Bridleway Maintenance

We are very lucky to be based in the fabulous Chilterns AONB, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

" The Chilterns AONB applauds initiatives such as Cholsey Farm Riding that help to introduce visitors to the fabulous network of bridleways in the AONB, at the same time increasing their awareness and appreciation of the Chilterns as a special and protected landscape "

We are all lucky to have a wealth of footpaths and a good number of bridleways in the Ibstone, Turville, Turville Heath, Northend and Southend locality. As any quick glance at an OS map will show, the number of footpaths exceeds the number of Bridleways by a factor of about 2:1 (i.e there is about twice as much footpath as bridleway)

If you have an issue with any local bridleways, please read this page and then contact us and we'll happily be in touch about;

  • whether this is a route used by Cholsey Farm Riding
  • what steps can be taken to maintain / fix / repair or mitigate any damage

The bridleways in the local area are used, both by a good number of local horse owners (like ourselves), and the visitors to Cholsey Farm Riding. These visitors bring their own horses, so that they too can explore the Chilterns AONB.

Our Routes

Our circular rides from Cholsey Farm use a mixture of the following types;

  • quiet country lanes
  • field margins & stubble fields (in season) on our own farm
  • public bridleways

Respecting the Community

We are part of the local community - we have lived in the area all our lives - and we are very sensitive and respectful of other members of the local community who wish to share our passion for the countryside, the footpaths, bridleways, country lanes & common land. We have also ridden the routes we offer to our visitors for many years and know their terrain and ground conditions.

To ensure that riders coming from Cholsey Farm are respectful of the local area we;

  • recommend the wearing of 'High Visibility' clothing to maximise visibility on some of the dark country lanes
  • provide well-researched maps (based on Ordnance Survey with permission) with very clear written directions
  • only recommend routes that are on Bridleways (distinct from footpaths)
  • regularly review our maps and directions with our visitors

We are helping to maintain the Bridleways

As our contribution towards maintaining the Bridleway Network we have;

  • Widened the bridleway from Ibstone Common down to Wormsley (with the support of BHS, Ibstone Parish Council, Bucks CC and Wormsley Estate)
  • Trimmed back many trees and branches (with permission) on the Wormsley Estate & elsewhere
  • Erected Bridleway Signs (kindly supplied by Bucks CC)
  • Greased and repaired a number of gates used on our routes

Working with others

We also seek to work closely with the following organisations and bodies

  • The British Horse Society - Access & Bridleways
  • Parish Councils (Ibstone & Turville)
  • Bucks County Council - Rights of Way
  • Local Landowners
  • Refreshment stops - supporting local businesses

If you are a landowner responsible for a bridleway, and we haven't yet been in touch, we'd like to establish a relationship.

If you are a local resident and have an issue with any Bridleway, we look forward to hearing from you to discuss any concerns.

In the first instance, please Contact