Clyde

Clyde, river, south central Scotland, 171 km (106 mi) long, noted for beautiful scenery. It rises as a mountain stream in the Lowther Hills in southern Scotland and drains an area of some 3,835 sq km (some 1,480 sq mi). It flows in a northerly direction through an agricultural area noted for orchards and as the original home of the Clydesdale breed of horses. The river then turns northwest into the central mining and industrial district of Scotland, flowing near or through the towns and cities of Lanark, Hamilton, Rutherglen, Glasgow, Renfrew, Clydebank, and Dumbarton. Near Dumbarton it expands into an estuary, the Firth of Clyde. Near Lanark, extending for about 6 km (about 4 mi), it drops by the largest falls in Scotland: the Bonnington Linn, Corra Linn, Dundaff, and Stonebyres Linn. The total descent is about 70 m (about 230 ft); Corra Linn, the grandest fall, descends 26 m (84 ft) in three cascades.

From the source to the falls the Clyde is a fishing stream, but from the falls to the mouth it is the most important commercial water route of Scotland. The Firth of Clyde, which is navigable by the largest vessels, is about 103 km (about 64 mi) long and 1.6 km (1 mi) to about 56 km (about 35 mi) wide at the mouth. It is connected to the Atlantic Ocean and the Irish Sea by the North Channel. Near Renfrew is the junction of the Clyde with the Forth and Clyde Canal, which connects the Firth of Clyde with the Firth of Forth on the eastern coast of Scotland (see Forth).