Bridge of Weir

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Bridge of Weir

1 The Village
2 Climate
3 Landscape & Leisure
4 Population statistics
5 External links

[edit] The Village

The small village of Bridge of Weir is located in the Renfrewshire authority to the west of Scotland's largest city, Glasgow. Neighbouring villages include Kilmacolm, Kilbarchan, Lochwinnoch, Houston and Brookfield. Historically, its biggest industry was leather, and at its productivity peak the small village supported three individual leather works, or 'tanneries'. The leather industry survives to this day, albeit on a smaller scale than during its heyday. While Bridge of Weir remains a vibrant small community, it has become something of a commuter haven, and has achieved a reputation of relative affluence along lines similar to Bearsden in the north of Glasgow and Newton Mearns in the south.

[edit] Climate

Bridge of Weir has a temperate climate with average temperatures during summer of 19 C and in winter of around 3 C. During winter, the village is usually a couple of degrees colder than nearby Glasgow. Although disruptive snowfall is infrequent in the area, sleet or snow is common during the months of December to March. Noticeably heavy snowfalls occur usually once a year, for example in March 2006 when 14" of snow fell overnight and more recently, in January 2007, when snow caused chaos for commuters. The village's geographical position means that strong winds and heavy rainfall are common. European windstorms rolling off the Atlantic can cause some severe weather, but these are uncommon.

The months of Jan-Feb tend to be cooler than Nov-Dec. In true west coast of Scotland fashion, the village records a high annual rainfall. During the summer, temperatures vary widely and it is not uncommon for the temperature to rise into the 20s.

[edit] Landscape & Leisure

The village boasts some excellent river fishing, bisected as it is by the River Gryffe, a tributary of the Black Cart which is a tributary of the River Clyde. Amongst other species, the river is host to brown trout, grayling and, occasionally, Atlantic salmon. The scenery around the river, in particular to the west of the town, towards Quarrier's Village, is quite stunning and unspoilt. Ben Lomond is just across the clyde and there are some excellent spots for hillwalking in the surrounding area, for example Misty Law and Windy Hill.

The Village is also known for its golf history, at one point there were five golf courses in the vicinity, today there are two remaining, OC Ranfurly golf club and the Ranfurly Castle golf club.