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points by ShinyLeftPad 12 hours ago | 0 comments

It's a bit mysterious how did he get from Russia to Mexico in 2006? The official website linked says just "displaced".

Bushby's walk has been extensively covered in the press (and in his own book about the Americas leg). Mexico served as his base while waiting for visas, permissions, and sponsorship, so he was flying back there and then, once he could continue, he flew back to the exact coordinates he had left off and started walking again from there.

[–] GrumpyGoblin 11 hours ago

Had a developer who worked for me who did something very similar. Lived all over the world, would get short term visas, and return to Mexico if needed to await his next visa. He had a friend that let him use his mailing address for work and mail and slept on his couch or in hostels while awaiting a new visa. He loved the life. Lived on a dozen different beaches while he was working for me. Apparently a Mexican visa is one of the easiest to get.

[–] ShinyLeftPad 9 hours ago

aren't you supposed to be legal resident in the country where you're applying for your visa...

[–] k__ 9 hours ago

Isn't that a crime?

[–] ShinyLeftPad 11 hours ago

I haven't heard of it until this fall.

[–] TFNA 11 hours ago

I found a copy of Giant Steps in a European bookshop circa 2008, so he was never an obscure figure. In any event, within the overland travel community especially, Bushby comes up occasionally for his walking across the Darien Gap (a region which is the bane of people traveling up or down the Americas), as well as for his Bering Strait crossing.

[–] awesome_dude 9 hours ago

> sponsorship

The first thing that always crosses my mind when I see these feats of endurance - walking for weeks/months/years is always how the hang did they pay their way - food, accommodation (even if it's just a tent) clothing, medical supplies, none of it's free

[–] fhdkweig 7 hours ago

I think the commenter was referring to visa sponsorship. Visa sponsorship is a bit more involved than just money. Someone is putting their name on government paperwork saying that if something goes wrong with this visitor, all bills can be forwarded to me. It isn't like a goFundMe or Kickstarter where a whole bunch of people are chipping in on a person or project; it is one person putting their livelihood on the line to vouch for that visitor's trustworthiness. And if the country requires sponsorship for their visa program, and no one is willing (or if you don't know a single person in that country), you cannot enter.

https://duckduckgo.com/?t=ffab&q=visa+sponsorship+meaning&ia...

[–] TFNA 6 hours ago

No, I was speaking about general sponsorship of his expedition costs (which got expensive starting from the Bering Strait), not visa sponsorship.

[–] looperhacks 11 hours ago

Is it? He took a plane, surely

[–] ShinyLeftPad 11 hours ago

That's what I thought but then the article says it's supposed to be "with unbroken footsteps". I thought that literally was impossible in modern society and i guess it is

[–] mikeryan 10 hours ago

The article says he would “decamp” to Mexico at times and then pick up where he had left off. I read this as he’d take a break and fly (presumably) to Mexico and then fly back to where he left off.

Depends on what you mean by “unbroken”.

I’d assume that when he ran into legal issues like after crossing the Bering Strait the authorities would transport him via a car or bus so it’s not like he never took a motorized transport.

[–] atrus 10 hours ago

People always assume he's been walking continuously for all these years, and it's understandable because the headlines are always written to imply that.

He doesn't. He walks some, marks where he stopped, takes a break, continues from where he left off.