And we're off! Our re-appointment with Glasgow is nigh and we have cunningly linked up our walk with going to a couple of gigs, Placebo and Iron Maiden which happen to fall across the same weekend after Placebo was re-scheduled from last year. I'm not sure rambling and gig going is really a thing but we are out to prove it can be done! Given previous experience though we decide not to try and walk on the same day we are going to the gigs, they are sweaty and tiring enough without being sweaty and tired when you turn up. We start with a nice 'normal' Saturday evening going for pizza before the Placebo gig and begin our rambles the next day. Hello Partick! We are resuming where we left off when we followed the Clyde Coastal Path/Clyde Walkway into the centre of Glasgow from North Ayrshire. We now want to pick up the Kelvin Walkway and follow the river all the way to Milngavie. This is about 11 miles so we get the subway to Partick from where we are staying at St Enochs Square in order to avoid adding a couple of miles on (we reckon we are going to be tired enough as we are only just starting to get back to fitness). We kind of ruin this idea anyway by wandering around Partick for a while looking for a decent coffee. Nevertheless we finally get on with it just as the decent weather which was still lingering from the previous day gives way to some proper rainfall. This is about the point Jennie usually questions why we don't just go on a beach holiday instead... The river Kelvin is a really beautiful place and it is unbelievable to think you are in the middle of Glasgow, you can't even hear much in the way of traffic. One of those walks which I'm sure many people who live locally dip into but how many walk the whole length of it? I had previously thought the Water of Leith walkway in Edinburgh was unrivaled, and yet as in all competitions between the cities, Glasgow will never be outdone. It rains fairly continuously but being late June is also very warm. I take my waterproof jacket off, and soon have to put it back on! Walking under a near constant canopy of trees and smelling the soil is also a particularly refreshing experience. (Is that just me? Maybe not). Amidst another downpour we pass the site of an old flint mill which was surprisingly still in operation until the 1950's. As the shower abates I spot a fluttering in the trees and manage to get the binoculars out quickly enough to identify a Blackcap, a bird that was a revelation to me until fairly recently where I have been seeing them a lot on various walks. An appropriately named bird, for the male anyway. It's not too long before simply by following the path we find ourselves on the outskirts of Glasgow just past Maryhill and Summerston. The path becomes more overgrown although still obvious enough as it still follows the Kelvin as we meander into a more open section. Somewhere around this area we spot our familiar friend the Yellowhammer who always seems to appear as you get to the edge of urban areas and some good hedges and fields. You get the impression that virtually no-one but the local dog walker does this stretch, and they are staying away because it is raining steadily. I remark how different it is for us these days as experienced ramblers with our waterproof trousers, waterproof jackets, waterproof cover for our backpacks and our trusty old waterproof boots, we are fairly kitted out for any adventure. Gone are those foolish days of wearing tracksuit bottoms or flimsy trainers. As they used to say a soldiers feet are the most important ... "my left foot is very wet" says Jennie. Oh ... We are about to part with the Kelvin and follow the Allander Water towards Milngavie but before we do we reach the site of the Roman Antonine Wall at the site of Balmuildy Fort. I am particularly interested in this as it connects with our walk along The John Muir Way back in 2017 which followed a good length of the wall across the central belt, as well as memories of taking a creative writing group along the section of it by Callendar House in Falkirk. The John Muir way diverted north to Helensburgh so did not follow the Western end through Bearsden to a termination point just north of the Erskine Bridge at Old Kilpatrick. Obviously there's not much here except a battered old information board and a busy road but the raised ground on the other side of the road where the fort would have been is clear enough. It is interesting (to me anyway) to use the Ordnance Survey map on my phone to stand at the exact point where the wall would have been. The path here is ridiculously overgrown, but we've got our waterproofs so on we march. Not like there is an alternative! It does get pretty hard going, the main problem being the level of moisture going into our boots despite their being Gore Tex waterproof ... Ok, clearly no-one has ever gone this way, not even the dog walkers are bothering. Jennie later reads in the guide book that this section actually becomes "impassable" by August when the vegetation reaches Little Shop of Horrors proportions. It's barely reaching chest height at the moment! I am a bit worried about ticks as there are a lot of cattle in the fields. At least they are safely in the fields, thought Jennie. Oh .. Jennie does have something of a fear of cows, so the fact that they have broken through the fence and are now completely blocking the very narrow path is a bit of a problem. I go slowly ahead and they do move along but that's not really solving the problem because the fence is actually pretty intact and they can't easily go back into the field. At this point I turn around and realise Jennie has not moved from the spot and is paralysed with fear. This is all obviously my fault. I try to encourage her to follow but she decides to divert into the densely wooded riverbank. To begin with I wonder what the hell she is doing but then I realise this plan is actually better than mine because we can go around the cows, although it is hard work because it is beyond overgrown here. Nevertheless, with difficulty we manage it. The cows look on with indifference. Now we are regretting being the only people to ever walk from Glasgow to Milngavie! How far is it now?! Still a couple of miles. My feet are a wee bit wet even despite my excellent boots. Jennie's are soaking. Despite the quietness of the setting, the waterlogged feet and cow challenges are really making us hope the days walk will be over soon. I do spot a really interesting moth, and get what is for me quite a good photo. As soon as we get a chance to get off this god forsaken waterway we divert to the nearest dry place which happens to be Dobbies Garden Centre where we are very grateful for a sit down, drink and partial dry off, although I'm not sure Dobbies has ever seen a pair of soaking wet muddy Ramblers before. When we have composed ourselves we manage the last mile or so to Milngavie without incident on a less overgrown path, obviously receiving more regular walkers. It even brightens up a fair bit. We get the train back to Glasgow and I spend the rest of the night in the Premier Inn with a Guinness and a pizza trying to dry out Jennie's boots with a hairdryer! It actually worked quite well. And we haven't even started the official West Highland Way yet! Thankfully we are not walking the next day so I get them dry in time for a day relaxing in Glasgow, checking out the brilliant Banksy exhibition before rocking out at Iron Maiden! All reasonably to plan so far ...
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