Walking in a winter wonderland: our fave festive wanders through Glasgow and Edinburgh
Come Twixmas (the twilight zone betwixt Christmas and New Year), you’ll be desperate to get out of the house. But where to go? Our selection of urban-ish walks all take in some cracking scenery and end at a cosy pub for a win-win winter wander
Around Glasgow
The Linn Park Circular starts at the Snuff Mill Bridge in Cathcart, with a counter-clockwise loop passing two cemeteries, a waterfall and a golf course. After gradually drifting back up towards Linnview Avenue, you’ll find yourself on Old Castle Road where a delightful pub called The Old Smiddy awaits with lovely regulars and sport on the screens.
There are about 30 different murals on the well-documented Glasgow Mural Trail, and the stretch near the Clyde takes in ten or so: work your way from west to east to finish at Whistler On The Green, where snug surroundings, a gastro-ish menu and a great pint of Guinness make the trip worthwhile.
A couple of miles up the Kelvin Walkway lies Dawsholm Park, flanked by Maryhill and Kelvindale (and their respective train stations). It’s a nature reserve and feels less formal than other parks, with wildflower and grass meadows. Come back down the walkway, past the aqueduct with the Botanics on your right, and go under Great Western Road to arrive at Inn Deep. Sit inside or out and enjoy a well-earned craft beer from their 20-odd lines.
Around Edinburgh
Wend your way around the bends of the Water Of Leith, taking the five-mile stretch from the Modern Art Gallery near Dean Village to the psychedelic street art of Colinton Tunnel. Finish by popping into The Spylaw by the tunnel’s entrance. This cosy gastropub serves a menu of seasonal mains and classics; the Cullen skink is particularly warming on a winter’s day.
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Avoid the lung-burning climb to the summit of Arthur’s Seat and instead follow the gravel path at the foot of Salisbury Crags from St Margaret’s Well past Hunter’s Bog. Reward yourself with a pint at The Sheep Heid Inn. Described as one of Edinburgh’s oldest pubs, the chocolate-box exterior, traditional menu and old skittles alley out back make it feel just that.
You can reach the Flotterstone Inn in half an hour by bus. Indulge in their hearty pub grub before hitting the Pentlands’ trails, or start at Harlaw Reservoir near Balerno and use a pint by the open fire as the carrot for an eight-mile ramble through the Maiden’s Cleugh path between the heather-bruised hills. Either way, this cottage-like spot is the perfect warmer.