Go East >The Forth and Clyde Canal - Temple to Glasgow
Click here to view the photographs of this section of canal
The next stretch of canal takes us into the centre of Glasgow. It contains the canal's most impressive engineering works, and the start of the summit reach, which is mostly attractive and rural. A short distance from the Clobberhill lock flight is Temple, with a massive bridge carrying Bearsden Road over the canal, and two locks, 27 and 26. A new pub, called Lock 27, now stands by the towpath here, a very welcome sight on long walks!
At Cleveden Road, a new bridge has recently replaced the small Armco culvert installed in the 60s. Coming up beyond it is the finest feature on the canal - the substantial, four-arched Kelvin Aqueduct. When built, this was the largest aqueduct in the UK, and it is still very impressive to this day. A path leads down from the towpath and joins up with the Kelvin walkway here, and it is possible to do a good circular walk taking in river and canal.
Kelvin Aqueduct, Maryhill
As soon as it leaves the aqueduct, the canal climbs out of the Kelvin valley, up the flight of five Maryhill locks. This was the first flight on the canal to be restored to working order after the long years of decay, with the top two locks reopening in 1990 as part of the Glasgow Canal Project, which reopened the canal from Glasgow to Kirkintilloch.
Restored locks at Maryhill
The Glasgow Branch leaves the canal at the Stockingfield Junction not far beyond the top Maryhill lock, and allows boats to sail right into the centre of the city. It was the first part of the canal to be properly reopened; the Ruchill and Firhill bridges date from 1991 and 1990 respectively. By Firhill Bridge, there are extensive timber basins on either side of the canal here which have somehow survived without being filled in, and these are used sometimes for water sports. A further basin is present at Hamiltonhill as the branch approaches its end. This basin often has quite a few boats in it, belonging to both societies, and private boaters taking advantage of this wonderful facility that has been created right in the centre of Glasgow. Also at Hamiltonhill is a new working bascule bridge with a hydraulic mechanism, called Rockvilla Bridge, and next to the canal on the offside, the British Waterways HQ for Scotland.
At Spier's Wharf where there are impressive restored warehouses, the canal suddenly comes to an abrupt end near the M8 motorway. It has been cut off from its original terminus, Port Dundas, which is now in a rather decrepit state, but can still be found slightly to the east. The Monkland Canal once joined the Forth and Clyde here, but it has now been mostly filled in to make way for the M8. It still flows in pipes underground, however, and continues to feed water into the Forth and Clyde to this day.
Access Points
to the main Forth and Clyde Canal page