cambusneath priory.
I was surprised at how beautiful and worth it the walk was, I honestly wasn't expecting much because it goes through some very urban areas and it gets a bad reputation on some of the reports. Stages 3, 4 and 5 were amazing and one of my favourite days walking, it felt like an adventure, It was so green and varied and I still had a wee moment of hikers high too. To be brutally honest the first stage around Glasgow is a little boring and not very scenic, especially if you live in Glasgow. So if you're not a completionist I'd say skip the first 1 or 2 stages. That being said I don't regret that days walking and I'd say it was worth it.
Pros: -very accessible by train and bus so non driver friendly
- very easy to navigate (just follow the river and the path you can't go wrong!)
- physically easy to walk it as there is minimum elevation
- It being more urban meant that I had phone service the whole way and opportunity to jump of
trail to buy snacks and coffee!
- A lush green river walk is a nice change of scenery from a rocky hill walk sometimes, ya know?
Cons: - there are some boring and less attractive parts with some littler, especially early on.
- I didn't see a lot opportunity for wild camping on the way, I think the ideal camping spots were
a little two close to settlements.
- the clyde walkway can be quite busy in some sections on a nice day with locals walking their
dogs, so sometimes its kinda hard to zone out and enjoy the peace of the nature. This also
makes doing bush wees a real stealth mission!
I hope this was helpful and encourages you to give the Clyde walkway a go!
- Carbarns
- Cambusnethan Priory
- Maudslie Bridge
- the clyde
- Falls
- the riverside museum
- Bothwell Castle