Renfrewshire

9 miles / 14 km

This is a bit of a strange walk.. but it works. This is basically Fereneze Road from start to end combined with the crossing of the Loch Libo glen and road at Shillford, the turning point, followed by Uplawmoor Road back to Neilston and then Neilston Road down to Barrhead train station. A full circuit with the start and end at this railway station/the bus stops next to this train station. This is a great walk in itself and recommended.

Pretty Hard

This walk has two hard climbs at the beginning on the Fereneze Road just after Gateside. The second climb is very steep. The rest of the walk is undulating but not particularly hard. The Uplawmoor Road has no pavements or paths next to it. There is not much traffic during weekends. These 1.5 miles / 2 km is still not that interesting or pleasant. That is why I am a bit reluctant to include this walk in ClydeWalks. Nevertheless, the road is here.
The walk through Neilston and down to Barrhead is great. Bring plenty of water and good shoes on this walk.

Train from Glasgow to Barrhead train station 2 times an hour.
McGill's Bus 51/66 from Paisley town hall 2-3 times an hour.

The walk starts from the Barrhead train station. Either the station itself or the bus stop just outside the station. Cross Paisley Road to the start of Graham Street. The road/pavements, are pretty steep in the beginning before the road levels out and then becomes Gateside Road. There is a short steep climb up to the small Gateside village. The road becomes Fereneze Road and a single-track road up the hill from this village.
The road tops out here and then descends to the smelly waterworks and a short bridge. The climb at the other side of the bridge is desperate steep at times before it becomes less steep after a couple of hundred meters. A true fitness test.
There are some good views towards Neilston and Glasgow here. The road from Neilston soon joins the road and the road now makes a 90-degree turn to the right. After 100 yards/meters, take the pretty flat road to the left. The road becomes a bit steeper after 100 yards/meters before the Fereneze Road & Greenfieldmuir Road crossroad.
Take the Fereneze Road straight ahead/to the left here and continue up the hill to this good viewpoint over Neilston.




The road still gently climbs towards the top of this hill just before Heatherbank Country Park. The three following pictures is from this very beautiful walk. It is one of my favourite parts of the whole of Renfrewshire.










The road now descends down to a crossroad. Both roads are strangely enough called Fereneze Road. Take the one down to the left. There is a nice viewpoint here over the turning point of the walk... Shillford.



At the end of this desent, after crossing the railway line on a bridge, you are now on Lochlibo Road. Take this road on a good pavement to the left for 75 yards/meters before crossing the road and then the road to the right up a small hill to Uplawmoor Road. This climb is pretty steep and short. Take the undulating Uplawmoor Road to the left through some corners. Beware of the traffic here.



Just before a small bridge and the welcome to Neilston signpost, a pavement appears again. There is a strange warning sign for ducks (!!) here. So beware of the ducks here. I have walked this road many times and have yet to be attacked by a duck. But I guess ducks are one of the hazards of this walk... and Neilston. Walk up the hill to Neilston and then down the hill past the graveyard to the big Neilston Road - Lochlibo Road crossroad. Cross this road, walk past Tesco and the Farmfoods shop. Take the road to the left at the Farmfoods shop and walk this back to the starting point of this walk, Barrhead train station, where this walk ends.

Train to Glasgow from Barrhead train station 2 times an hour.
McGill's Bus 51/66 to Paisley town hall 2-3 times an hour.