The Falls of Clyde

 

Hi there, reader

It sure got cold during the night. The temperature dropped to zero for four or five hours, and I was forced to get out of my sleeping bag, turn on the gas cooker and reheat my hot water bottle. I'm keenly aware that I'm down to my last two cylinders of butane gas and most of the big shops like Home Bargains have stopped stocking them (because it's no longer camping season). I need to restock soon. I think Argos has them, but at twice the price of everywhere else.

I had planned to move on to Peebles in the morning, but my friend, Jenny, and the librarian, Elena, at Lanark library told me that The Falls of Clyde at New Lanark were well worth a visit. Elena was interested to learn about my travels and my blog. It turns out she's a blogger herself. If you're interested in veganism, cooking, yoga, rock music and/or cats, this is the blog for you.

This is the village of New Lanark on the River Clyde, approximately 1.4 miles from Lanark, in Lanarkshire, and some 25 miles southeast of Glasgow, Scotland. It was founded in 1786 by David Dale, who built cotton mills and housing for the mill workers.

The Falls of Clyde

This was another woodland walk alongside the River Clyde, and this time I made sure to set out an hour earlier to avoid a repeat of the previous day's Blair Witch experience.

In walking these paths, I was following in the footsteps of writers and poets, such as Sir Walter Scott, William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge. Artists came here too, wanting to capture the power and the romance of the landscape. Paintings of the falls by Paul Sandby, Jacob More, Alexander Nasmyth and JMW Turner hang in galleries worldwide.

I left the van parked near the visitors' centre and started along the route. There are several waterfalls to see on this stretch of the Clyde. 

The first waterfall you come to is the only one you view from river level.

After this, you climb up some steep steps and the rest of the walk allows you to view the river and its falls from a high vantage point.

It was really a lovely walk and I appreciated the sun shining. 

I liked the red leaves growing across the gable end of this cottage, and I thought it would make an artistic shot to capture them reflected in this puddle. 

I was hoping to catch a glimpse of some of the wildlife that lives in the woods. According to a sign I passed, these woods are home to roe deer, badgers, foxes, red squirrels, bats, otters and peregrine falcons. In the end, all I spotted where lots of ravens and this huge badger.

The path through the gorge had lots of viewpoints along the way, and it took about half an hour to walk to the last waterfall.

I don't think my iPhone camera does this place justice; you really have to experience it for yourself. If you find yourself passing through Lanark, try to allow an hour or two to do this walk. I'm certainly glad I checked it out before I moved on.

Usually I would have liked to stroll at a leisurely place, but I walked quite briskly, aware that it would be dark by 5pm and I'd have to retrace my steps to get back to the van.

As it turned out, I had plenty of time and it was still daylight as I made the return journey. Much more enjoyable than the previous day.

At one point, I was able to get down to the river's edge and I dipped my hand in to see how cold it was. I was expecting it to be Titanic icy, but it wasn't too bad - about as cold as water from a cold tap at this time of year.

Here are some videos to give you an idea of the power of the waterfalls.

And here's the final waterfall at the end of the route... 

Now, I must return with haste, for the fiery ball weighs heavy in the sky.

Thanks, Jenny and Elena for recommending The Falls of Clyde, and thanks to you for reading.

Brian