90-year-old explorer to water-bike 104 miles to save Britain’s endangered rainforest
When we think of rainforests, we usually picture tropical rainforests like the Amazon in South America, the Congo in Central Africa, or Borneo in Southeast Asia. We don’t usually (or ever, really) think of the British Isles.
But surprisingly, the United Kingdom is home to one of the most critically endangered rainforests in the world. The Atlantic, or Celtic, rainforest is one of the rarest biomes, as temperate rainforests make up only 2.5% of the forested land on Earth. And one man and his son are on a mission to save it.
Robin Hanbury-Tenison has spent much of his 90 years traveling the world’s rainforests. As an explorer and conservationist, founder and former president of Survival International, Gold Medallist of the Royal Geographical Society, and the author of more than 25 books, he could reasonably have retired from arduous conservation work long ago. Instead, he’s been training to pedal a water bike 104 miles down the River Thames to help save the British rainforest.
View this post on Instagram
Why is a 90-year-old biking down the Thames?
On June 19, he will set off from Magdalen Bridge in Oxford on a water bike, pedaling the floating bicycle down the famed River Thames. After covering approximately 26 miles per day over four days and navigating at least 31 locks, he will end his journey at Teddington Lock on International Rainforest Day, June 22. Each day, he will be joined by a prominent guest who will be interviewed alongside him.
The objective is to raise £150,000........
