Fereneze Braes

The walk from Neilston up to the Kissing Tree on Fereneze Braes via Killoch Glen is a great walk for those looking for a wee bit more of a challenge than the average countryside walk provides. It’s roughly five miles there and back, which should take about two hours plus whatever time you spend malingering at the tree, enjoying the views or any wee rests taken as you go. There's an option to return via Gateside at the bargain price of one more mile.

The route takes you down the start of Killoch Glen, a stunning little gorge with waterfalls and pools, and up onto the beautiful area of woodland and heathland that is Fereneze Braes, with views out over Paisley and Glasgow.

The best time to do the walk is in the spring or autumn, when the weather is mild and the leaves are changing colour. However, it can be done all year round, as long as you’re prepared for the variable Scottish weather conditions. The bracken and gorse at the side of the path can get very thick over the summer and can obscure the way, which can get a bit tricky in poor weather.

The “Kissing Tree” is a name attributed to a rather windswept Hawthorn tree that stands alone on the top of the braes. I don’t think it’s the Kissing Tree mentioned in old texts of the area (see the end of this article) as that was supposed to be well-studded with nails and this one isn’t.

Part One - To Killoch Glen

1. Starting from the old bank building on Main Street, turn left and walk along Main Street, past the war memorial and shops, then turn left into Broadlie Road.

2. Follow Broadlie Road all the way to its end and go through a kissing gate onto a small track.

3. Follow the track, curving down and to the left and you’ll see Crofthead Mill ahead. It’s an old cotton spinning and thread-twisting mill founded in 1792 but, while it's no longer a mill and is a bit dilapidated-looking, it’s still a busy industrial area. Follow the track in that general direction until you see a gap that will let you out onto Holehouse Brae.

4. Head down to the bottom of Holehouse Brae and cross over Lochlibo Road, but be careful as it can be pretty busy with fast-moving traffic. Then head up Station Brae to cross over the Glasgow-Kilmarnock railway line.

5. At the top of Station Brae, turn right onto Fereneze Road and follow that until you reach the bridge over the Killoch Burn, just before the water treatment plant.

Killoch Glen

This picturesque little glen and the burn are long associated with witches because, at low water, the numerous pot-holes or rock-cut basins have worn into one another, giving the area an unusual shape. Witch-related names have been attributed to some of these shapes - the smoother parts between the holes are her “floor,” and her “hearth”; while the cavities, according to their shape and depth, are her “cradle,” her “water-stoups,” and her “grave”.

“Down splash the Killoch’s wimpling wave,
As through the glen the waters rave,

Far o’er the witch’s eerie grave,

Frae crag to linn,

Yon beetling rocks, they wildly lave,

Wi’ gurgling din.”

This song by James Scadlock, an engraver born in Paisley in 1775, is a bit cheerier (only a bit though):

“The sun's now setting in the west,

And mild's his beam on hill and plain,

No sound is heard, save Killoch Burn

Wild murmuring down its woody glen.”

“Will you gae to Glen Killoch, my Mary,

Whar the burnie fa's owre the linn;

Its murmurs are dear to me, Mary,

When borne on the saft-brcathin win.”

“Hark the winds around us swell,

Raving doon Glen Killoch dell,

Where aft wi thee, my bonnie Bell,

I've wander'd blythe and cheery.”

Part Two - Killoch Glen to Fereneze Braes

1. After looking at the old, broken stone bridge just upstream, take the footpath on the right hand side of the burn and follow it up through the glen, past the waterfalls and pools, until you see the signpost for Barrhead. The route up the glen is quite steep but there are a few benches on the way if you need a wee rest.

2. Once at the signpost for Barrhead, don’t be tempted to ignore it and head straight up the side of the nearby fence as, while it is the shorter route, it’s pretty hard going and better kept for when you’re coming back down.

3. Follow the Barrhead path until you’re clear of the trees and up on the edge of the moorland. There are some wooden steps involved and another signpost so keep along the path until you see a route leading through the fence and onto the hillside - you should be able to see a small cairn in the distance, so head for that.

4. Once you get to the cairn, the view back towards Neilston and up the Levern Valley is quite good and it's a good excuse for a wee rest. You should also be able to see your goal, the Kissing Tree, off in the distance across the moorland.

Part Three - To the Tree

1. Follow the track in the general direction of the tree until you reach an old stone wall.

2. There’s a break in the wall, so go through that and follow the line of the wall. It’ll eventually turn right so keep on and, when you reach the obvious hole in it just past where it joins another wall, go through that.

3. The path up to the tree should be obvious from here and, once you’re there, there’s a few potential sitting spots beside it to have a packed lunch. There’s also usually a rope swing hanging from the branches if you’re feeling more adventurous.

4. Just past the tree, there’s another cairn with some fine views to be had out over Paisley and the surrounding area as well as over Glasgow.

Keep an eye out for Kestrels on the braes. We've seen one every time we're been up there, once even perching in the tree itself.

You'll notice that the path continues on and that would eventually take you to Paisley but we're not doing that today.

Part Four - Return to Killoch Glen

1. Walk back down the path that got you here but, instead of going back through the wall, continue on the path until you get to a kissing gate a little further on and go through that.

2. When you reach a signposted junction, take the right turn for Killoch Glen along a wooden walkway. If you continue on the path to Barrhead then that will eventually take you down to Graham Street in Barrhead and very close to the railway station.

3. Take care on the walkway as some of it is in poor repair and you might as well just use the wee track beside it if it’s dry. The path takes you back up the Levern Valley above the little hamlet of Gateside.

4. You’ll eventually come to a set of wooden steps leading down the hillside a bit so take those and, at the bottom, turn right back onto the path again.

5. You’ll end up back at the top of the fence, the one I suggested you avoid following earlier on the way up, that leads back down into Killoch Glen so take that and then turn left when you reach Killoch Glen and follow the path back down to the road.

6. You can then simply reverse your steps back to the start from Part Two above or, if you like a more circular walk, then read on.

Part Five - To Neilston via Gateside

1. Turn left and continue along Fereneze Road, past the water treatment works, to Gateside.

2. Turn right into Gateside Road and follow that windy little road, which crosses a bridge over the Levern Water, often the haunt of Dippers and Grey Wagtails, until you reach Lochlibo Road.

3. Cross back over Lochlibo Road, again watching for traffic as it is busy, then turn right and after a short distance, turn up Donnie’s Brae and follow that to the top.

4. When you reach the top of Donnie’s Brae, cross over Neilston Road, turn right and head back uphill to Neilston. Take great care crossing the road here as it’s on a bit of a blind approach to traffic coming down from Neilston.

5. Follow the road into Neilston and you'll eventually get back to the old bank, where you started.

The Kissing Tree

Here's an extract from A History of the Parish of Neilston by David Pride…

"The Kissing Tree. —From Killoch Glen across Fereneze Braes to Paisley there is, and has been from time immemorial, a footpath, or right- of-way. From this path on the top of the hill on an early morning in summer, when the sun's rays are bursting athwart the broad expanse below, one of the finest and most extensive views is to be had of the surrounding country, a view which will well repay the early riser for his trouble. Formerly the " Kissing Tree," which was well studded with nails, stood on the crest of the hill by the side of this walk, connected with which tradition has it that the swain who succeeded in driving a nail into its gnarled trunk at the first blow was entitled to claim the osculatory fee. The tree has, however, long since disappeared, carrying with it the nailed record of many victories."

You can read the full account of this entertaining walk here (it’s nearer the bottom of the page):

https://electricscotland.com/history/glasgow/barrhead.htm

…and there’s a poem about it as well…

The Auld ‘Kissin' -Tree

"THEY are gone now for ever, those dear, happy days
When I climbed the steep side o' the Fereneze Braes,
And gazed on the scenes, so lovely to see,
As I stood on the hill by the auld "kissin'-tree."

The fields were a' green, and the flow'rs were a' fair,
For the beauties o' Nature had found a hame there;
But those lovely scenes, what were they to me
Compared wi' the stem o' the auld "kissin'-tree"?

For its trunk wis well pierced wi' nails a' aroon'
By the laddies from Barrhead an' auld Neilston toon,
And even frae Paisley, light-hearted an' free,
Some cam' ower the hills tae the auld "kissin'-tree."

How oft hae I watched the lad wi' his lass
Ca' a nail in its trunk before he wid pass,
And then turn aboot, wi' a bright smile o' glee,
To taste her sweet lips by the auld "kissin'-tree."

But noo it is gone, an' I mournfully stare
At the place whaur it stood, for I see it nae mair;
An', wi' a sair heart and a tear in my e'e,
I think on lansyne an' the auld "kissin'-tree."

Hugh Caldwell, circa 1840