Queen Mary's Seat

Walking with Kids


Last year, as the days begin to get shorter and the temperature dropped, it was best to try out shorter hikes not too far from home. We had already visited Cathkin Braes a couple of years ago to look at the mountain bike track, which was used for the Commonwealth Games in 2014, but this time we came  back to try one of the walks. 

Where is it?

Map Location
Cathkin Braes is just on the outskirts of Glasgow and is the highest point in the city at just over 200m, it is located near Castlemilk. It is a country park and there are plentuy of walks around the area. We travelled from the East Kilbride direction and had parked at the lay-by/parking spaces on Cathkin Road. 

The Route


The Route

Elevation Profile

From the parking space we followed the track that ran parallel to the road, this continued for a mile or so through the woods. Every now and the you can catch glimpses of the city. There were a couple of sign posts but I think this was more for cyclists than walkers. After only half an hour of walking we came to the viewpoint, a curved wall which may have held information about the area or the city, but no longer does. The large cairn in the area marks where Mary Queen of Scots is reputed to have observed the defeat of her forces at the Battle of Langside. 
The Sign Leads the Way

Woodland Walk

More Woods

Signpost

The Summit

From here we followed one of the tracks down and back around the park. We were basically following one of the bike tracks. The route did get muddy in places and it took us through more woodland before coming back out at the wind turbine. 
Following the Bike Track

Near the End
This is good for a quick walk out with the kids and the chance to see Glasgow from a distance. It also marks our second car park in the sky visit in the last 2 months. 

Distance: 2.1km
Time Taken: 49min
Height: 196m

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