Feeling caged up by the pandemic and in need of a fun walking vacation to get back in shape? Here’s a challenge. Stretching 14,000 miles (22,387km) from Cape Town in South Africa to Magadan in Russia, this path might be the world’s longest walk, and it definitely seems arduous.
This extensive route was created in 2019 by Reddit user cbz3000, who drew it up on Google Maps. They found a route that required no aircraft, ferries, or other boat crossings: just open roads and bridges, claiming it to be the longest walking distance imaginable on the site. The journey takes the brave traveller from Africa to Magadan through the Suez Canal, Turkey, Central Asia, and Siberia.
According to brilliantmaps, walking the distance would take 4,492 hours, or 187 days. This is presuming, of course, that you were walking nonstop. The trek would take 562 days if we assumed an 8-hour daily walking pace (no rest days!).
If this still sounds like something you’d like to do and you have two years to spare, let’s take a closer look at some of the sights you’d have the pleasure of seeing on your 16-country journey:
Table Mountain, South Africa
Botswana – Safari Tour
Zambia – Victoria Falls
Egypt – Great Pyramid of Giza
Russia
Huge congratulations! You’ve arrived in Russia, but the voyage is far from over. The temperatures drop as you go more north-east, the scenery becomes more bleak, and the welcoming communities to stop and relax become more and more isolated. With 253 days (8 months) of your journey in Russia, you’re sure to acquire a good sense of the country’s cultures, eccentricities, and diversity. Good luck, and stock up on vodka for the trip (you may need it as payment if you get lost in the Siberian steppe).
If you’re looking for something a little less taxing then you will LOVE this underwater hotel in The Maldives!
