Adventurer Karl Bushby has been welcomed by well-wishers as he arrived in his home town of Hull on the last day of his 28-year walk from South America.
The former paratrooper, now 57, set off from the southern end of Chile in 1998, when he was 28, vowing to walk all the way home without using any form of motorised transport. On Monday, he made the penultimate stop of his epic journey in the centre of Hull, where he was greeted by hundreds of well-wishers outside the City Hall.
A hero's welcome in Queen Victoria Square
He was mobbed and cheered as he walked into Queen Victoria Square wheeling his cart, before telling the crowd: 'There has never been a welcome home quite like this, I'm sure. This is absolute madness. After 28 years, you couldn't ask for more than this. This is the last, last few steps.'
Bushby was greeted by the Lord Mayor and Hull East MP Karl Turner, who read out a message of congratulations from Prime Minister Andy Burnham. He went inside for a civic reception before he embarked on the final leg of his 31,000-mile journey – the three miles to his mother's house, in the north of the city, which he last visited in 1998.
Journey across continents and seas
Throughout his journey, he crossed the notorious Darien Gap in Central America and traversed the Bering Strait between Alaska and Russia on the frozen sea. Bushby arrived back in England earlier this month, announcing that he had swum the Channel.
He told the crowd: 'Twenty-eight years… I could not have imagined this. One last enormous thank you, guys. Just an enormous thank you.'
What was life like in 1998 when Karl set off?
Tony Blair was the prime minister of the UK. Cher's Believe hit number one on the UK charts on October 25. France won the World Cup beating Brazil 3-0 in the final in July. David Beckham was public enemy number one after being sent off against Argentina in the same tournament. The euro became official currency in 11 countries on December 31. Geri Halliwell left the Spice Girls in May. Google was founded on September 8.
He said: 'I guess I'll be seeing you around. I'll be knocking about for a while, I guess. I didn't do this alone. It was a big team. The biggest team – Earth. That's what it took to get me back.'
Official congratulations and pride
Lord Mayor of Hull Maria Coward told Bushby: 'For 28 years – 10,229 days – Hull has been waiting for your return. Hull is proud of you. I'm proud of you. Everyone's proud of you.'
Turner read Burnham's message of congratulations, which said: 'To walk around the world from Chile and back again is an achievement of truly remarkable proportions. It speaks of courage, resilience, perseverance and unbreakable spirit.' The Prime Minister's statement also thanked Bushby for his service to the country as a soldier.
