Avon Water, also known locally as the River Avon, is a

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater Fresh water or freshwater is any naturally occurring liquid or frozen water containing low concentrations of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids. Although the ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to th ...

, and a

tributary A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainag ...

of the

River Clyde The River Clyde ( gd, Abhainn Chluaidh, , sco, Clyde Watter, or ) is a river that flows into the Firth of Clyde in Scotland. It is the ninth-longest river in the United Kingdom, and the third-longest in Scotland. It runs through the major cit ...

Course

The Avon Water rises in the hills on the boundary between

East Ayrshire East Ayrshire ( sco, Aest Ayrshire; gd, Siorrachd Àir an Ear) is one of thirty-two council areas of Scotland. It shares borders with Dumfries and Galloway, East Renfrewshire, North Ayrshire, South Ayrshire and South Lanarkshire. The headq ...

and

South Lanarkshire gd, Siorrachd Lannraig a Deas , image_skyline = , image_flag = , image_shield = Arms_slanarkshire.jpg , image_blank_emblem = Slanarks.jpg , blank_emblem_type = Council logo , image_map ...

, close to the head of the Irvine Water. The river flows in a north easterly direction, following the A71 road past

Drumclog Drumclog is a small village in South Lanarkshire, Parish of Avendale and Drumclog, Scotland. The habitation is situated on the A71, between Caldermill and Priestland in East Ayrshire at a height of 196.7m and about 5 miles west of Strathaven. ...

, and running to the south of

Strathaven Strathaven (; from gd, Strath Aibhne ) is a historic market town in South Lanarkshire, Scotland and is the largest settlement in Avondale. It is south of Hamilton. The Powmillon Burn runs through the town centre, and joins the Avon Water to th ...

, where the river enters a more pronounced valley. The Avon flows between the village of Glassford, and Stonehouse to the south, before merging with the smaller Cander Water just south of

Larkhall Larkhall ( sco, Larkhauch, gd, Taigh na h-Uiseig) is a town in South Lanarkshire, Scotland, around southeast of Glasgow. It is twinned with Seclin in northern France. Larkhall sits on high ground between the River Clyde to the East and the ...

. The river then skirts the west side of Larkhall in a deepening gorge, crossed by the disused Larkhall railway viaduct, built in 1904 for the

Caledonian Railway The Caledonian Railway (CR) was a major Scottish railway company. It was formed in the early 19th century with the objective of forming a link between English railways and Glasgow. It progressively extended its network and reached Edinburgh an ...

. Beyond this the gorge is part of

Chatelherault Country Park Chatelherault Country Park is a country park in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, Scotland.

, to the south of Hamilton. There are several public footpaths along this section of the gorge, although the area was once the preserve of the

Duke of Hamilton Duke of Hamilton is a title in the Peerage of Scotland, created in April 1643. It is the senior dukedom in that peerage (except for the Dukedom of Rothesay held by the Sovereign's eldest son), and as such its holder is the premier peer of Sc ...

, forming the hunting and pleasure grounds of the Dukes' former home,

Hamilton Palace Hamilton Palace was a country house in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, Scotland. The former seat of the Dukes of Hamilton, it dated from the 14th century and was subsequently much enlarged in the 17th and 19th centuries.Cadzow Castle Cadzow Castle, now in ruins, was constructed between 1500 and 1550 at a site one mile south-east of the centre of Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, Scotland. The earlier medieval settlement of Hamilton was formerly known as ''Cadzow'' or ''Cadyou'' (M ...

, started in the 13th century, and the Cadzow Oaks, a group of oak trees, some of which are over 600 years old. The river bends to the east at the end of the gorge between the villages of Barncluith and Ferniegair, flowing beneath three listed stone bridges: a viaduct carrying the

Argyle Line The Argyle Line is a suburban railway located in West Central Scotland. The line serves the commercial and shopping districts of Glasgow's central area, and connects towns from West Dunbartonshire to South Lanarkshire. Named for Glasgow's Argy ...

railway tracks, carrying the A72 road, and the , now a footbridge. The Avon Water flows north beneath the

M74 motorway The A74(M) and M74 form a major motorway in Scotland, connecting it to England. The routes connect the M8 motorway in central Glasgow to the Scottish-English border at Gretna. In conjunction with their southward continuation, the M6 motorwa ...

, merging into the Clyde between Hamilton and

Motherwell Motherwell ( sco, Mitherwall, gd, Tobar na Màthar) is a town and former burgh in North Lanarkshire, Scotland, United Kingdom, south east of Glasgow. It has a population of around 32,120. Historically in the parish of Dalziel and part of Lana ...

, beside Junction 6 of the M74.

Avon River, New Zealand

The Avon River which flows through the centre of the city

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon Rive ...

, New Zealand was named Avon at the request of the pioneering

Deans brothers John Deans (4 May 1820 – 23 June 1854) was, together with his brother William, a pioneer farmer in Canterbury, New Zealand. He was born in Kirkstyle, Riccarton, Scotland. Their Riccarton farm in New Zealand was the first permanent settlement b ...

to commemorate this Scottish Avon, which rises in the Ayrshire hills near what was their grandfathers' farm,Christchurch New Zealand
/ref> Over Auchentiber.

Etymology

The name ''Avon'' is derived from the Brittonic *''āβonā-'' (from ''āβ'', "moving water", with the suffix ''–onā-''), the word ancestral to

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peopl ...

''afon'', meaning "a river".

References

External links

* {{Authority control Rivers of South Lanarkshire River Clyde Hamilton, South Lanarkshire