Karl Bushby returns home to Hull after about 28 years walking around the world

British adventurer Karl Bushby arrived back in his home city of Hull, England, on Monday. His return ended a journey on foot around the world that lasted about 28 years.

Bushby, 57, is a former British Army paratrooper. He set off from Chile in 1998, aged 29. According to the Guardian, he started in Punta Arenas.

He followed two rules. He would not use transport to advance, and he would not return home until he had finished. After each pause, he resumed from the exact spot where he had stopped.

The route crossed four continents, including the frozen Bering Strait between Alaska and Russia. In early October 2026, he swam the English Channel from France to the UK. On Sunday he crossed the Humber Bridge into Hull in mist. A crowd welcomed him in the city centre on Monday.

The reunion was with his mother, Angela, his son, Adam, 36, and a 12-year-old granddaughter he had never met. The Guardian and AP report that he reached his mother's home. DW and France 24 described the reunion there as scheduled.

The journey faced long delays. Bushby was jailed in Panama. DW says this was for entering without a visa. Russia refused him a visa, which forced a pause, and Russian authorities held him in custody. He was also threatened or held at gunpoint. France 24 says this happened in Mexico. The COVID-19 pandemic caused further delay.

According to the Guardian, the journey covered 29 countries. DW reports that the Channel swim took four days.

German filmmaker Werner Herzog attended the homecoming. He is making a feature-length documentary about the journey titled "Walk of Life".

The Guardian describes Bushby as the first person to walk continuously across the world. The reports reviewed by Vocemundi do not cite a record-keeping body confirming this.

What is disputed

• Distance: the Guardian says 36,000 miles. DW, France 24, Reuters and AP say about 31,000 miles (50,000 km).
• Crowd size: DW says some 500 people. France 24 says up to 1,000.
• Original plan: the Guardian and DW say 12 years. France 24 says about 10.
• Russian detention: France 24 says it was for crossing the border illegally. The Guardian reports that Bushby described being convicted of spying and sentenced to deportation. The reports do not include Russian official comment.

What each side says

Bushby described the trek as a shared effort. "We faced down governments, we faced down some of the hardest challenges, we had to create two world records just to get back here. It was a global effort," he said, according to the Guardian. The reports do not identify the two records.

According to the Guardian, MP Karl Turner read a statement from Prime Minister Andy Burnham. It congratulated Bushby on a "truly remarkable" feat. France 24 quoted Hull Mayor Maria Coward as saying: "We have all felt inspired by his spirit, tenacity and dogged determination".

Analysis

Bushby's return closes a journey that depended on visas, governments and outside funding as much as on walking. Questions remain about how it will be measured. The reports give different distances, and none cites an independent body verifying the record claims. A formal review could settle these points or leave them open. The Herzog documentary may shape how the trek is remembered, but its content and timing are not described. Bushby told AFP in September that he was apprehensive about returning to a more normal life. How he adapts after nearly three decades on the road remains to be seen.

Produced by the Vocemundi newsroom with AI assistance.