After a 28-year journey, a 57-year-old British resident has returned to Great Britain. This adventurer, who decided to circumnavigate the world without using any means of transport, began his journey in France and crossed the English Channel by swimming, reaching Shakespeare's Beach in Dover last Monday, October 5th. However, he plans to reach his childhood home in Halle only in early November.
Carl Bushby, as reported by the BBC, shared his thoughts, noting: 'It feels good to feel the ground of Great Britain under my feet after all these years. It was not easy, and that is part of the goal: to prove that I am more capable than I think. We can all achieve more than we ever imagined.'
He specified that he swam for three days, totaling only 20 hours, before reaching the coast of Dover at 3:30 PM on October 5th. The British Coastguard reported that they 'cooperated with French authorities and maritime sector partners to ensure safety protocols were followed,' as French law enforcement had previously only permitted swimming across the English Channel from the UK over many years.
Nevertheless, Bushby's team claimed to have received permission from the authorities of both countries to follow the planned route after being denied passage through the service tunnel in June.
A small group of friends and relatives, including his father, Keith Bushby, who previously served in the British Army's Special Air Service (SAS), as well as film director Werner Herzog, who is shooting a documentary about his trip titled 'Walk of Life,' met him on the beach.
At the age of 29, Bushby began his life journey on November 1, 1998, starting from Chile in South America. He set two rules: not to use transport and not to return home until the journey was completed.
The adventurer walked across all of South America, crossed the vast Darien Gap between Panama and Colombia, and then headed north to Alaska. From there, he crossed the Bering Strait on foot, swimming whenever necessary. Next came Siberia and the rest of Asia, after which he crossed the Caspian Sea by swimming, which took 31 days. Bushby entered Europe last year and reached the English Channel in September.
To date, the traveler has covered over 30,000 miles (48,000 kilometers), visiting 29 countries. However, the trip was marred by various difficulties, including visa restrictions, the 2008 financial crisis, which deprived him of sponsors, as well as the Covid-19 pandemic and the geopolitical situation, which prevented him from moving forward.
He left behind his son Adam, who was 8 years old at the time. He is now 36 years old, and he has a 12-year-old daughter whom Bushby does not yet know. He hopes to arrive home on November 1st, the date he started this entire endeavor.