Walking is a popular exercise among the population in these modern times. It may be very challenging, however, for anyone to consistently walk six kilometers every day for 43 years. Zhang Youguang, a forest ranger from Guizhou, has impressively accomplished just that.
65-year-old Zhang has been a forest ranger for 43 years at Pingshang town of Puding county. The forest in his charge is a virgin forest covering 2,700 mu (180 hectares).
Zhang lives in the forest which is 28 kilometers away from the town. Under his vigil, the one-time saplings have since grown into towering trees. The passing years have also transformed Zhang from a young lad into an old man.
“I go to check the forest every day, or I will worry about those trees,” Zhang told a reporter from China Daily. Over the years, the cumulative length of Zhang’s daily walks amount to the equivalent of two times around the Earth’s circumference.
Zhang took over the job as a forest ranger from his father who used to be a hunter and accepted the job to protect the forest, as many people attempted to cut down trees illegally in 1970s.
Now, as Zhang has gotten older, his brother, Zhang Youquan, has taken over the responsibility of protecting the forest as he once did 43 years ago.
Edited by Zachary Dye
