I am walking back into the 1980s on a mission to find a farm of my formative years. There, I attended an on-a-shoestring riding school, which made my toy “carpet farm” a reality. It was in Whitchurch-on-Thames, on the opposite bank of the River Thames to my childhood village, the other side of a magnificent, white-painted ironwork toll bridge that cost tuppence to cross on foot.
With a deepening scent of autumn in the air, we begin along Hartslock Bridleway, part of the modern Thames path and the ancient Tuddingway packhorse route, heading to the inland ports of Wallingford, Goring and Crowmarsh. Much of the view is now blocked by an 8ft-high fence around Coombe Park estate.
