We all seem like we wish to avoid all of it occasionally. But when that really believed crossed ex-soldier Chris Lewis’ mind back in 2017, he acted upon it in a quite severe method. The next 6 years would be a legendary journey of self discovery for the now 43 year-old from Swansea, one that would see him discover love once again, develop a brand-new family, pick-up a four-legged friend and raise almost £40,000 for charity and land a book deal. Here, WalesOnline has a look at what drove Chris to handle such a severe difficulty and how he feels now that he’s lastly crossed the goal.
It was the early morning of August 11, 2017 when Chris Lewis, from Three Crosses, Swansea, left Llangennith Beach with absolutely nothing however a knapsack, the clothing on his back and 10 pounds. A previous British paratrooper, Chris had actually decided to raise money for SSAFA, the Armed Forces charity, by walking the whole UK Coastline.
When his legendary journey began, he was a single parent who had actually been hectic caring for his child. When she completed school and transferred to Bournemouth to participate in college, Chris understood he required to do something various. He required to escape. Having had problem with anxiety and stress and anxiety given that leaving the Forces in 2004, he received help from SSAFA and wished to raise financing for the charity to reveal his appreciation. What occurred next is really remarkable.
“The main thing was I wanted to get away,” he said the day prior to he crossed the goal back at home having actually strolled 19,000 miles. “It was more of a selfish thing really but at the same time I wanted to raise some money for SSAFA. I had become very anxious, I was anxiety-ridden, and I was incredibly unhappy. Nothing I was doing was working so I decided to do something drastic.”
LEARN MORE: Huge search off Anglesey continues amid reports of ‘person swept off rocks’
Six years on, Chris, now 43, still keeps in mind those very first couple of actions along a journey which has actually caught the country. “I remember it like it was yesterday,” he said. “I hit a wall quite early on to be honest – I was pleased to be doing it but I’d had a few drinks the night before so that first day was a bit of a blur! But the more I got into it the better it got. The further I got away from it all the happier I was.”
Around 3,000 miles into his trek, as Chris was walking through Ayrshire in Scotland, he discovered a family who had a dog up for adoption. Soon enough, Jet ended up being Chris’ cherished family pet and he has actually been with him on the journey since – Jet, who is now 12 years of ages, has actually done around 16,000 miles himself. That’s some dog walk.
They travelled together through rain and shine, through Scotland, England, numerous islands and back into Wales. But conference Jet isn’t the most amazing part of Chris’s story. He likewise satisfied another person on his journeys, who ended up being the love of his life, Kate Barron.
“I met Kate at the north-east tip of Scotland – she was doing a bit of a solo adventure herself,” remembered Chris. “We got chatting and she was desperate to find a spot to camp but the weather was awful so she came back down to where I was and asked if she could camp next to me. She then left but about six weeks later she came back up to see me and she’s never left my side since.”
Chris and Kate fell incredibly in love and are engaged to be wed, and on May 1, 2022, their child Magnus Edward Arden Lewis was born. Now a various man to the one that triggered from Swansea in 2017, Chris understood that walking countless miles with a newborn and absolutely nothing however a camping tent for shelter was not the most practical thing. Due to the interest in his unbelievable journey, Chris signed a book deal and had the ability to purchase a van to transfer his family’s valuables and to supply Magnus with someplace safe and warm to sleep.
Still, he and Kate tilled on with their difficulty, scheduling buddies and individuals they’ve satisfied to drive the van to anywhere they wind up at the end of a long day, or organizing a lift back to where they left it, prior to driving to restart the walk the next day from where they stopped.
On Saturday, July 29, after 6 years that have actually really changed his life, Chris, Kate, Magnus, Jet and ratings of well-wishers showed up back at Llangennith Beach. Members of the Band of the Prince of Wales remained in presence at the parking area to invite them, and Chris even received a letter from King Charles himself. Hundreds of individuals were waiting to praise Chris, much of whom had their dogs with them. Some flew Welsh, English, Scottish and Union Jack flags, and some used SSAFA charity Tee shirts, with one man near the goal stating: “I do not believe he was anticipating the occasion to be as huge as it is, there’s numerous individuals here.”
Chris spoke with as numerous well-wishers as possible on the last leg of his massive walk, and walkers who had actually shown up to finish the last mile or two were thrilled to get their photos taken with him.
“It’s quite overwhelming really,” said Chris. “It’ll be strange on Sunday morning, not looking at my map, not really having to go anywhere! I’m going to be so sad that this is over but at the same time I will be incredibly proud of achieving what we set out to achieve.”
So what does a man who’s been walking for 6 years directly have in store for the very first day of the rest of his life on Sunday? “It will be nice to spend some time with family over the weekend, put our feet up and just enjoy the moment,” said Chris. “We’re not intending on settling down anywhere in particular at the moment really. We’re going to take a couple of months to relax, and I’m going to start work on my book, but as soon as that is done we’re going to go out on another adventure. There’s a lot of world out there to see and we want to explore more of it.”
All unbelievable journeys need to concern an end, and there are none more unbelievable than the one Chris, Kate, Magnus and Jet have actually simply completed. Six years back Chris left the Gower Peninsula with absolutely nothing. On Saturday early morning he came home with a lot.
