The river Devon is one of several tributaries of the River Forth which flows through three Scottish counties; Perthshire, Kinross-shire and Clackmannanshire, where it joins the river Forth.
The source of the river is in Perthshire, on the slopes of Blairdenon Hill in the Ochil Hills, at an altitude of 1,800 feet. At various times, the upper areas of the river have been dammed. The high-level reservoirs are named Glenquey and Glensherup, after the Devon's high-level tributaries, and Upper Glendevon (Upper Frandy) and Lower Glendevon (Lower Frandy). The still lower level Castlehill Reservoir at Glen Devon was created around 1975.
The Devon then flows east and southeast through Glendevon, turning southwest at Crook of Devon in Kinross-shire, where the river takes a sharp turn, continuing westwards, meandering across the valley along the foot of the Ochil Hills. It reaches the River Forth to the west of Alloa at the small village of Cambus. The catchment covers an area of 181 km2.
History
At the end of January 1560, Sir William Kirkcaldy of Grange destroyed part of the old bridge to the west of Tullibody in attempt to delay French troops, commanded by Henri Cleutin, who were retreating from Fife towards Stirling. However, the French took down the roof of Tullibody Old Kirk to bridge the Devon.
The Devon was surveyed by James Watt in 1766, who claimed that by deepening the riverbed it might be navigable as far as Dollar. The estimated cost of such a project at around £2,000.
between Tillicoultry and Crook of Devon, the Devon Valley Railway was built alongside the river valley.
Robert Burns wrote two lyrical songs about the river: 'The Banks of the Devon' and 'Fairest Maid on Devon Bank'. These were written in 1787, and recall Charlotte Hamilton of Mauchline, whom he had met at nearby Harviestoun estate. (Charlotte went on to marry Burns's friend, Adair.)
Flooding
Clackmannanshire Council has recognised the threat of flooding along the Devon and has worked to address the issue by itself and with partners, including the Worldwide Fund for Nature. Works undertaken on the Devon catchment include willow walling, riverside woodland and the blocking of wetland drains.
River Devon Reservoirs
The Glensherup Reservoir lies 4 miles north of Dollar. Built by Dunfermline Corporation Water Works at a cost of around £72,000, it opened in 1880 and covers an area of 30 acres. It is now operated by Scottish Water and is the smallest of a network of reservoirs which supply West Fife with drinking water.
The Glenquey Resevoir is a trout fishery located high in the Ochils above Glendevon, providing fly only fishing for brown trout. The reservoir is formed at the head of the glen, overlooked by the rounded ridges of the main Ochils ridge and to the north by maturing broadleaved woods planted by the Woodland Trust. The reservoir was built in 1909 and extends over 41 acres with shallow shelving on the southern bank.
Lower Glendevon Reservoir (Lower Frandy Reservoir) is one of a close pair of public water supply reservoirs located in the Ochil Hills of Perthshire. It lies in Glen Devon a half-mile west of its junction with Glen Eagles and a quarter mile to the east of the Upper Glendevon Reservoir. Extending to 109 acres, the reservoir is retained by an embankment dam, some 31m (101 feet) in height and was built during the First World War by German prisoners for Dunfermline Corporation Water Works. It opened in 1924 and is now operated by Scottish Water.
The larger of a pair of public water supply reservoirs located at the head of Glen Devon in the Ochil Hills of Perthshire, the Upper Glendevon Reservoir (also known as the Upper Frandy Reservoir) lies close to the border with Clackmannanshire and 4½ miles north of Tillicoultry. It occupies an area of 174 acres and contains approximately 4844 million litres (1066 million gallons) of water. Completed in 1955, the reservoir is retained by a concrete and earth gravity dam, some 45m (147 feet) high and 390m (1279 feet) in length. Originally comprising twenty-four concrete slabs, the dam suffered from significant water-leakage problems which required restorative action in 1960, 1968 and again in 1975. This was finally resolved by the installation of a rockfill embankment on the downstream face of the dam, together with a new spillway at the southern end. The repairs cost £5.24 million. The dam was reopened by Councillor Robert Gough, Convenor of Fife Regional Council, on 26th October 1994. Provision was made for hydro-electric power generation and a 264 kW turbine was subsequently installed, making use of the water released from the dam.
Castlehill Reservoir is an elongated reservoir retained by a concrete dam located at the entrance to Glen Devon in Perthshire. It lies a mile north northwest of Yetts o' Muckhart and at 160m (524 feet), is the lowest of a network of reservoirs which supply Dunfermline and West Fife with drinking water. Building started in 1975 and the reservoir opened in 1978. It is now operated by Scottish Water, covers an area of 94 acres and has a maximum depth of 30m (98 feet). The A823 road runs along its western shore, while the eastern bank is steep farmland. The reservoir is stocked with brown and rainbow trout to provide a recreational fishery.
Together, this group of reservoirs holds approximately 12,700 million litres (2794 million gallons) of water.