Local personal trainer Owen Bevan will attempt to haul a 70kg log 42km through the night, from Ramsey to Castletown, in aid of the Junglekeepers charity.
As reported by Manx.News in August, Bevan will attempt to drag a piece of fallen timber along the island’s east coast to raise £10,000 for the initiative, which funds indigenous rangers to prevent illegal logging and mining in the Amazon rainforest. He’ll start his challenge this Saturday (September 12), and estimates he’ll be on the road for between 20 and 24 hours, pulling a log which weighs two kilos more than him.
The prohibited forest-clearing disrupts the Amazon’s vapour-fuelled “flying rivers”, which feed the Atlantic weather systems that reach Manx shores and dictate the island’s environment. Forced changes to these systems could create stronger, more extreme weather events, including increased rainfall and stronger winds.
Bevan says that every £65 in donations will fund a ranger for a day, bringing the foundation closer to pressuring the Peruvian government into making one of the Amazon’s last mercury-free rivers a national reserve. The Junglekeepers have protected 160,000 acres since 2020.
More information, and details of how to donate, can be found at draggingtheforesthome.com