ARQUES, France: A British adventurer who has covered more than 50,000 kilometres on foot over 28 years is facing one final hurdle in his extraordinary bid to return home without using any form of transport: the English Channel.
Karl Bushby, a 57-year-old former paratrooper, is now in northern France, walking towards Cap Blanc-Nez and within sight of the white cliffs of the English coast.
But his final crossing has hit an unexpected obstacle after what he believed was permission to swim from the French coast turned out not to have been granted.
🚨🚨 اخر تغطيه بكارل بوشبي رجل بريطاني خرج من منزله في تشيلي عام 1998 ومشى أكثر من 49 ألف كيلومتر على مدار 28 عاماً دون استخدام أي وسيلة نقل، في أطول رحلة مشي متواصلة في التاريخ.
الصحفي كيفن شويسميث (الذي يغطي قصته منذ 20 سنة)
انضم إليه فعلياً في المشي قرب مدينة مونس في بلجيكا.… https://t.co/EJVV42Qvxi pic.twitter.com/pIwQYOKcdB— “. عـــابــر .” (@alzheri33) September 20, 2026
“We thought we got permission to swim from the coast of France. Turned out that is not the case,” Bushby said as he continued towards the Channel coast. “There was some internal confusion. So, right now we’re scrambling in kind of semi-panicked state.”
Bushby had initially hoped to complete the final stage by walking through a service corridor in the Channel Tunnel. However, he said authorities appeared to be “set against” the idea.
That left him considering swimming across the Channel, despite admitting that he dislikes swimming. “I say I swim like a cat dropped in a bathtub,” he said. “It’s not funny. It’s bad. But you just do what you’ve got to do.”
Bushby has already crossed major bodies of water during his journey. At one stage, he spent 30 days crossing the Caspian Sea, combining swimming and floating, while resting on a boat without using it to advance his journey.
He is now hoping to secure permission to swim across the Channel, one of the world’s busiest shipping routes, before October 1. After that, he believes worsening winter weather could make the crossing too dangerous.
A journey spanning nearly three decades
Bushby began his expedition in November 1998 with two strict rules: he would not use any form of transport to advance his journey, and he would not return home to the area near Hull in northern England except on foot.
Throughout the expedition, he has pushed a cart carrying his possessions, which he has nicknamed “the Beast”.
The journey has been interrupted several times over the years. Visa problems, the 2008 financial crisis and the Covid-19 pandemic accounted for around 14 of the 28 years, according to Bushby’s estimate.
At one point, Moscow refused to grant him a visa for an extended period after he crossed the Bering Strait between Alaska and Russia on foot – a crossing he says had never previously been accomplished in that manner.
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Whenever circumstances forced him to stop, Bushby lived elsewhere, including in Mexico, before eventually returning to the exact point where he had halted and continuing the journey.
From the Andes to the Channel
As he approaches the end of his epic trek, Bushby has been reflecting on the early stages of the adventure, particularly his journey through the Andes and the difficult crossing of the Darien Gap between Colombia and Panama.
“Then slowly but surely it becomes a job. You get older, it gets harder,” he said. After almost three decades on the road, Bushby is preparing for life beyond the expedition.
A documentary about his journey is currently being prepared, and he plans to focus on the film and public speaking once he finally reaches home.
“I’ve got to try and get established in the grown-up world again, because I’m going to arrive home with nothing,” he said. For now, however, his attention remains fixed on the English Channel – the final obstacle between him and the completion of one of the world’s longest continuous walking adventures.
Despite the uncertainty surrounding the crossing, Bushby remains optimistic. “I think we can work it out. If not, I’m living in France for the rest of my life!” he said.
