Mugdock Country Park

After descending from the moor, the walk skirts around the loch to arrive at Mugdock Castle, occupying a raised site on its western shore. Built in the 14th century by the Graham family (who served Scotland during struggles with England), it was a center of local power until the 17th century, when Parliamentary forces sacked it after the Grahams sided with King Charles I during the Civil War. Though rebuilt on a smaller scale, it never regained its former importance.

A walled garden and summerhouse were added around 1820, and further changes occurred before abandonment. It is now a maintained ruin with an impressive 14th-century wall and southwest tower. Beyond lies Mugdock Wood (an ancient broadleaved woodland of oak, alder, ash, elm, and rowan and an SSSI), where the route picks up a section of the West Highland Way (linking Milngavie with Fort William 95 miles north, officially opened in 1980 as Scotland's first long-distance footpath).

After following the West Highland Way through woodland, the route turns right up a minor road to visit Craigend Castle. This is not a genuine medieval building, but a Gothic fantasy built in 1816 by descendants of the Smith family (rewarded with the land in 1670 for loyal service as blacksmiths and armourers to the Graham armies). Craigend stables nearby now house the visitor centre.

The last Smith laird died in 1851, and from 1949 to 1956 the castle housed a zoo boasting the 'biggest rat in the world' and Charlie, the largest elephant in captivity. The castle is now a shell. Returning to the start, the path skirts the eastern side of Gallows Hill (where public executions took place until 1800) before reaching the visitor centre cafe.

Acknowledgment: Text derived from the Out and Out Series; Discovering the Countryside on Foot. Pictures courtesy of Wikipedia.