Paisley to Johnstone (5.5 miles)
Paisley is regarded as Scotland's largest town and is served by frequent trains from Glasgow Central. The journey time is around 10 minutes. From Gilmour Street station, make your way past the cenotaph memorial towards the abbey and town hall. Stroll through Dunn Square where a memorial is dedicated to the children who perished in the Glen Cinema stampede back in 1929. Wander alongside the White Cart Water and check out the iconic Anchor Mill building - now converted to flats. Locate Paisley Canal station where an alternative line from Glasgow terminates. The tracks used to continue towards Johnstone but were lifted in 1983. We join the footpath that follows the course of the old railway.
In case you are wondering about the heavy curvature of the line, it was built on top of a drained canal and trains were forced to meander through the landscape. We meet the present main line to Ayr at the village of Elderslie, where once an extensive junction station stood. The signs direct us on to the pavement through the village centre before we re-join the trackbed. Resist a couple of signs that direct you to Johnstone town centre and stay on the railway path until a large Morrisons supermarket appears. This is a good jumping-off point and you can use the the glass bridge over the Black Cart Water that connects the superstore to the town centre. Or pick up the tail end of the High Street by the petrol station. Johnstone offers a good variety of amenities and the railway station lies at the opposite end of the main drag. Catch a train back to Glasgow or Paisley here.
