here is nothing like a good walk. In fact, health experts say a good walk can be as beneficial to general health as a run. You might burn fewer calories when walking, but you also have a much lower risk of injury.
Taking a stroll and getting off the bus or train a stop or two early is a great way to ramp up that step count. And you know that we all love to sneak a peek at our step count every now and again.
Some Next-Level Walking
Keeping your daily step count at a decent level is one thing, but how would you fancy taking on a walk that incorporated around 28 million of those bad boys?
According to Google maps that would be the challenge you would be taking on if you were to try to complete the longest walkable distance on Earth.
This ultimate walk would see you start south of Cape Town in South Africa and then travel up to the far northeastern city of Magadan in Russia.
Not for the faint-hearted, this little trek would see you walk almost the whole length of Africa and then pass through Israel, Lebanon, Syria, Turkey, and Georgia. Then you would just be left with the relative breeze of taking on the majority of Russia from south to northeast.
Pack Plenty of Band-Aids
In case you were wondering, 28 million steps would equate to over 14,000 miles. This walk would not involve the need to take any form of transport other than those two feet of yours. How many pairs of shoes you’d need to make the journey is a whole other thing to worry about. Band-aids will also probably come in very handy.
With a normal walking pace, the world’s longest walk would take you about 3 years to complete.
It’s unlikely that you would get bored on your trip. Apart from encountering war zones, you would also have to contend with killer snakes and other wild animals in the rainforest, and then survive the sub-zero temperatures of the north, if you made it that far.
In Good Company
If you feel like this walk could be the thing you need to spice up your life, you certainly wouldn’t be the first person to feel the call of the road.
Many people have walked the Earth, Forrest Gump style, and a number of them have even been officially recognized for doing so.
Dave Kunst
Dave was the first person to be officially credited with walking the whole of the Earth.
In total, Dave was credited with walking over 14,500 miles. Unfortunately, Dave’s story is also one of tragedy. On one of his walks deep into the heart of Afghanistan, his brother John was killed by bandits.
Dave honored his brother’s memory by completing the walk with his other brother Pete.
Rosie Swale-Pope
Rosie is a real hero who decided that simply walking around the globe was not sufficient. She decided to run it instead.
Rosie completed this arduous task to raise money for charities and to raise awareness about cancer.
To shed some light on a question raised earlier, Rosie went through more than 50 pairs of running shoes on her round the world run.
Steven Newman
Dave Kunst was the first, but he did his walks in the company of his brothers. Steven Newman is officially credited as the first to walk the Earth alone.
Steve covered more than 15,000 miles on his solo journey and he is now planning to become the first person to walk the entire length of the Great Wall of China. Alone, of course.
So what do you think, would you like to join this exclusive club of hardcore walkers?
If you do, nothing is stopping you. Just put the locations into Google and follow the map. Bon voyage!
