British adventurer Karl Bushby will complete his 27-year walk around the world in September 2026. He traveled to 25 countries, crossing the harshest conditions, hot deserts, jungles, frozen seas, war zones and several political obstacles.
In November 1998, at the age of 29, the former British paratrooper left the tip of South America to travel the world on foot, without motorized assistance, a journey now known as the “Goliath expedition”.
Now the 56-year-old is set to return home after spending nearly three decades on the road. With an almost minimal social media presence and no official website, Bushby has become extremely difficult to follow.
Starting from the tip of South America, he has crossed the United States, Canada, Russia, China and Europe, and is finally preparing to return home to Britain. He is only 1,000 miles into the final leg of his 58,000 km journey.
He spent 57 days in detention in Russia for entering through an unofficial border.
Some of the interesting features of his journey are:
- When it started, there were no smartphones or social media
- Google Maps was not invented at that time
- Bill Clinton was President of the United States and Tony Blair was Prime Minister of Britain
The adventure was only supposed to last 12 years, but it took him almost 28 years to complete his expedition.
The delay was due to several political obstacles, including a five-year Russian visa ban in 2013 (later reversed) and financial constraints.
The COVID-19 pandemic also played a significant role in extending the expedition.
