Birdwatching near Glasgow (1 Viewer)

Hi

I am spending 3 days working in Glasgow in a couple of weeks. I am totally unfamiliar with the area bird wise but although I will be working 9 till 5 I thought it would be nice to make the most of the long evenings whilst there rather than sitting in a hotel room. Could anyone let me know of any good places within easy reach of the city?, I won't have my car with me so would have to be reachable on public transport even if it is half an hour or more away on the train. Somewhere good for Crossbills or Owls would be nice but any ideas very welcome.
Please feel free to message me.
Cheers
Chris

Lochwinnoch is easily accessible from Glasgow Central. The journey only takes about 20 minutes and the reserve will be right on your doorstep once you come out of the station. Trains are every 30 minutes during the week now so it's much easier to get there (and get back!)

You can occasionally see barn owls there, although I've not had that kind of luck myself, but I see regular reports every summer. Raptors include hen harriers, sparrowhawks, buzzards, kestrels, and sometimes even ospreys have been seen fishing in the area. All these, particularly the latter require a bit of luck to see though! It's really good for warblers - willow, chiffchaff, blackcap, sedge and grasshopper, and recently there was a wood warbler too. You should definitely see bats in the evenings too.

Hogganfield Loch in the north of the city is very good as a winter site for wildfowl, but I'm not too sure what it's like in summer. You can probably get a bus to it, but I've only ever gone there by car.

Baron's Haugh is at Motherwell and you can get trains there from Glasgow Central too (Low Level lines if I remember right) which take about 40 I think, but you'll have a 20 minute walk just to get to the reserve from Airbles Station and the site covers a really large area, so might not be recommended for short evening visits. But if you can make it, you'll find one of this area's top reserves, and just about anything can turn up.

The RSPB has a new reserve at Loch Lomond near Balloch, but you'd need to get a train to Balloch, then a bus (very irregular service which is what's stopping me visiting), so maybe that's not the best for evening visits. Balloch itself is nice enough with small ducks and geese to be seen. It's a small town (more a large village really) on the south bank of Loch Lomond, so you're in the middle of civilisation but with some of Scotland's best scenery on your doorstep, worth a visit just for that.

Some of the parks in Glasgow may be worth a visit: Botanic Gardens in the west end has kingfishers on the river, and you'll see many of the commoner woodland species.

I've got a book called Wildlife Around Glasgow by Richard Sutcliffe and published by Glasgow Museums. It gives a really good overview of many of the local Glasgow sites and is worth a look.

Be aware though that some of the sites are near residential areas, so you may also meet some of the local wildlife of the human kind too!

Thanks very much, any other suggestions extremely welcome.

JTweedie has covered the main sites. Barons Haugh is by far the best site and the transport directions are spot on: Train from Glasgow Central Low Level (or Argyle St or Anderston if that's nearer your digs) to Airbles - note that not all Motherwell trains call at Airbles. Again, as mentioned above, prepare yourelf for a good walk and keep an eye on http://www.baronshaugh.talktalk.net/index.htm for recent sightings and particular areas to look for birds. Visiting on a sunny evening can seem a great idea, but the hides do have a habit of becoming makeshift pubs. I have never encountered trouble, but change my plans to keep out the way.

I don't know of any good sites for Crossbill or owls near Glasgow. Please let me know if you find any!

SWT Cathkin Marsh is a small reserve on the edge of the city. Bus to Carmunnock village and again, another walk to the reserve up a hill. The reserve is flat itself though. Good for Sedge and Grasshopper Warbler, with a chance of Water Rail. http://scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk/reserve/cathkin-marsh/


Some other info at the link below may be of use:

http://homepage.ntlworld.com/j.coyle13/index.htm

Travelling by train only - Lochwinnoch. The reserve is right next to the train station.

Travelling by train and bus - Strathclyde Park can be good, if you catch the very regular services to Motherwell station, then any bus that goes to Hamilton and beyond, just get off at the entrance to Strathclyde Park en route. Alternatively, catch the train to Airbles from Glasgow Central Low Level and walk (approx. 10 minutes). You could walk from Motherwell station but walking back up that mountain when heading back (it is a very steep street) can be taxing if you're not very fit.

Barons Haugh is accessible by a local bus service from either Motherwell or Airbles.

Hogganfield Loch - catch a train to Stepps from Glasgow Queen Street and catch a bus in the opposite direction going back to the city centre

Travelling by bus only. - You can also go more directly by bus from Glasgow to Strathclyde Park for some express bus services that go to Motherwell via the M74. You can also use the same bus that would get you to Strathclyde Park if you don't mind walking to Barons Haugh.

Hogganfield Loch is also accessible on any of the direct bust routes.

For bus information, you can search for Motherwell, Airbles, Hogganfield in the search bar beside the inquire button on this extremely handy wee website:-

http://www.andypreece.co.uk/glasgowbus/

Hello,
I'll be in Glasgow from 28th december untill mid-January to visit a friend and I'm looking for some good spots for birdwatching in this area. I've already noted your recommendations : Hogganfield, Lochwinnoch, Baron's Haugh, Dumbarton... but I wonder if these places are also interesting in winter. As I won't be able to visit all of them, which ones (among the places I mentionned or others) would you advise me ? Also, is it really necessary to take a telescope or are binoculars enough ?
Thanks !

Hogganfield will give you good close up views of wildfowl and swans. Barons Haugh IMO is the best site in the Glasgow area. Allow 4 hours for a visit and try and take a scope as the haugh is a reasonable size and you may struggle without one. You should get around 40 species in a day. If you go on a Sunday or a Wednesday you are likely to bump into the local RSPB group who are always willing to point out interesting birds.

I doubt you would get much at Lochwinnoch that you wouldn't get at Baron's Haugh - perhaps a Brambling or a Hen Harrier if you are extremely lucky.