Paisley Canal Circular via Neilston Pad

In terms of the valley aspect and 'brae meditations' you can't get much better than the C road up behind Paisley towards Glennifer Braes. With its several small ascents from Paisley Canal train station up to the plateau it is what I call a real 'opener-upper' (that which is opened up being the body, the brain, the veins and arteries, and of course the valley).

Just at the turnoff towards Glennifer Braes. The views are expansive!

The road heading towards Neilston, and its inimitable 'pad' (centre right).

Looking south-west from Neilston Pad across Ayrshire towards the silhouette outline of Arran.

Once you get off the main road from Paisley into the braes there are no more cars, only tractors, horses and cyclists. The initial ascent can be a bit hairy especially if you do it at the weekend when youngsters have nothing better to do than race their souped up cars into the hills along the B775, but once off this road, things become very peaceful very quickly.

A real opener-upper from Paisley Canal to Roberston Park.

Take a left at Mossneuk Farm towards Greenfieldmuir and onwards to Neilston cutting through a small housing estate to Craig of Neilston farm. About a hundred or so yards past the farmhouse is a fence where you can chain your bike and take the short but steep hike up to the summit of Neilston Pad.

Once up on the sugar-loaf summit of the 'pad', head across to the eastern rim where there are small copses of old growth trees. Here, there is all manner of life, and it was here that I saw my first ever cuckoo (the hearing of it is in the video above). The views all around are incredible.

From there, there are a number of ways back. I just headed down to the train station at Neilston and caught a train to Patterton (one stop and what an 'inter-view'!!) where it is all downhill down the beautifully wide B769 through Thornliebank and Mansewood to Pollok Country Park. Alternatively, you could head back to Neilston and down to Barrhead and along the B774 back to Paisley Canal thus completing the 'loop'. Or, you could get the train from Neilston (every half hour) back to Glasgow Central.

The choice is yours.