Neilston Pad, referred to locally as ''The Pad'', is a distinctive hill in

East Renfrewshire East Renfrewshire (; ) is one of 32 council areas of Scotland. It was formed in 1996, as a successor to the Eastwood (district), Eastwood district of the Strathclyde region. The northeastern part of the council area is close to Glasgow and ma ...

, situated a mile (1.5 km) south of the village of

Neilston Neilston (, , ) is a village and List of civil parishes in Scotland, parish in East Renfrewshire in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. It is in the River Levern, Levern Valley, southwest of Barrhead, the last remaining town in greater Glas ...

. Its highest point is and is characterised by a relatively flat summit

plateau In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; : plateaus or plateaux), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. ...

surrounded by steep slopes and distinctive

forestry Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests and woodlands for associated resources for human and Natural environment, environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and ...

on its eastern side. Its odd shape and prominence make it easily identifiable and visible from many areas in

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 ...

. The area was managed by Elderslie Estates from the 1990s until it was sold to a private buyer or consortium in 2021.

Walking and public access

Neilston Pad has a well constructed gravel path surrounding it extending to access paths from the north and south. A number of secondary paths exist, one of which leads to the summit.

Summit

There is large stone

cairn A cairn is a human-made pile (or stack) of stones raised for a purpose, usually as a marker or as a burial mound. The word ''cairn'' comes from the (plural ). Cairns have been and are used for a broad variety of purposes. In prehistory, t ...

on the plateau which is easily mistaken as being the summit. The true summit is marked by a much smaller cairn approximately east of the larger one.

Reservoirs

The area surrounding Neilston Pad includes a number of reservoirs. Craighall Reservoir, known locally as ''Craighall Dam'', lies to the west, Snypes Reservoir to the east and a smaller body of water sits north known as Keepers Dam.

Forestry

The hill itself has extensive

on its eastern and southern sides as well as large areas alongside its eastern side. In 2019 up to 20,000 trees were felled to prevent the spread of

phytophthora ramorum ''Phytophthora ramorum'' is the oomycete known to cause the disease sudden oak death (SOD). The disease kills oak and other species of trees and has had devastating effects on the oak populations in California and Oregon, as well as being present ...

– a fungus-like pathogen that can kill or severely damage

larch Larches are deciduous conifers in the genus ''Larix'', of the family Pinaceae (subfamily Laricoideae). Growing from tall, they are native to the cooler regions of the northern hemisphere, where they are found in lowland forests in the high la ...

trees. The felling damaged and disturbed a number of well utilised walking and access routes mainly around Craighall Reservoir.

Gallery

File:Neilston Pad from Kirkton Road.jpg, Neilston Pad from Kirkton Road File:Craighall Reservoir prior to the felling.jpg, Craighall Reservoir from Neilston Pad File:Neilston Pad true summit.jpg, Neilston Pad true summit File:Craighall Dam reservoir - geograph.org.uk - 1031090.jpg, Looking towards the Neilston Pad from Craighall Reservoir File:Neilston Pad Wood - geograph.org.uk - 1519630.jpg, Looking north towards Glasgow File:Harelaw Dam - geograph.org.uk - 139511.jpg, Neilston Pad with the Harelaw Dam in the foreground

References

{{reflist Landforms of East Renfrewshire Neilston