At 90 years old, Robin Hanbury-Tenison, a longstanding rainforest campaigner, is undertaking a demanding 104-mile journey down the River Thames on a pedal-powered water-bike. Starting from Magdalen Bridge in Oxford, he aims to reach Teddington Lock in Richmond by Monday, coinciding with World Rainforest Day. The endeavor seeks to raise £100,000 to support the construction of Europe's first dedicated temperate rainforest research station on his farm in Bodmin Moor, Cornwall.

Hanbury-Tenison, founder of the indigenous rights organization Survival International, has spent much of his life highlighting the importance of tropical rainforests across the Amazon, Borneo, and beyond. More recently, he has shifted focus to Britain's temperate rainforest, a habitat largely vanished over time. After discovering a significant remnant of this rare ecosystem on his Cornish farm, he became determined to protect and promote research on this often-overlooked environment.

The initiative is led by the Thousand Year Trust, a charity managed by Hanbury-Tenison’s son Merlin, who will accompany his father during the expedition. Merlin acknowledged the physical challenges his father faces, including a bad knee, impaired balance, and limited arm and shoulder mobility, saying Hanbury-Tenison’s preparation has involved extensive training on an exercise bike to build the stamina needed for several hours of daily pedaling. Despite these setbacks, Merlin joked about keeping pace: “I’m going to take a stick so I can beat him when he slows down. It’s going to be a tough one.”

The journey will also require navigating 31 locks along the river, contending with strong east winds, and enduring a heatwave forecast for the weekend. Hanbury-Tenison said he prefers heat over cold and plans to manage the conditions with a wide-brimmed hat while pushing through the inevitable physical discomfort. He noted, “I’m 90 for goodness sake. Of course things begin to hurt, but one pedals through the pain threshold.”

The rainforest research station under development will serve as a hub for scientific study and conservation of Britain’s temperate rainforest, a habitat that once covered about 20% of the country but has now been reduced to less than 1%. The first phase of the station is underway, built using local timber supplied by the Woodland Trust. However, several hundred thousand pounds remain to be raised to complete the project. More than 20 universities, including Exeter and Plymouth, have partnered to support the initiative, which the Thousand Year Trust describes as “a once-in-a-generation effort to save Britain’s rainforest.”

The fundraising campaign has received a significant boost from actor Russell Crowe, who pledged to match the first £25,000 raised, effectively doubling the initial contributions and drawing increased attention to the cause. Hanbury-Tenison expressed pride in his lifetime’s work advocating for tropical rainforests and sees this new focus on temperate rainforest as a critical extension of his environmental commitment. “To find that the scruffy piece of land on this small farm is a last vestige of the equally rich but even more endangered temperate rainforest is extraordinary,” he said.

Local residents along the Thames have offered encouragement and hospitality throughout the voyage, highlighting community support for Hanbury-Tenison’s ambitious project. The river journey is as much a personal challenge as a statement on environmental stewardship and legacy conservation.