Coming down the steep, wooded road from Lanark into the gorge of the Clyde, you see New Lanark all at once: a cluster of tall, plain sandstone mill buildings and tenements packed onto the riverbank at the bottom of the valley, with the water rushing past. It is one of the most remarkable industrial villages in Europe, founded in 1786 by David Dale and the inventor Richard Arkwright to harness the river for cotton spinning, and later turned into a social experiment by Dale's son-in-law, Robert Owen. It is a World Heritage site.
Owen believed that people were shaped by their environment, and that better conditions would make better workers and a better society. He refused to employ young children in the mills, opened the first infant school in Britain, provided healthcare and a village shop that sold goods at fair prices, and created the Institute for the Formation of Character, a community centre for education and recreation. His ideas influenced the cooperative movement, trade unions and early socialism. The mills continued to operate until 1968, and the village has since been restored, with a visitor centre, a hotel and a roof garden on one of the mills.
The Falls of Clyde, just upstream, are a series of waterfalls that powered the mills, with Corra Linn the most spectacular. A nature reserve protects the woodland along the river, home to peregrine falcons, otters and badgers. The walk from the village to the falls is beautiful, especially after heavy rain, when the water thunders through the gorge.
The riding around here is good. The roads in the Clyde valley wind through orchards, woods and villages, with gentle curves and good views. Head south into the Southern Uplands for more open, wild landscapes, with roads like the Dalveen Pass and the Mennock Pass to Wanlockhead, the highest village in Scotland, climbing through bare, rolling hills. Weather can be changeable, so be prepared for rain.
Lanark, just over a kilometre away, has fuel, shops and restaurants, and its market town atmosphere is pleasant. The road down into New Lanark is steep and has tight bends, so take it slowly. The village has a café and a hotel restaurant where you can have a hearty Scottish lunch, perhaps a bowl of Cullen skink or haggis with neeps and tatties.