New Lanark Falls of Clyde
The Falls of Clyde are a series of spectacular waterfalls on the River Clyde above the UNESCO World Heritage town of New Lanark in South Lanarkshire, a sequence of four falls including Corra Linn, the highest at approximately 28 metres, set in a deep wooded gorge that forms one of the most dramatic inland waterfall landscapes in Scotland and has been celebrated since the Romantic period when Wordsworth, Coleridge and Turner all visited and were profoundly impressed. The Scottish Wildlife Trust manages the gorge as a nature reserve, its ancient oak woodland and the river habitat supporting an exceptional variety of wildlife. The gorge path from New Lanark follows the Clyde upstream through the reserve, the river confined between high sandstone cliffs in a deep valley of considerable drama. Corra Linn, the principal fall, is most impressive when the river is in full spate after heavy rain, the water rushing over three stepped ledges in a torrent of considerable power, but even in lower water conditions the falls retain their grandeur and the spray-fed vegetation of the gorge provides a lush and atmospheric setting. The ruins of Corra Castle above the falls add a romantic architectural element to the landscape that the Romantic poets found so congenial. The industrial village of New Lanark at the foot of the gorge is a World Heritage Site in its own right, the planned cotton mill community founded by David Dale in 1786 and subsequently managed by Robert Owen, the pioneering social reformer who made it one of the most enlightened working communities in early industrial Britain. The mill buildings, workers' housing and institute that Owen established for education and community life survive in remarkable completeness and have been restored as a living heritage and residential community. The combination of the natural drama of the gorge and falls with the social and industrial history of New Lanark makes this one of the most richly layered heritage destinations in Scotland.