Karl Bushby

The Goliath Expedition is Bushby's attempt to walk around the world "with unbroken footsteps", from Punta Arenas, Chile, to his home in Hull, England.

He began his journey on 1 November 1998 and originally expected to finish the over-36,000 miles (58,000 km) trek in eight years, though numerous delays meant it has not yet been completed.

Bushby set off from Punta Arenas, Chile, on 1 November 1998, and had completed over 17,000 miles (27,000 km) as of 2006, walking through South, Central, and North America.

[3] This was reported to be the result of consultation between John Prescott, the then British Deputy Prime Minister (and MP in Bushby's home town of Hull), and Roman Abramovich, the then Governor of Chukotka.

[4] On 16 March 2007, it was announced that Bushby had obtained the required permission from the Russian authorities, and began to prepare for the second half of his Goliath Expedition.

He started very late, since the visa approval was delayed, and when the snow disappeared in May he could not continue because the area is filled with swamps and rivers, impossible to penetrate on foot when not frozen.

[8][9] Bushby crossed into Uzbekistan early in June 2019, reaching the border between Turkmenistan and Iran a few months later where the voyage was on pause due to visa issues, and the COVID-19 pandemic.

In August 2024, he started the swim across the Caspian Sea from Kazakhstan, planning to finish in Azerbaijan to avoid going through Iran or Russia, as both countries are currently too dangerous to enter with a British passport.