Bothwell and Blantyre
Here, we made a detour over the Livingstone Memorial Bridge. What a beautiful house next to it!
Blantyre is the birthplace of David Livingstone – although the David Livingstone Centre wasn’t yet open for the season, we enjoyed the surrounding park and garden. The statue of Livingstone and the Lion is spectacular.
We also liked the fountain, even if it had no water in at the moment, and the giant stone frog in the pond.
Crossing back to the other side of the river we walked through Old Bothwell to Bothwell Bridge, scene of a battle in 1679 between the Covenanters and Charles II’s army (the Covenanters lost). A memorial to them was erected in 1903.
From the memorial, it was a steep climb up the road to the centre of Bothwell after which we definitely deserved lunch – which we ate outside. In Scotland, in March! We were amazed too (though I confess I did feel it a little nippy).
After lunch, we stopped to admire this lovely memorial outside the Parish Church. Joanna Baillie was a renowned poet and dramatist who was born in Bothwell in 1762.
Another garden next. The Gilchrist Garden was donated to the residents of Bothwell in 1940 by Marion Gilchrist who was born in Bothwellpark Farm in 1864. Despite the education of women then being considered a waste of time, she went on to qualify as a doctor becoming the University of Glasgow’s first female graduate in 1894. The memorial sculpture, by Adrian Wiszniewski, was added in 2013. The cut-out shapes represent organisms seen under a microscope, the black represents Marion’s inner strength and the pink her femininity and sensitivity.
Bothwell used to be a mining village, and our final stop was this replica coal hutch which has recently been placed on the way out of town by the local Historical Society to commemorate the miners of Castle Colliery.
From here, it was about a mile back to the castle where we had left our car. So – scenery, history and art! I hope you’ve enjoyed this stroll through Bothwell which I’m linking to Jo’s Monday Walks.
The Glasgow Gallivanter 
è piacevole seguire le indicazioni dell’amica Jo, si scoprono angoli e pensieri che arricchiscono gli occhi e lo spirito, grazie
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Sono contento che la pensi così. Grazie per la visita. (I hope Google Translate got that right!)
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All of these places look amazing – though I think I may be most partial to the little frog. I think my backyard could use something similar!
As for eating outside in March, I for one am all for it, even if it is a little chilly. It just feels good to spend some time outside, rather than cooped up inside by this point in the year.
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Not so little! Too big to send to you.
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Darn! I guess I will have to find the American version of it!
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What a lovely walk, Anabel. The statue of Livingstone and the lion is so amazing. I love Mr. Frog too. 🙂
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I suppose I could have cheated and called them wildlife in the garden! But I’ll never be able compete with you….
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😀
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I definitely enjoyed this very diverse stroll with you Annabel. When I keep reading so much about Europe, I am missing it a bit, especially the castles. And the tea rooms and lunch places. And, the benches. Such a civilized area, compared to the remote and down to basic woods I have been hiking in! Which is very enjoyable as well, of course. 🙂 So nice you got to eat outside, bravely, in March… Don’t get too spoiled! We find ourselves getting carried away on the sunny, blue sky days this time of the year.
Liesbet @ Roaming About – A Life Less Ordinary
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Thank you Liesbet. Everywhere is different and has its own attractions I suppose (and it’s cold and wet again here now!)
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I could not agree with you more about that statue of Livingstone and the lion. Spectacular indeed! Honourable mention to that charming frog!
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Didn’t try kissing the frog to see what would happen!
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On my Instagram page I have some pictures of some of these places. Even if you don’t have Instagram you can still view them. https://www.instagram.com/wilkinsonpw/
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Ok, will bear all this in mind! Thanks again.
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You can park at Dalziel House, walk down to the graveyard at the ruined mausoleum then walk through the grounds over to Cambusnethan Kirkyard (also known as Kirkhill graveyard and St Michaels). It’s one of the oldest graveyards in the area and has one of the highest concentration of medieval graves anywhere in Scotland. Unfortunately this does not encourage the council or the locals to look after it, it’s in a bad way. However it’s so worth a visit! It has a massive mausoleum that’s in ok condition. If your still inclined you can continue along the Clyde walkway to Cambusnethan house, its a ruined shell but still gorgeous and it also had a small but ruined mausoleum. Further into clydeside almost at rosebank you have the old Mauldslie Estate. There is a lovely and decently preserved small graveyard there. It’s off the beaten track a bit. Most people stop at the cottage next to it and ask access aa there is a gate from their garden into it. Much easier than climbing through the trees up the hill! I could keep going but I need to make dinner! Lol
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