Overtoun Estate and Lang Craigs
Everyone talks to me about walking their dogs at Overtoun House. I’m always dog walking at Erskine beach which is on the other side of the River Clyde but since today is my birthday (I’m 40 years old btw) and I took the day off to enjoy a long weekend, I thought I’d use that time off to see it for myself and see what my own two dogs and Benny thought of it… and they loved! It’s pretty awesome, and it’s free to get in. It was also very quiet being an ice-cold Monday morning but it was a lovely calm experience and the dogs had a great time.
Now, as far as I know, there are three places to go… the first is the small woodlands which has a burn running through it, then you can walk up the hills known as the Lang Craigs and do the circuit there and back again and if you like you can keep going and walk right up to the Kilpatrick Hills and Loch Humphrey. But since we were only there for a couple of hours I decided to just check out the woods and do the circular path on the hills.
Overtoun Bridge: The suicide dog bridge?
Right next to Overtoun House and crossing the Overtoun burn is a stone bridge which is well known for dogs jumping off it. Apparently according to this article, 600 dogs have jumped off and 50 have died. Creepy! So I made sure I kept my dogs on lead as we crossed, but I couldn’t see anything really that caused me concern except that it doesn’t have very high sides to it.
Our Trip:
We arrived and parked in the second carpark, just before the house, walked through woods, then went for a stroll through the Lang Craigs and then back into the woods before going home. But if fancy a longer walk you can get onto the the Kilpatrick Hills and onto Loch Humprey.
Below are some pics, a map and directions.
Overtoun Estate sign
The dogs in front of Overtoun-House
The lovely house seen as we begin to enter the woods
The Overtoun bridge
I’m putting all the dogs on lead as we cross the bridge, just in case
Another view of Overtoun Bridge
The bridge crosses the Overtoun burn
We come up to a wooden bridge crossing the burn up ahead
Flo and Benny run across
Then Flo jumps in the burn
Benny and Ruby run past a giant wooden engraved fish
Checking out a fallen tree
“Chuck anything and I’ll bring it back to you”
Flo wants to play but I have my hands full with my camera
Flo running in the burn
Ruby always leads the way
Past the woods we enter Lang Craigs
The dogs examine a monument
The dogs check out a hollow log
Peek a boo!
As the walk steepens there are some steps
Looking back at the woods we just left
The view from Lang Craigs. You can easily see Dumbarton Rock and behind it Langank
Ruby checking out the views
Some gorgeous views
Flo loves a run and its lovely up here
The dogs pass over an old fallen wall
Up head is the Crags
Walking around the Lang Craigs, we’re near the top of this trail
Flo lying down so I can take a photo. That’s us at the highest point of this walk so we make out way back down.
Back in the woods we go a slightly different route and come across this metal bridge that the dogs didn’t want to cross.
So we cross the burn by foot and jeez is it muddy!
How to get to Overtoun House
Address:Â Overtoun House, Dumbarton G82 2SH
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