Neilsland & Earnock in Hamilton

[hamiltonguy44]

the nature trail"natchie" was my playground when i was a kid i stayed swisscot walk area i remember the boards with all the pics of the diffrent birds you could see "or not" also remember the crocodile in the playground "long gone" and what of the tunnel?,,,,was good for a hide out till somebody done a job job in it!!! loads of memories of there to many to write about..lol.

[gillalexrob]

LOL!!! Well the shelter's still there! It was a great dare when I was young to get from one end to the other...now its my own kids doing it! I remember the swing park...just! and most definitely the crocodile! only today someone posted a photo of the park on the FB page, brilliant! Id love to see a park up there again but doubt it would last two minutes, such a shame.

Like you, we are just a bunch of locals who grew up here (I lived in Ness Terrace & my grandparents in Woodhead) and we all have great memories of the place and now we are just trying to keep it in one piece for a new generation to create their own memories....without burning the place down! Luckily the nursery are using it every week and now the schools are realising that outdoor learning is the next big thing.....how great to get up the natchie for some lessons eh? AND when you catch kids young enough and teach them how to use the place properly they will look after it, well thats the hope.

The more we find out about the history of the place the more we are hooked. If you want a copy of the historical photos etc then send me a PM and I can email them to you or drop them off, Im still in LE...just let me know.

[gillalexrob]

1970

[hamiltonguy44]

fantastic picture thank you have been looking for pics i love local history my dads from Blantyre and remembers queen Victoria on the railway line(now the black path-walk) he talks of seeing her from the iron bridge which is now gone above little earnocki used to have a pic looking off of there was when i was into camera work stuff.my parents still live swisscot i went the jungle for a while..lol took my step son a walk ages ago and found what i call the "wee feet" looks like an old statue near the waterfall which i used to climb when frozen with my mate Wolfie "we went to laighstonehall primary" lol told you  i would ramble..lol he was kinda impressed i found the little feet again .have to go see if they are still there.

[gillalexrob]

We really have to rope you in you know! You sound just like us.....we are all reliving our youth and our families all think we're mad. It is still quite magical though, the old statues and the burn and the huge open garden areas its such a special place. Lots of people are put off because it looks so uninviting from the outside....hopefully that will change once the place is managed better.

I have heard the Queen Victoria story too. I heard that the train stopped for an overnight quite close by...some story eh?

Not sure what your 'little feet' statue is....Im trying to attach of the headless statue which sat near Swiss Cottage and is now halfway down the rockery, maybe its this one....it's vandalised now of course, I remember it as a wee girl... I used to think this was John Watson but have since found out it was 'Old Norval' a character from a play. The statue was by Robert Forrest a renowned scottish sculptor. Apparently quite a few statues were on the Estates (Neilsland and Earnock) and thanks to Sir Simon Watson we have quite a few photos of them now.

http://sites.google.com/site/joerocksresearchpages/robert-forrest-sculptor-1789-1752

[hamiltonguy44]

the "wee feet" are to your right if you stand looking down the waterfall there is/was a small outcropping where the ground rises will try and take some pics is that statue up on the hilly bit? i remember it being like a fort you could hide in but mind slipping..lol

[hamiltonguy44]

i remember that statue when it was further up my step son when he was smaller showed me it as well as a beautifull more complete statue wich is across the road from us further up the burn at lady watson gardens think i defo need to dig my camera out.

[hamiltonguy44]

great walk today me and morag enjoyed it big time.

[joxer42]

I was with our group Friends of Udston and Glenlee Woods on invite to Neilsland= Earnock Woods from Gillians Group in May 2011. I was absolutley captivated by the Woodland and it's History. The Rhododendrum was in full bloom in all it's beuaty. The group had pictures of the Swiss Cottage, Mansion House and it filled me with amazement of the granduer of the period and affluence of the Watson family.  If you haven't been there yet, set a date in your diary for May 2012.

Joxer  42