Megan Lewis and Rowena Haigh at the China Childrens Monument in Badaling, at the start of the long horse ride

The Long Horse Ride is a journey on horseback from Beijing to London. It is scheduled to start out shortly after the closing ceremony of the 2008 Beijing Olympics, and to arrive in London in time for the 2012 London Olympics.

The ride will bring a message of goodwill from the children of China in the Beijing Olympic year to the children of the United Kingdom in the London Olympic year.  It also aims to raise money for disadvantaged children through its chosen charity Schoolchildren for Children.

Starting from the China Children Charity Monument on the Great Wall at Badaling, Beijing, it will cross the steppes, deserts and mountains of China and Central Asia, following the Great Wall and the ancient Silk Route. In the path of the Mongols and Huns, it will skirt the northern shores of the Caspian and Black Seas, before the final leg through the fields and forests of Europe.

The ride is being backed through China by the partnership of the British based charity Schoolchildren For Children www.schoolchildrenforchildren.org and the China based charity China Children and Teenagers' Fund www.cctf.org.

We hope to be able to offer an occasional paying guest place to a select few for a week or fortnight at a later stage in the ride.

For more details see Megan's website at www.thelonghorseride.com or go to her blog at http://thelonghorseride.blogspot.com/