British adventurer completes 28-year journey around world

British adventurer Karl Bushby has completed a 28-year journey around the world, returning to his family home in the northern English city of Hull on Monday.

The 57-year-old former British paratrooper began what became known as the Goliath Expedition in Punta Arenas, at the southern tip of Chile, in 1998, setting himself the challenge of making his way back to England without using transportation to advance his journey.

Bushby covered more than 50,000 kilometers (31,000 miles) across four continents and some 30 countries, traveling north through the Americas before crossing the frozen Bering Strait from Alaska into Russia and continuing through Asia and Europe.

The journey took far longer than initially planned as Bushby faced visa and border restrictions, extreme weather, financial difficulties and delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Among the most challenging stages was his 2006 crossing of the Bering Strait, where he navigated shifting sea ice between Alaska and Russia.

Decades later, with overland routes blocked by geopolitical restrictions, he swam across the Caspian Sea to continue westward.

Bushby reached Britain in October after swimming across the English Channel and then continued the final roughly 400 kilometers (250 miles) on foot to Hull.

His arrival at his mother’s home brought to an end an expedition that began when he was 29 and ultimately occupied nearly half his life.