Mugdock Country Park is a

country park A country park is a natural area designated for people to visit and enjoy recreation in a countryside environment. United Kingdom History In the United Kingdom, the term ''country park'' has a specific meaning. There are around 250 designated c ...

and historical site located partly in

East Dunbartonshire East Dunbartonshire (; , ) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. It borders Glasgow City Council Area to the south, North Lanarkshire to the east, Stirling (council area), Stirling to the north, and West Dunbartonshire to the west. East ...

and partly in

Stirling Stirling (; ; ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in Central Belt, central Scotland, northeast of Glasgow and north-west of Edinburgh. The market town#Scotland, market town, surrounded by rich farmland, grew up connecting the roya ...

, in the former county of

Stirlingshire Stirlingshire or the County of Stirling ( ) is a Shires of Scotland, historic county and registration county of Scotland. Its county town is Stirling.Registers of Scotland. Publications, leaflets, Land Register Counties. It borders Perthshir ...

, Scotland. It is around north of

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

, next to

Milngavie Milngavie ( ; ) is a town in East Dunbartonshire, Scotland and a suburb of Glasgow. It is on the Allander Water, at the northwestern edge of Greater Glasgow, and about from Glasgow city centre. It neighbours Bearsden. Milngavie is a commuter t ...

(from which the park is easily accessible), and covers an area of . The park includes the remains of the 14th-century

Mugdock Castle Mugdock Castle was the stronghold of the Clan Graham from the middle of the 13th century. Its ruins are located in Mugdock Country Park, just west of the village of Mugdock in the parish of Strathblane. The castle is within the registration ...

, stronghold of the

Grahams Graham or Graeme may refer to: People * Graham (given name), an English-language given name * Graham (surname), an English-language surname * Graeme (surname), an English-language surname * Graham (musician) (born 1979), Burmese singer * Clan Gra ...

of Montrose, and the ruins of the 19th-century Craigend Castle, a

Gothic Revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an Architectural style, architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half ...

mansion and former

zoo A zoo (short for zoological garden; also called an animal park or menagerie) is a facility where animals are kept within enclosures for public exhibition and often bred for conservation purposes. The term ''zoological garden'' refers to zoology, ...

. The park has a

moot hill A moot hill or ''mons placiti'' (statute hill) is a hill or mound historically used as an assembly or meeting place, as a moot hall is a meeting or assembly building, also traditionally to decide local issues. In Early Middle Ages, early mediev ...

and

gallowhill Gallowhill is a housing estate in the north east of Paisley, a town in Renfrewshire, Scotland. Its approximate boundaries are formed by the M8 motorway to the north, the A741 Renfrew Rd to the west, to the south the Inverclyde railway line wit ...

, historical reminders of the baronial feudal right, held by lairds, of "pit and gallows". Also located in the park are the remains of numerous anti-aircraft trenches, which were established during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

as part of the Clyde Basin anti-aircraft defense system. The park was also the home of the Mugstock Music Festival, at which performers have included

Emma Pollock Emma Pollock (born 20 December 1972) is a Scottish singer-songwriter, musician, and a founding member of the bands The Delgados and The Burns Unit. She is also one of the founders of The Fruit Tree Foundation project and a contributor to ''Vo ...

Dodgy Dodgy are an English rock band formed in Hounslow in 1990. The band rose to prominence during the Britpop era of the 1990s. They are best known for their hits "Staying Out for the Summer", "If You're Thinking of Me", and " Good Enough". "Go ...

and

Beats Antique Beats Antique is a U.S.-based experimental world fusion and electronic music group. Formed in 2007 in conjunction with producer Miles Copeland III, Miles Copeland, the group has become noted for their mix of different genres as well as their liv ...

. Natural features include the

Allander Water The Allander Water () is a river in East Dunbartonshire and Stirling, Scotland, and one of the three main tributaries of the River Kelvin, the others being the Glazert Water and the Luggie Water. It flows through Milngavie. See also *List of p ...

, Mugdock Loch and Drumclog Muir, all of which provide popular walking and cycling routes with tourists. Visitor facilities include a

visitor centre A visitor center or centre (see American and British English spelling differences), visitor information center or tourist information centre is a physical location that provides information to tourists. Types A visitor center may be a Civic c ...

and cafe in the former Craigend Castle stable block, and a garden centre and restaurant in the

walled garden A walled garden is a garden enclosed by high walls, especially when this is done for horticultural rather than security purposes, although originally all gardens may have been enclosed for protection from animal or human intruders. In temperate c ...

. The park is served by the Mugdock and East Dunbartonshire Countryside Ranger Service. The

West Highland Way The West Highland Way () is a linear Long-distance trail, long-distance route in Scotland. It is long, running from Milngavie north of Glasgow to Fort William, Highland, Fort William in the Scottish Highlands, with an element of hill walking i ...

, a linear long distance footpath between Milngavie and Fort William, passes through the outer areas of the park alongside the local Clyde Coastal Path. Close again to the country park is

Milngavie water treatment works Milngavie water treatment works (commonly known as The Waterworks) is a Scottish Water-operated water treatment facility located in Milngavie, Scotland. It is the primary source of water for the city of Glasgow (and the Greater Glasgow area) in ...

, another popular walking and tourist attraction. It is situated just south of

Mugdock Mugdock is a hamlet in Stirlingshire, Scotland. It lies to the south of the village of Strathblane, and was in the civil parish. In the past the hamlet had more significance. It was considered the main village of the civil parish of Strathblane. ...

and connects to the park via Drumclog Moor.

References

External links

Clyde Coastal Path website

Mugdock Country Park

Mugdock Country Park (Site no. NF70SW 149)
Historic Environment Scotland.
Video footage of the Moot Hill, Gallows Knowe and Drowning Pit
Country parks in Scotland Parks in Stirling (council area) Protected areas of East Dunbartonshire Milngavie {{coord, 55, 58, N, 4, 19, W, display=title