(c) WWT Ben Cherry
Well-wishers bid farewell to adventurer and conservationist Sacha Dench yesterday, ahead of her departure for the Arctic where she will accompany rare Bewick’s swans on a 4,500 mile journey in a paramotor as they make their annual migration back to the UK.Sacha Dench spent the day at the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust (WWT) London Wetland Centre in Barnes showing people her pararmotor - a combination of a paraglider wing and a propeller that sits on her back - and the support camp that will follow her on the ground.
The ground crew accompanying Sacha Dench will help her investigate the dangers facing the swans. The number of Bewick’s swans making the long journey has dropped by nearly a half in the last two decades and conservationists are urgently trying to stop it before it’s too late.
The journey crosses 11 countries and along the way Sacha Dench will meet reindeer herders, hunters, farmers, energy companies and many of the communities that cross paths with the swans each year to learn from their perspective what issues might be affecting the birds. She and the team will film their tales of the swans as well as the progress of Sacha and the birds, and share them online in two episodes each week which will run from mid-September till the end of November.
Ms Dench said:
“It has been wonderful to meet so many people here at London Wetland Centre who’ll be following me as I track the swans on this incredible journey that they make every year.
“It’s going to be a real adventure for me. I love flying and I’m fascinated by wildlife. But my biggest hope is that we better understand what is going wrong for the Bewick’s swans. They first make this long journey at just a few months old and they return to their birthplace every summer throughout the rest of their lives. It’s an extraordinary lifestyle, but along the line something is going wrong for them.
“We’re doing all we can as conservationists to get to the bottom of this problem, but it’s not happening fast enough for the swans, so it’s time to get on the road and in the air, to see the places and meet the people that might hold the key to this mystery.”
Hundreds of supporters have already pledged their support the swans via an online petition. Sacha Dench hopes to add 20,000 signatures from across Russia and Europe by the time she returns to London in November.
Companies have rallied behind the cause and provided crucial equipment and support for the expedition. Among those are:
- Mitsubishi has lent off road vehicles to enable the support team to reach Sacha Dench if she’s grounded and act as a mobile base-camp.
- RED Digital Cinema has lent professional cinematography cameras so the incredible wildlife, landscapes and events of the expedition can be filmed in feature film quality.
- Inmarsat and Dejero have provided equipment and satellite time so that updates from the expedition can be broadcast live seamlessly from even the remotest location.
- Paramo Directional Clothing has provided Sacha with high performance, PFC clothing to ensure she remains dry and comfortable in the most extreme conditions.
- The Met Office are helping Sacha plan and prepare for the many weather-related challenges that she, and the swans, will face.
- Fresh Breeze and Dudek have provided the paramotor structure and the paraglider wing that Sacha needs to fly with the swans.
- Rix & Kay Solicitors LLP has supported the complex agreements needed to get such a partnership off the ground.
Many well-known names have also given the support for the expedition including Dame Judi Dench, Sir David Attenborough and Sir Ranulph Fiennes.
People can find out more about the expedition, pledge their support for Bewick’s swan, and, once the journey starts, follow Sacha’s and the swans’ progress via an interactive map and twice-weekly video updates, at www.flightoftheswans.org
