Latest news with #GoliathExpedition
IOL News
01-08-2025
- IOL News
Walking the world: Karl Bushby's 27-year journey heads for the finish line
Karl Bushby, a 56-year-old British adventurer, has been walking an unbroken path around the world since 1998. Image: Instagram. British adventurer Karl Bushby is just 2000 miles (3218kms) away from completing his monumental journey: To walk an unbroken path around the world without ever taking a car, plane or even a bike. After 27 years of trekking through rainforests, icy terrains and the crossroads of continents, Bushby is ready to return to his mother's home in Sutton Park, Hull. Starting his adventure on November 1, 1998, in Punta Arenas, Chile, Bushby called his adventure the Goliath Expedition. While he thought it would only take him about 12 years to walk 36,000 miles (57 936kms), complications forced his expedition to stretch far longer than he ever imagined. Bushby has been walking through wars, a pandemic and even visa troubles. Speaking to "BBC Radio Humberside" recently, Bushby said that he hopes to continue his trek, via Turkey, in August before entering Europe. Karl Bushby. Image: Instagram. It will take him another year before he is on home soil and is aiming to arrive in Hull by September 2026. "On 1 November 1998, you're literally looking down at a road that's 36,000 miles long and have no idea how you're going to do it. We've run into a lot of complications with visa problems, financial crises, and the pandemic; we've had it all. "It's been extremely difficult, but we've always stuck to our guns and never been willing to compromise on the route," Bushby shared. He continued: "Getting home, I just don't know, it's weird, it's a very strange place to be in where suddenly your purpose for living will have a hard stop. I'm hoping to transition into other things as quickly as possible, keeping mind, body and soul on the move." He said reuniting with his family would involve getting "to know each other again". Bushby's epic path has led him from the jungles of Central America to the frozen stretches of Siberia. He even walked across the Bering Strait from Alaska to Russia. He had to wait for the sea ice to solidify and faced detention with the Russian authorities, which put his ambitious plans on hold. After a five-year delay, Bushby continued pressing on, re-choreographing his steps through China. Karl Bushby in The Pacific Coast of Mexico in 2002. Image: Instagram. At the moment, he finds himself in Mexico, anxiously awaiting a visa that will allow him to continue his journey. His next move is to Turkey, with hopes of entering Europe by August. With less than 2,000 (3218kms) miles to go, he expects to arrive back in Hull by September 2026.
Time of India
17-06-2025
- Time of India
Who is Karl Bushby? Meet the man walking around the world for 27 years without taking a ride
From the Darien to the Channel You Might Also Like: Want to travel and enjoy life NOW? Why many young professionals are opting for micro-retirement as new career goal He Walked, He Swam, He Survived Visa Battles, Solitude, and Survival In a world where jet-setting is the norm and even short errands involve wheels, one man has chosen to defy the modern travel playbook—on foot. Karl Bushby , a 56-year-old former British paratrooper from Hull, England, has been walking an unbroken path around the globe for the past 27 years, in what he calls the " Goliath Expedition ." Since he took his first step in Punta Arenas, Chile, on November 1, 1998, Bushby has stuck to one iron rule: no transportation, only started as a bold eight-year plan has evolved into a near three-decade odyssey, as he trudges across continents, defies geographical extremes, and challenges political borders, all to be the first person to circumnavigate the Earth on foot— the sheer distance of over 36,000 miles (58,000 km) is itself Herculean, it's the obstacles in between that have defined Bushby's incredible saga. His walk was never meant to be easy, but it turned out to be nearly impossible. Three major 'gaps' threatened the very core of his expedition: the notorious Darien Gap between Colombia and Panama, the icy Bering Strait between the U.S. and Russia, and the Channel Tunnel separating France from the has already conquered the first two. In 2006, he and fellow adventurer Dimitri Kieffer famously crossed the Bering Strait on foot over 14 days, navigating treacherous ice floes and freezing conditions, only to be detained by Russian border forces for entering illegally. It took lobbying by then British Deputy PM John Prescott and Russian governor Roman Abramovich to keep the mission all that stands between Bushby and the finish line is the Channel Tunnel. Since walking through the rail-dedicated tunnel is forbidden, he'll need special authorization to pass through a 4.8-meter-wide service tunnel used by maintenance crews—a bureaucratic hurdle that could take commitment to a completely unbroken path recently took on aquatic form. In August 2024, unable to safely enter Iran or Russia, he swam across the Caspian Sea from Kazakhstan to Azerbaijan with a support team and co-swimmer Angela Maxwell. The 179-mile journey took 31 days and 132 swimming hours, marking yet another unimaginable feat in this globe-spanning this, he walked through Azerbaijan and Turkey, reaching Istanbul's Bosphorus Strait on May 2, 2025—officially stepping into Europe. His final push through the continent toward Hull is expected to take until September journey hasn't just tested his endurance—it's tested his spirit. From spending years stuck in Mexico due to visa denials and sponsor losses during the 2008 financial crisis, to a five-year ban from Russia in 2013, his path has been paved with setbacks. Still, he's never to BBC Radio Humberside , Bushby reflected: 'On 1 November, 1998, you're literally looking down at a road that's 36,000 miles long and have no idea how you're going to do it… It's been extremely difficult but we've always stuck to our guns and never been willing to compromise on the route.'He also opened up about the psychological toll of such a long, solitary journey. 'Getting home, I just don't know, it's weird. It's a very strange place to be in where suddenly your purpose for living will have a hard stop,' he said. 'I'm hoping to transition into other things as quickly as possible, keeping mind, body and soul on the move.'
BBC News
11-06-2025
- BBC News
Karl Bushby global walker from Hull prepares for home stretch
A man hoping to become the first person to complete an unbroken round-the-world walk is preparing for the last leg of his Bushby set off from Chile in 1998. Since then he has walked across American and Asian continents, swam 186 miles (300km) across the Caspian Sea and fought off ice lumps and polar bears through the Bering Strait, all without using any form of former paratrooper has less than 2,000 miles (3219km) left to walk before he arrives at his home city of Bushby, who is currently in Mexico waiting for a visa to complete his challenge, has said returning home will be a "very strange place to be" after being away for some 27 years. Following his 31-day swim across the Caspian Sea last year, Mr Bushby said he continued his journey to Azerbaijan and then through to traveller, originally from Sutton Park, said he "had to step aside" from his mission, named the Goliath Expedition, while he waited for a hopes to continue his trek, via Turkey, in August before entering Europe. Mr Bushby expects it will take another year before he is on home soil and is aiming to arrive in Hull by September 2026. Speaking on BBC Radio Humberside, Mr Bushby said: "On 1 November 1998 you're literally looking down at a road that's 36,000 miles long and have no idea how you're going to do it."We've run into a lot of complications with visa problems, financial crises, the pandemic, we've had it all."It's been extremely difficult but we've always stuck to our guns and never been willing to compromise on the route."Mr Bushby said there had been "a few occasions" where he feared for his life, but he was "mentally prepared" for the tough encounters. He said: "Getting home, I just don't know, it's weird, it's a very strange place to be in where suddenly your purpose for living will have a hard stop."I'm hoping to transition into other things as quickly as possible, keeping mind, body and soul on the move."He said reuniting with his family would involve getting "to know each other again".The adventure was meant to take 12 years but his global voyage has transcended more than five prime ministers, the Covid-19 pandemic, and numerous wars. Listen to highlights from Hull and East Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North or tell us about a story you think we should be covering here.
