About 10 or so years ago I remember watching explorer Levison Wood on TV walking from the source of the Nile all the way to the Mediterranean Sea.
Inspired by his journey I decided to visit the source of the River Thames, at Trewsbury Mead in Gloucestershire. However, my journey was less arduous than Levison’s epic nine month trip. I cheated. It took about an hour in the car and then a 15 minute walk across muddy fields to reach the source of the Thames.
That said, the day wasn’t without incident – we had to take an alternative route due to flooding, which resulted in a long diversion. We also encountered a minor navigation issue when Google Maps took us to a road with the sign “Absolutely no access to the source of the Thames”. We obviously weren’t the first explorers to follow Google!
Fortunately we found a lay-by, where we could park in readiness for our exploration.
Official source of the River Thames
Ten minutes later we stood by a pile of rocks – the official source of the Thames. Nearby, was a signpost marking the start of the Thames Path.
I knew from my research that it was often dry but given the rain we’ve had over the winter I hoped there might be some water – there wasn’t. Instead we had to content ourselves with a stone marker and the pile of rocks. I’m assuming the Thames bubbles up from these occasionally.
Was it disappointing? Um, yes.
The alternative source of the Thames
To complicate matters, there are two potential sources of the River Thames. Some people think the Thames starts at Seven Springs near Cheltenham, rather than the official source above. I could, should, have walked the 15 miles between them. But I jumped in the car and drove for 20 minutes instead. I am clearly not of the explorer mindset.
This source was much more promising! It had water in it, and was in a pretty little hollow surrounded by mosses and ferns. A weather beaten notice board confirmed it as the source of the River Churn, which flows into the Thames at Cricklade. I’m going to choose this option as my source of the Thames.
Interestingly, if it is ever confirmed as the official source of the River Thames, it will extend its length by about 14 miles, making it the longest river in the United Kingdom.
Was the trip worth it? Yes, it made for an interesting day out on a grey winter day. Do I feel the need to visit it again? No!
Challenge completed
Challenge completed. Pop over to read the full list of my 60 things to do before I’m 60.