Strathclyde Country Park

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Strathclyde Loch, looking north

Strathclyde Country Park is a country park located in Lanarkshire, Scotland.

The park covers some 4 km², centred on the artificial Strathclyde Loch. It is located next to the River Clyde between Hamilton and Motherwell. Strathclyde Park forms what used to be known as the Low parks of the now demolished Hamilton Palace and still includes buildings associated with the palace. When the Loch was created in 1965 it involved the flooding of the old mining village of Bothwellhaugh ^[1] The park offers many amenities and attractions such as woodland walks, watersports, and a camping and caravaning site. One of Scotland's theme parks, M&Ds is located close to the park. Until 1996, the music festival T in the Park was held here.

Although the focus of the park is on recreation, a variety of habitats are present, including wetlands and native woodland.

Rowing

Major events held at the loch include the rowing events for the 1986 Commonwealth Games, the 1996 Junior World Rowing Championships (and the World Rowing Championships for non-Olympic events), the 2005 World Rowing Masters Regatta and the 2006 Commonwealth Rowing Championships. In 2007 the World Rowing Under 23 Championships were held within the park from 26 to 29 July. The loch also hosts the National Rowing Championships once every four years, which are normally held in Holme Pierrepont, Nottingham. It will host the Championships in 2010 on the 16^th, 17^th and 18^th of July.

The Park is home to Strathclyde Park Rowing Club, and to the National Rowing Academy whose Boathouse Gym is open to the public.

Major events

The watersports events of the 2005 Glasgow Special Olympics and the 2006 Scottish Triathlon Championships were staged at the park.

The park is an official venue for the 2011 International Children's Games and the 2014 Commonwealth Games, and will host the triathlon events in both games.

The west side of the park is bounded by the River Clyde, which was diverted when the loch was built in 1975. The original course can be seen between the east loch shore and the island. Across the Clyde is the M74 motorway, which creates a significant level of noise. The east side of the park is quieter, with woodland and paths leading up the slopes to Motherwell.

The remains of Bothwellhaugh Roman Fort and a Roman bath house can be seen in the park, where the South Calder Water flows into the loch. There is an arched Roman bridge across the South Calder nearby. The site of the Battle of Bothwell Bridge (1679) is to the north west of the park.

In 2009 the park will be used to host the first ever Great Scottish Swim, a mass participation open water swim event.

References

1. ^ http://www.iwitness.btinternet.co.uk/bothwellhaugh/contents.htm Bothwellhaugh

External links

• Information from North Lanarkshire Council
• Bothwellhaugh, the former mining village now largely submerged under Strathclyde Loch
• Strathclyde Park Rowing Club
• National Rowing Academy
• Boathouse Gym
• Strathclyde Loch Sailing Club

v • d • e World Rowing Championships Years 1962 • 1966 • 1970 • 1974 • 1975 • 1977 • 1978 • 1979 • 1980 • 1981 • 1982 • 1983 • 1984 • 1985 • 1986 • 1987 • 1988 • 1989 • 1990 • 1991 • 1992 • 1993 • 1994 • 1995 • 1996 • 1997 • 1998 • 1999 • 2000 • 2001 • 2002 • 2003 • 2004 • 2005 • 2006 • 2007 • 2008 • 2009 • 2010 • 2011 • 2012 • 2013 • 2014 Venues Lucerne 1962  • Bled 1966  • St. Catharines 1970  • Lucerne 1974  • Nottingham 1975  • Amsterdam 1977  • Lake Karapiro 1978  • Bled 1979  • Hazewinkel 1980  • Oberschleißheim 1981  • Lucerne 1982  • Duisburg 1983  • Montreal 1984  • Hazewinkel 1985  • Nottingham 1986  • Copenhagen 1987  • Milan 1988  • Bled 1989  • Lake Barrington 1990  • Vienna 1991  • Montreal 1992  • Račice 1993  • Indianapolis 1994  • Tampere 1995  • Glasgow 1996  • Aiguebelette 1997  • Cologne 1998  • St. Catharines 1999  • Zagreb 2000  • Lucerne 2001  • Seville 2002  • Milan 2003  • Banyoles 2004  • Kaizu, Gifu 2005  • Eton 2006  • Oberschleißheim 2007  • Ottensheim 2008  • Poznań 2009  • Lake Karapiro 2010  • Bled 2011  • Plovdiv 2012   • Chungju 2013  • Amsterdam 2014

Coordinates: 55°47′51″N 4°01′23″W / 55.7975°N 4.02306°W / 55.7975; -4.02306