Mark Sutcliffe escapes the city for a relaxing lochside amble through one of Scotland’s most accessible country parks
Strathclyde Country Park lies in 800 acres of woodlands surrounding a loch alongside the River Clyde. It’s an urban oasis on the edge of Glasgow, providing a quiet retreat from the hustle and bustle of Scotland’s largest city, and also home to the Club campsite of the same name – which has a total of 152 touring and camping pitches.
Enjoy the woodlands and wildlife that flourish in this popular park – complete with a man-made loch and watersports centre which hosts regular rowing regattas.
In the woodlands to the north lie the remains of a Roman fort whose bathhouse is still visible from the lochside paths. Once the location of the bustling mining village of Bothwellhaugh, the loch was created in the 1960s after the River Clyde was re-routed to flood the former mine workings.
The loch has hosted Commonwealth Games rowing and open water swimming events while the Stereofunk music festival has been staged within the park since 2005.
Despite its proximity to the city, the park is managed for nature, with wildflower meadows flourishing on the lochside verges during the summer months.
1. From the main site gate, cross the access road and join a gravel path straight ahead into the woods. After 250m, just over a small dyke, fork right and continue over the parkland towards the loch.
2. 0.7km – Cross the access road and head left onto the lochside footpath. The verges on the left are left unmowed until autumn, allowing a riot of meadow flowers to bloom in the summer months.
3. 1.3km – Continue on the path past the playground and on to the colourful wooden sculpture, forking left then right across a footbridge where the South Calder Water flows into the loch.
4. 2.0km – Head right to pass the remains of a Roman bathhouse. Continue past the bathhouse, rejoining the loch shore. The site of the Roman fortress lies in the woodlands to the left.
5. 2.9km – Continue past another playground and a pebbly beach to the head of the loch and the watersports centre. Keep following the blue arrows and you won’t go far wrong.
6. 3.9km – Head through some metal gates in front of the boat house (gates close at 9.30pm) and continue along the lochside path past an observation tower. Follow the south-western shore of the loch for a mile and a half, heading for the prominent tower at the far end.
7. 6.4km – Before reaching the tower, go straight across the access road and follow the footpath as it heads into the woodland. At the main park access road, cross straight over to join the gravel path across the parkland and into the woods. After 200m, fork left and follow the path through the woodland for 250m to reach the site main gate.
Download this route and others to your smartphone or GPS device from the Club’s OutdoorActive page at: out.ac/IPp3bt
Club members save 25% on an OS Maps annual subscription, which gives you access to intuitive route planning tools and real-time GPS navigation while offering downloadable maps and offline access. Find out more at camc.com/ordnancesurvey
