One post still stands on a promontory at the eastern end of the Greenock Ocean Terminal. Arrol was born at Houston in Renfrewshire and despite leaving school at 9 years of age to work in a cotton mill and later as a blacksmith he attended night school where he learned the principles of civil engineering.

Bowling Basin and harbour are in the foreground. The Newshot Island stretch contains a variety of remains, ranging from a possible fishing weir across the inner lagoon to a stone jetty and possible loading platforms. I hope to cover these locations later in a separate gallery. The Golden Jubilee National Hospital, built in 1994 as a private hospital by Health Care International, was first known as the HCI. They`re difficult to shoo-away and I`ve been surrounded on more than one occasion.This view, taken from the Titan Crane, shows the notorious Dalmuir bend, which was prone silting up and often proved problematical for larger vessels transiting the river, especially when visibility was poor. In 2002, the hospital was purchased for the National Health Service, at a cost of £37.5 million and given its current name.This is an example of the disappearing riverbank with many sections even more deeply undercut. During dredging operations, nOn her way upriver on a cold November morning the Coaster Ammon passes Newshot Island. The William Beardmore & Co Shipyard lies just beyond the rectangular sheds. an be found anywhere along the stretch of the Clyde featured here. He expanded it to incorporate the Parkhead Crane Works and in the years that followed, even after Arrol had died, his company built some of the best known bridges in the British Isles. Fairhurst & Partners.Including the approaches, Erskine Bridge is 1,322m long and cost some £10.5 million to build. The view incorporates the eastern half of the area featured here. Also, in such conditions any passing vessels, even when travelling relatively slowly, can generate a tremendous wash which can lap over onto the high ground.colonial seabirds that normally only come to land in order to breed so this one may have been injured or exhausted. During September and October 2009, Amey carried out maintenance and repairs including resurfacing the north and south approaches to the bridge. When it comes to size, some oil rigs are a little more awe-inspiring than others. To support the foundations of the new bridge, thousands of tons of rubble was dumped there, destroying the fragile habitat but acting as a flood barrier. The first, above, is looking north towards the Clyde. A pair usually nest in the tall trees beside the M8 Motorway.Autumn and winter are the most productive seasons for bird-watching here. In addition to wooden schooners, there`s this steel-hulled craft which experts believe could possibly be the world`s first purpose-built diving-bell boat. Warning signs discourage exploration and although I have wandered over the adjacent fields on many occasions, this whole stretch should be avoided during storms or flood conditions, especially around high tide.The latter, being closer, is the better option as, although the going can be a bit rough underfoot, it is then possible to walk west, following the tree-line along the southern border of the reedbed before either regaining the road or climbing over the fence into the Newshot Island reserve.I`ve managed to photograph in or around my garden as identical species are just as likely to be encountered in the surrounding area.The walkway skirts the west side but the elevated east side is an even better vantage point for photographing passing ships or watching Cormorants and waders fly past, often just above the water. A Fieldfare feasts on autumn berries in the back garden of my house. This is effectively an expanded gallery with detailed information on my local wildlife-watching patch which will hopefully be of interest to locals and visitors alike. The images have been taken over many years and other shots relating to this area can be found in my From there, the river flows between Hamilton and Motherwell, passing the flooded meadow of Baron`s Haugh, continues through Blantyre and Bothwell, past Uddingston, through Rutherglen and Dalmarnock and on to the centre of the City itself. I took the following shot, which shows both sides of the Clyde between the Erskine Bridge and River Cart confluence, from a light aircraft in October 1976. An oil rig tore free of its moorings as Hurricane Katrina lashed the Alabama coast, before surging downriver and smashing into a suspension bridge, witnesses said today. These woods once formed part of the extensive Mar Hall estate and numerous paths were cut during the Victorian era. The above view, taken from the Erskine Bridgethe Liberian-registered bulk carrier Anarchos making her way upriver to discharge a cargo of animal feed at Shieldhall. It carries the A898 dual two-lane carriageway with footways and cycle tracks.The single cable passing over the saddle of each tower consists of 4,272 galvanized steel wires of 5mm diameter, arranged in 24 strands each, with a breaking load of 508 tonnes. The area covered is the south bank of the Clyde The Clyde has its source high in the Lowther Hills of the Southern Uplands and, at approximately 100 miles long, is the third longest river in Scotland. It had likely been left there by the receding tide.This wary Roe Deer stood still just long enough for me to get a shot before it bounded off across the fields. The Cart and Newshot Island are visible top left and the Old Kilpatrick to Dalmuir section of the Forth & Clyde Canal can also be seen. Goldcrest, Britain`s smallest bird, are resident in the area although I`ve only spotted a few over the years.