George Meegan and The Longest Walk

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   George Meegan is an adventurer, lecturer and world traveller. He holds the most official world’s records (8) of any European. This includes “The Longest Unbroken March of All Time.” The epic journey he made from Tierra Del Fuego, South America to Prudhoe Bay, Alaska; 19,019 miles was completed in 2,425 days and took place between 1977 and 1983. In 2000 he completed almost 500km. to reach Barrow, Alaska. The culmination was here, in the largest Eskimo settlement in the world. At the historic millennium Meegan uniquely got the USA to, formerly and in public, apologize to First Nations. These are some of the words “cowardly killing of woman and children …”

     

   The whole monumental journey was made on foot. The story of this epic transverse was chronicled in his book The Longest Walk. Meegan’s very personal account of the challenges, the hardships of a man travelling alone and without money, for years on end, across the vast sweep of our planet. And always the extraordinary people he encountered as he walked clean through the length of Americas. “Wonderful!” says Meegan today.

     

   Interestingly, at the time no human had ever traversed the Americas, be it by vehicle or even aircraft; but of course Meegan was on foot. Today, near three decades later, the feat remains un-equalled. His book is held at the USA Library of Congress, and he is pictured in the Guinness Book of World Records, Japan, GB and the USA. The adventure has been excerpted as an elective text for Japanese universities, and was judged as ‘inspirational.’ and put into Japan’s National Curriculum A textbook of historic adventurers was distributed throughout most middle schools in the Japanese archipelago. It has been converted into an audio version distributed nationwide in English speaking countries. Publisher McGraw Hill saw fit to include a quote of Meegan’s regarding weather in Central America in a social studies textbook commonly used throughout U.S. middle schools.

     

   His feat has earned him some international recognition. George was the ‘most unknown’ ever to be in a four page Bio section in People magazine, which was then followed up in a three page update. He has appeared on the NBC Today Show three times, CBS Morning News and ABC Good Morning America. For two hour’s he was quizzed on the radio by Larry King and then put onto CNN’s Larry King Live. He has lectured at the New York Explorer’s Club, standing room only and made numerous lectures worldwide, especially to kids.

   

   He served as a mate in the British Merchant Navy and is a Fellow of the Royal Geographic Society. Meegan worked for 17 years at Japan’s Kobe University, as an associate professor in the Department of Maritime Sciences.

 

   Currently, Meegan lives in Bethel, Alaska.

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 George Meegan's "The Longest Walk" is available on Amazon.com

 

 

 

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