The former British paratrooper completed the final leg by swimming the English Channel; over 28 years, he covered about 50,000 kilometers and crossed 29 countries.
Karl Bushby has returned to the United Kingdom after a 28-year journey from South America on foot and by swimming. On Oct. 5, the 57-year-old former paratrooper came ashore at Shakespeare Beach, south of Dover, after crossing the English Channel. His representatives announced the arrival the following day; ITV News also reported it.
Bushby set out from Punta Arenas, Chile, in November 1998, aiming to reach his mother’s home near Hull without using transport to advance his route. AFP and The Straits Times report that he covered about 50,000 kilometers across 29 countries. British and French authorities granted permission for the Channel swim, which his team did not publicize in advance for safety reasons.
The journey was interrupted several times by visa restrictions, the 2008 financial crisis and the coronavirus pandemic. Whenever Bushby resumed the expedition, he returned to the precise point where he had stopped. Along the way, he traversed the Americas, crossed the Bering Strait from Alaska to Russia and traveled across Asia from east to west.
Relatives and friends welcomed him at the beach, along with filmmaker Werner Herzog and a crew making the documentary Walk Of Life. The production company has supported the expedition for 16 years, helping with logistics and archiving its footage, according to the report.
Bushby said it felt good to stand on UK soil again and described the difficulties as part of the point: proving he was capable of more than he had imagined. He plans to continue to his mother’s home in Hull within the next month. In a September interview with AFP, he said he felt some apprehension about returning to a more ordinary life.