<P> The Forth and Clyde Canal is a canal opened in 1790, crossing central Scotland; it provided a route for the seagoing vessels of the day between the Firth of Forth and the Firth of Clyde at the narrowest part of the Scottish Lowlands . It is 35 miles (56 km) long and it runs from the River Carron at Grangemouth to the River Clyde at Bowling, and had an important basin at Port Dundas in Glasgow . </P> <P> Successful in its day, it suffered as the seagoing vessels were built larger and could no longer pass through . The railway age further impaired the success of the canal, and in the 1930s decline had ended in dormancy . The final decision to close the canal in the mid 1960s was made due to maintenance costs of bridges crossing the canal exceeding the revenues it brought in . However, subsidies to the rail network were also a cause for its decline and the closure ended the movement of the east - coast Forth River fishing fleets across the country to fish the Irish Sea . The lack of political and financial foresight also removed a historical recreational waterway and potential future revenue generator to the town of Grangemouth . Unlike the majority of major canals the route through Grangemouth was drained and back filled to create a new carriageway for port traffic . </P>

Where does the forth and clyde canal start and finish