Former British paratrooper Karl Bushby ended his 28-year trip around the world this Monday, November 2, when he arrived in his hometown, Hull, after swimming across the English Channel. His journey took him from the southern tip of Latin America to the frozen Bering Strait, then through Central Asia and Europe until he returned home.

First modification: 02/11/2026 - 23:01

After 28 years, British adventurer Karl Bushby returned home on Monday, November 2 after a 50,000-kilometer journey from Chile across four continents without using any means of transportation to travel.

Bushby, who undertook his odyssey from South America in 1998, imposed two golden rules for his trip: avoid any means of transportation to advance and not return until he completed his challenge.

On Monday he was greeted in the center of Hull, northeast England, by a cheering crowd of up to 1,000 people, and he thanked everyone for the support he had received along the way.

"I didn't do it alone," he said, adding that it was a "global effort" after receiving praise from Hull mayor Maria Coward.

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"You can't imagine how many people have pitched in to help us overcome the obstacles we've faced. We've stood up to governments and overcome some of the toughest challenges."

With a tent, a few hundred dollars and a cheap plastic camera, the path back to his hometown has taken him the entire length of the Americas, crossing the frozen Bering Strait from Alaska to Russia, and then traversing parts of Central Asia and Europe, passing through jungles, mountains and deserts.

"Sometimes the monotony is incredible. You're in the desert and the landscape doesn't change for days or even weeks. That can be a bit mind-boggling. The same thing happens in the Arctic," he told Reuters last year.

He had already been applauded on Sunday when crossing the iconic Humber Bridge, near Hull, in the middle of thick fog, before his final stretch towards the city center and, later, to his mother's house.

The 57-year-old former paratrooper, who carried his belongings in a metal-framed cart, was received with an official welcome on Monday.

"So many people have followed Karl on his epic journey. We have all been inspired by his spirit, his tenacity and his unwavering determination," Coward had previously stated, adding that the city was "proud of his incredible achievement."

Bushby was due to meet his mother, Angela, late Monday; his son Adam, 36; and a 12-year-old granddaughter whom he had never met.

"British soil"

He began his adventure at the age of 29, after the failure of his marriage and his wife's return to Northern Ireland with their son.

He originally expected to spend about ten years traveling, but he had not anticipated the obstacles he would face, including a brief imprisonment in Panama, being held at gunpoint in Mexico, and his arrest by Russian authorities for crossing the border illegally.

He was forced to interrupt the trip on several occasions, including when Moscow denied him a visa. The 2008 financial crisis and, later, the Covid-19 pandemic brought other setbacks.

At that time, he left the trip and lived, among other places, on a base in Mexico; then, once the situation was resolved, he would resume the trip exactly from the point where he had left it.

At the beginning of October he swam across the English Channel to reach the United Kingdom again.

"It feels good to set foot on British soil after all these years," he later declared in a statement, adding that his journey "had not been easy."

"We can all achieve more than we ever imagined," he added.

Legendary German filmmaker Werner Herzog and a film crew accompany Bushby on his return home.

Herzog is filming a feature-length documentary about the trip titled 'Walk of Life'.

The production company responsible for the film has been supporting Bushby's progress for 16 years, providing him with financial and logistical help.

In an interview with AFP from northern France in September, Bushby expressed some apprehension about returning to a more normal life in Britain.

"I have to try to make my way back into the adult world," he said.

Adapted from its original English version

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