Downstream

lake.
Today Thames Head
remains the river’s official
source, according to the
Environment Agency and
Ordnance Survey, and it’s
still not easy to find. After a
three-hour drive from London
I park at the Thames Head
Inn, around half a mile away,
where the barman responds to
my request for directions by
telling me I can’t miss it. So I
rush recklessly down a busy