Over The Hill

I am still undecided as to whether it was our love of walking or our guilt of Christmas and New Year excesses that brought 25 of us out for the first walk of the year - either way, the "Rev" David gathered his flock at Ardmore and off we set along the Clyde shoreline so recently battered by high tides and heavy winds.

For myself, this was a walk which brought back many memories as the route covered the ground where I spent many hours of my young boyhood days. Ah the memories.

Summers spent at Ardmore Point and Cardross, swimming in the Clyde, boiling tea in an old pan over a driftwood fire. If we were lucky, we got the train to Cardross, otherwise we hoofed it over Carman Hill; - no jetting off to foreign shores when I was a boy, it was the Clyde or nowhere!

Up through Cardross and around the golf course and we were soon in the old woodlands of Kilmahew Castle, passing by the much maligned structural remains of St Peters Seminary and on to the standing remains of the castle itself. An imposing structure on which David delivered his first sermon to the standing flock - The History of Kilmahew Castle according to Wikipedia - v1 to v9.

Taking to the minor lanes beyond the Kilmahew estate we made our way uphill and onto the open hillside of Carman Muir - Ah the memories - Days spent trudging up from the Renton to the reservoir and scouring the hillsides looking for the bomb craters left by German bombers unloading their bombs on Bombing Decoys (Starfish) which were placed along the hillsides to protect the RNTF Alexandria and divert the aircraft from their intended targets, such as Clydebank.

Upon Carman Hill Fort, the Rev conduct his second sermon - Informing us that the "Fort" has a checkered past, probably originating from Bronze or Iron Age, and may well have been the site of the first Christian Church in the Vale of Leven. The fort itself was only discovered by aerial photography in 1954 - although I reckon me and my pals found it long before then and used it as a fort against the indians attacking us with their bows and arrows!

Onwards along the line of the hillside and over Overton, Bromley and Tullichewan Muirs. Oh the days in The Christie Park, climbing up alongside the burn and onto the Muirs, back down via the ruins of Tullichewan Castle and into my Granny's on Lomond Road for a jellie piece for me and my pals - no mobile phones then to phone ahead that the hungry cowboys were coming in!

And finally, Stoneymollan and the Cross Stone - This old Coffin Road offers some magnificent views over Balloch and the southern end of Loch Lomond and was the favourite playground for my cousins and I for a days adventure - much to the annoyance of my mum and my aunt, as often it was only when we returned home, tired and hungry that they knew where we had been. Oh the freedom!

Downhill on a good track and we were soon back at Ardmore Point - It had been a great day which brought back some great boyhood memories for myself - Thanks David.