Karl Bushby: 28-Year Walk Home to Hull, Route and Finish Plan

Karl Bushby, the former paratrooper from Hull, is days away from finishing a walk home that began in Chile 28 years ago. Hull City Council says he is expected in Queen Victoria Square at about 11am on Monday, November 2, 2026, after crossing the Humber Bridge, before he walks the final stretch to his family home.

This guide is current as of about 08:25 GMT on Saturday, October 31, 2026. Sources give different totals for distance and countries, so each figure below is attributed.

Who is Karl Bushby?

Bushby, 57, is a former British Army paratrooper from Hull. He walked out of Punta Arenas, near the southern tip of Chile, on November 1, 1998, with about $500, the Associated Press reports. AP and CNBC say he was 29 when he set off; The Hull Story gives his age then as 28.

The idea came from a mid-1990s birthday card from his father, Keith, which mentioned soldiers arguing over whether anyone could walk from London to New York by way of the Bering Strait. According to his official site, Bushby drew one line on his wall map from England, over the strait and down to the tip of South America, then set out to walk it home. "With that under my skin, there was no going back," he told AP.

The Goliath Expedition: route and rules

Bushby calls the trek the Goliath Expedition. His site lists two rules: no transport to advance, and no going home except on foot. As the Big Issue notes, that rules out even ferries, so the sea crossings had to be swum.

The route crosses four continents, AP says. He went north through the Americas to Alaska, crossed into Russia, then walked through Siberia, Mongolia, China and Kazakhstan, swam the Caspian Sea to Azerbaijan and continued through Georgia and Turkey into Europe.

How far has Karl Bushby walked? The figures differ

• Distance: his site says over 50,000 km, and AP gives 31,000 miles (50,000 km). The BBC said on October 6 that he had covered more than 30,000 miles (48,000km), but a BBC report on October 27 gave 36,000 miles (58,000km). Bushby himself told CNBC the road was about 36,000 miles long.
• Countries: his site says 25 countries on the route. The BBC and Fox News say 29, and AP says 30 foreign countries.
• Days: AP counted 10,226 days in its October 30 report, and the counter on his site read 10,227 on October 31.
• Steps: about 75 million, an estimate given by both AP and his site.

None of these sources explains how its total was measured.

Key moments from Chile to Dover

• Darién Gap, 2001: he crossed the roadless jungle between Colombia and Panama, then spent 18 days in a Panamanian jail for entering a restricted border zone, AP and his site say.
• Bering Strait, March 2006: he crossed the frozen strait with adventurer Dimitri Kieffer (AP spells it Dimitry). AP calls it a 56-mile crossing; his site describes a 58-mile strait that took a 14-day, 150-mile zig-zag. Russian border troops detained the pair on arrival.
• Russia, about 10 years: visas and weather allowed only a few months of walking a year, AP says. Refused a visa in 2012, he walked 3,500 miles (5,600 km) in protest from Los Angeles to the Russian Embassy in Washington; his site says a new visa followed in 2014.
• China, 2018: police trailed him (AP), and his site says he was kept to a set route under escort to the Kazakh border.
• Caspian Sea, 2024: he swam 288 km from Kazakhstan to Azerbaijan over 31 days, with more than 132 hours in the water, his site says. AP describes the flotation vest and wetsuit he used, in a technique he calls "floatimming".
• Istanbul, April 25, 2025: he reached the city and later crossed the Bosphorus into Europe on foot.

The last sea crossing was the English Channel. Channel Tunnel bosses refused in June to let him use a service tunnel, the BBC reported, so he swam: 20 hours over three days, landing at Shakespeare Beach, just south of Dover, at 15:30 BST on October 5. ExplorersWeb notes that he wore a wetsuit and slept on a boat each night, so it was not one continuous swim. The Mirror reported that HM Coastguard worked with French authorities on safety.

His father and the filmmaker Werner Herzog met him on the beach. "[It] feels good to have UK soil under my feet after all these years," Bushby said, as quoted by the BBC.

Karl Bushby's finish in Hull: the official plan

AP met him on Wednesday, October 28, near Market Rasen in Lincolnshire, about 50 km (30 miles) from the finish. When he landed at Dover, about 400 km remained, his site said; Fox News put it at about 240 miles.

Hull City Council has published this plan for Monday, November 2:

• People can gather in Queen Victoria Square from 10am, the council said, according to Hits Radio.
• After crossing the Humber Bridge and walking east into the city, he is expected around 11am GMT (16:30 IST, 6am ET, 22:00 AEDT), though times may vary. US clocks change on November 1 (see our daylight saving time guide).
• The Hull Volunteers will welcome him into the square. The Lord Mayor, Councillor Maria Coward, will then bring him briefly onto a stage in front of City Hall, followed by a short private reception.
• He will then walk the final leg north to his family home. The Hull Story says this is his mother's house in east Hull, and the BBC says his mother, Angela, will welcome him there.

"So many people have followed Karl on his epic journey," Coward said. Bushby told the Big Issue he already knows what he will say at the end: "Told you I could do it. Now, what's for tea?"

Officials have not published a time for the Humber Bridge crossing or for his arrival at his mother's home. Monday falls a day after the 28th anniversary of his start.

Why it took 28 years, not five

Bushby first thought the walk would take five years, AP reports, and later expected "12 years plus". He added: "And the plus was a big plus." The BBC lists visa restrictions, the 2008 financial crash (which cost him sponsors), Covid-19 and geopolitics. His site says the pandemic, sanctions on Iran and Russia's invasion of Ukraine blocked his land routes past China, and AP says Europe's 90-day visit limits forced him to travel in three-month chunks.

What comes next: exhibition, tour and film

• Exhibition: a free exhibition about the journey opens on Tuesday, November 3, at the Monocle Gallery, 184 Ferensway, Hull, and runs until early 2027, The Hull Story reports. It is open 8am to 5.30pm on weekdays and 10am to 4pm on Saturdays. It includes his trolley, "The Beast", maps, diary notes and his swimming kit.
• Live tour: the promoter, Norwell Lapley Productions, lists "The Man Who Walked the World" shows in Shrewsbury (November 12), Hull City Hall (November 13), Nottingham (November 15), York (November 22), Bury St Edmunds (December 1) and Buxton (December 17), with more dates to follow.
• Documentary: Herzog is directing a feature-length documentary, Walk of Life, the BBC says. It is backed by a production company founded by Beau Willimon and Jordan Tappis, according to AP. None of the sources we read gives a release date.

He is uneasy about what follows. "My purpose and reason for living is about to end," he told AP.

How to follow Karl Bushby

• His official site, karlbushby.world, has an email sign-up for field updates.
• His Instagram is @karlcbushby, as listed by his site and Culture Hull. He is also on TikTok and YouTube.
• BBC Look North and Hull City Council's news site are covering the homecoming.

Our take

The reporting suggests that paperwork, more than terrain, set the pace of this walk. Jungle, ice and open sea feature in every account, but the Big Issue reports that almost half his time away went on visa, geopolitical and sponsorship problems rather than walking. Australian Associated Press also notes a long pandemic delay.

The totals differ, so anyone quoting the walk should say whose figure they use. "Over 50,000 km" is the expedition's own number.

Frequently asked questions

Who is Karl Bushby?

Karl Bushby is a 57-year-old former British Army paratrooper from Hull. On November 1, 1998, he set off from Punta Arenas, Chile, on the Goliath Expedition, walking home with two rules: no transport to advance and no going home except on foot.

When and where does Karl Bushby finish his walk?

Hull City Council expects him in Queen Victoria Square at about 11am GMT on Monday, November 2, 2026, after he crosses the Humber Bridge. People can gather from 10am. After a short welcome and a private reception at City Hall, he will walk the final leg north to his family home. Times may vary.

How far has Karl Bushby walked?

Sources differ. His official site says over 50,000 km, and AP says 31,000 miles (50,000 km). The BBC said more than 30,000 miles (48,000km) on October 6 and 36,000 miles (58,000km) on October 27.

How did Karl Bushby cross the English Channel?

Channel Tunnel bosses refused him access to a service tunnel, so he swam. According to the BBC, he swam for 20 hours over three days and landed at Shakespeare Beach near Dover at 15:30 BST on October 5, 2026. ExplorersWeb reports that he wore a wetsuit and slept on a boat each night.

How can I follow Karl Bushby?

His official site, karlbushby.world, has updates and an email sign-up, and he posts on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube as @karlcbushby. BBC Look North and Hull City Council are covering the homecoming.

Sources

1. Karl Bushby: The Longest Journey Home (official Goliath Expedition site), Karl Bushby (official site)
2. Let's give Karl a Hull welcome home, Hull City Council
3. In 28 years of walking, Karl Bushby has overcome jungle, desert and red tape. Now he's nearly home, Associated Press (via WRAL)
4. Karl Bushby's 28-year walk across the world is ending. A look at the trek, by the numbers, Associated Press (via myMotherLode)
5. Adventurer Karl Bushby's homecoming plans revealed, BBC News (via Yahoo News)
6. Karl Bushby completes English Channel swim, BBC News (via Yahoo News Singapore)
7. Karl Bushby is Back in the UK After Swimming the Channel, ExplorersWeb
8. Hull-born Karl Bushby to get city centre welcome after 28-year walk around the world, Hits Radio
9. Monocle hosts free public exhibition dedicated to intrepid explorer Karl Bushby, The Hull Story
10. Hull to Welcome Home Karl Bushby as 28 Year Journey Comes to an End, Culture Hull
11. Karl Bushby nears the end of 28-year global trek, Australian Associated Press (via The Daily Advertiser)
12. Karl Bushby swims English Channel to finish his 28-year world walk, Fox News
13. Around the world adventurer says he 'had to float down river for days' to avoid jungle war, The Mirror (via AOL)
14. What walking around the world taught Karl Bushby: 'A constant display of the very best of humanity', Big Issue
15. He's been walking around the world for 27 years. Here's one of the biggest lessons he's learned about happiness, CNBC Make It
16. Karl Bushby: The Man Who Walked the World (tour dates), Norwell Lapley Productions

How we wrote this

GessyMorgan explainers are built from public reporting and official sources. This post draws on the 16 sources listed above, each linked where we use it. It was drafted with AI assistance and checked against those sources before publishing. We did not test products, attend events or interview anyone for this article. Facts are current as of October 31, 2026, and we update the post when they change.