This is a list of the longest walks that have occurred in groups and on solo or duo projects. Many have promoted social causes or medical conditions. Some have been done mostly for the experience.
Groups consist of three or more people who walked at least most of the entire distance. Solo/duo walks are one or two people. The difference is that the former is tougher to organise logistically, especially when crossing international borders, since there generally needs to be greater accommodations and more thorough approvals for a group. There is also a tougher process of decision making with even a small group than with one or two people. Some people walking in groups say that the walking part can be easier than dealing with group politics and dynamics.
The walks should be continuous, save for a few weeks to organise through other countries. There is a separate section for long runs and wheelchair expeditions that were not walks.
Longest group walks These were walks involving three or more long-distance participants.
A Walk of the People – A Pilgrimage for Life Length: Date: March 1984 – November 1985 Distance walked per month: Details: A Walk of the People – A Pilgrimage for Life called for an end to the Cold War with better relations between the U.S. and the Soviet Union. Walkers started at Point Conception, California, and went through Texas and the Deep South to New York City. A core group of eight flew to Dublin, Ireland, and walked to the border of the former East Germany. They obtained visas to Hungary and walked to that border before visiting several cities by train. Some walked to Geneva, Switzerland, then organised a trip to Moscow, Soviet Union, by train. The project attracted a wide range of support from across the political spectrum and was covered in the media by hundreds of newspapers and radio and television stations in those countries. It was the only walk from the U.S. to Moscow that went through the Deep South, Northern Ireland, and Hungary, which added to the mileage.
Bethlehem Peace Pilgrimage Length: Date: April 1982 – December 1983 Distance walked per month: Details: This peace walk of about 20 core people started from Seattle and walked across the U.S. to Washington, D.C. Members then flew to Ireland and walked through much of Europe, taking a boat from Greece to the Middle East. The project ended in Bethlehem in the West Bank. It was led by Jesuit Fr. Jack Morris and Fr. George Zabelka, the pastor for the airmen who dropped the atomic bombs on Japan in 1945.
San Francisco to Moscow Walk for Peace Length: Date: December 1960 – October 1961 Distance walked per month: Details: Organised by the Committee for Non-Violent Action, about ten core people started from San Francisco and walked to New York in six months. More people joined in Europe, and the project, led by pacifist leaders A.J. Muste and Bradford Lyttle, covered about in just ten months. Unlike numerous projects, they were able to walk through the Soviet Union, and the distance walked per month was significantly higher than most long group walks.
A Walk to Moscow Length: Date: March 1981 – October 1983 Distance walked per month: Details: This peace walk started from Bangor, Washington to Boston. Members continued in the United Kingdom, walking to the border of the former East Germany. Some stayed in a village for nine months to negotiate for visas to walk in Czechoslovakia and Poland. Some then traveled to cities in the Soviet Union by train and tried to walk to Moscow but were stopped and sent back to Minsk.
World Peace Walk Length: Date: April 1982 – August 1984 Distance walked per month: Details: Led by writer and activist C.B. Hall, participants walked from Seattle to New York and then across much of Europe. They were not allowed to walk in Eastern Europe but obtained visas to camp and meet people in East Germany for a few days. Some visited Moscow to meet with Soviet Peace Committee officials.
HikaNation Length: Date: April 1980 – May 1981 Distance walked per month: Details: HikaNation was a 14-month cross-country backpacking trip starting at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco, California on April 12, 1980, and ending at Cape Henlopen, Delaware on May 27, 1981, after traversing over 4,286 miles and passing through 14 states and Washington, D.C.
Interfaith Pilgrimage for Peace and Life Length: Date: December 1994 – August 1995 Distance walked per month: Details: Led by Nipponzan-Myōhōji-Daisanga Japanese Buddhist monks, this walk started in Auschwitz, Poland, and ended in Nagasaki, Japan. More than 1,000 people from different nations joined at various times along the route that passed through war zones in Bosnia, as well as troubled parts of Israel, the West Bank, Jordan, Iraq, Cambodia, Vietnam and the Philippines.
Great March for Climate Action Length: Date: March 2014 – November 2014 Distance walked per month: Details: Led by former Iowa state representative Ed Fallon, the Great March for Climate Action called attention to the need for a more substantive response to climate change. About 30 people hiked most of the distance.
The Longest Walk Length: Date: February 1978 – July 1978 Distance walked per month: Details: Several hundred Native Americans and supporters marched from Alcatraz Island in San Francisco to Washington, D.C., to affirm American Indians' land and water rights. Some elders and organisers camped on the National Mall to end the Longest Walk. Similar projects were organised in 1980, 1984, 2008, 2011, 2013 and 2016.
United Souls of Awareness Walk Length: Date: April 2006 – April 2007 Distance walked per month: Details: Four musicians/artists in their 20s walked from Venice Beach, California to New York to encourage creative pursuits.
Alexander Gabyshev's Walk Length: [forced to stop by authorities] Date: March 2019 – May 2020 Distance walked per month: Details: Alexander Gabyshev, a shaman, started walking from the Republic of Sakha in far east Russia with the goal of reaching Moscow some later and performing a ritual to cause President Vladimir Putin to resign. He was joined by two other core walkers, and as many as 1,000 people greeted him during the first almost . In September 2019, Russian authorities detained him and sent him to a psychiatric hospital. In early 2020, authorities stopped his walk for the third time. He was committed to a Russian mental asylum by a court order in May 2020, a move criticised by officials from Amnesty International and other organisations.
Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra
Length: Date: 14 January 2024 – 16 March 2024 Details: Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra was a political campaign organized by the Indian National Congress. It started from Thoubal in Manipur and ended at Mumbai.
Bharat Yatra Length: Date: 6 January 1983 – 25 June 1983 Details: The padyatra was led by Chandra Shekhar. It started in Kanyakumari and ended at Rajghat in New Delhi.
Bharat Jodo Yatra Length: Date: 7 September 2022 – 30 January 2023 Details: Bharat Jodo Yatra was a padyatra from Kanyakumari, the southern most point of mainland India to the Jammu and
Longest solo or duo walks These are walks done by one or two people. The length of some usually relates to the difficulties of securing access to walk in certain countries.
Jean Béliveau Length: Date: August 2000 – October 2011 Distance walked per month: Details: Setting out from Montreal, the Canadian small business owner covered some and wore out 49 pairs of shoes while walking through 64 countries. He met four Nobel Peace Prize winners, including Nelson Mandela in South Africa. His walk raised awareness for children who suffer from violence, with the start of the project coinciding with a similarly themed United Nations initiative. He pushed a three-wheeled stroller carrying food and supplies such as a tent and returned to Montreal to a welcome of several hundred people.
Karl Bushby Length: Date: 1 November 1998– 1 November 2026 (Estimated) Details: The Goliath expedition walks across 4 continents in a journey of segments even across water. Karl crossed the Bering Strait on foot with some swimming and swam across the Caspian Sea.
Peace Pilgrim Length: Date: January 1953 – July 1981 Distance walked per month: Details: Citing the need for a pilgrim to make a strong statement against militarism during the Korean War, Mildred Norman changed her name to Peace Pilgrim in 1953 and walked continuously back and forth across the U.S. She kept walking until her death in 1981, in a car accident after she accepted a ride to a speaking engagement. She stopped counting miles after reaching but estimated she covered per pair of sneakers, and wore out 29 pairs.
Ignacio Dean Mouliaá Length: Date: March 2013 – March 2016 Distance walked per month: Details: Nicknamed "Nacho Dean", Mouliaá walked across several continents to raise awareness for environmental causes. Leaving his native Spain, he traveled through 31 countries, pushing some food and supplies on a trekking tricycle. He survived violent attacks in Mexico, Peru and El Salvador, as well as a dog bite in Honduras.
Chris Lewis Length: Date: 1 August 2017 – 30 July 2023 Distance walked per month: Details: Chris Lewis walked the entire UK coastline in just under 6 years. The father of two was facing homelessness and struggling to cope with anxiety and depression after returning to civilian life from serving with the 2nd Battalion, Parachute Regiment. Lewis decided on the challenge during an epiphany on Llangennith beach on the Gower peninsula, near his home city of Swansea, south Wales. Lewis set off on 1 August 2017 not knowing how long it would take but aimed to just keep going with the sea on his left side.
The coastline of Great Britain, including its islands, is 19,491 miles (31,368 km) long, according to the Ordnance Survey, with the mainland making up 11,072 miles (17,819 km). Lewis also walked the 403 mile (649 km) coastline of Northern Ireland. The majority of the walk's duration was spent completing the coastline of Scotland and its many islands.
Along the way, Lewis acquired a greyhound, Jet. He also met Kate Barron, who joined him for the last 3 years of his trip. They had a child on the way, Magnus. He completed the walk to raise awareness of and money for the Armed Forces charity, SSAFA. On crossing the finish line at Llangennith beach - with Kate, Magnus and Jet - Lewis had raised a total of over £500,000. Addressing those who had gathered to support him as he crossed the line, Lewis urged the crowd to "Have a goal, have a dream and stay focused". Chris tells the story of the first part of his journey in 'Finding Hildasay'. The book is named after an uninhabited Scottish island where Lewis spent three months alone at the outset of the 2020 Covid pandemic.
Nicolò Guarrera Length: Date: August 2020 – September 2025 Distance walked per month: Details: Nicolò Guarrera is walking around the world to find beauty through diversity and slowness. He was moved by his child-dream of writing a book. As of September 2025, he ended his travel arriving at his house in northern Italy. He walked across Western Europe, South America, Australia, India, the Arabian peninsula, Iran, Turkey and the Balkans, covering more than 36.000 km by foot. He’s pushing a stroller named Ezio, with which he carries all of his supplies and equipment. During the journey, he had to deal with Covid in Europe, sailed across Atlantic Ocean and walked from the “Mitad del Mundo” in Quito to the “End of the World” in Ushuaia.
George Meegan Length: Date: January 1977 – September 1983 Distance walked per month: