He left 28 years ago, now after 36,000 miles Karl Bushby is almost home

Here is the latest breaking news from around the world: He left 28 years ago, now after 36,000 miles Karl Bushby is almost homeImage source, Kevin Shoesmith/BBCImage caption, Karl Bushby bears down on Hull, with his heavy duty gear trolley "The Beast" ByKevin ShoesmithEast Yorkshire and LincolnshirePublished28 minutes agoWith his journey almost complete, Karl Bushby reflects on adventures that have taken him across four continents, as well as strained relationships and how life as he knows it is about to change dramatically. Back in 1998, the former paratrooper, then aged 29, set off from Punta Arenas, Chile, to walk an unbroken path to his home city of Hull, without breaking two self-imposed rules: not to return to the UK until he had completed his journey, and not to use transport to advance. Now 57, he is embarking on his final few miles having hacked his way through the jungles of the Darién Gap, crossed the frozen Bering Strait and, just a few weeks ago, swum the English Channel.

At the end, he will be met by his 36-year-old son Adam, a 12-year-old granddaughter whom he has never met, his father and brothers. His mother will be waiting at his childhood home that he left 28 years ago. Image source, Karl BushbyImage caption, Karl Bushby crossed the Bering Strait in 2006"We're definitely in terra incognita right now, or pretty soon will be," says Bushby, as I join him in rural Lincolnshire.

The Details

"Right now, I'm comfortable because I'm doing what I do, but pretty soon that's going to screech to a halt. "A bit like "The Beast", Bushby's heavy duty hardcart. Just a couple of miles into this leg, Bushby's handcart, which he uses to carry essential supplies, sustains a puncture.

"We haven't had one of these for a long time," he says. "This could be a pain. "As I watched him attempt a hasty roadside repair, he flashed a grin before adding: "If it was raining, I'd probably be moaning a bit more.

""The first few days that I was in Dover, it started raining. But we'd managed to just thread the needle as far as the weather was concerned. We had those perfect three days .

What Experts Say

"Cars thunder past us. Bushby quips: "You guys know you drive on the wrong side of the road, right? " His use of the word "you" speaks of his disconnection from home.

Image source, Kevin Shoesmith/BBCImage caption, Bushby makes a roadside repair after his handcart sustains a puncture in LincolnshireBushby is well versed in overcoming physical barriers, such as a flat tyre. But is he prepared for what is to follow? "Everything that I am and everything that I know of me is going to go away," he says.

"And that's going to be a problem. You're going to have the old identity crisis, because Karl is this and has been for half his life. "I will have to figure out who I am again.

The development has drawn wide international attention, with diplomatic circles watching closely.