A man who walked 28,000 miles around the world alone for seven years with only his dog for company has shared some of his experiences from the road.
Thomas Turcich knew he wanted to go travelling as a teenager and saved from the age of 17 before finally beginning his walk at 25 in 2015.
His journey, with his dog Savannah by his side, saw him go through 45 pairs of shoes as he racked up thousands of miles crossing 38 countries across six continents.
Thomas, now 33 and home in New Jersey, US, said his incredible trek was inspired by the death of his best friend Ann Marie in a ski accident at the age of 17.
He told TODAY: “When I started I would walk 24 miles a day, every single day without rest. I was a maniac…[but] as the years went on, my body couldn’t take that beating in quite the same way.
“People’s fates are much more determined by their circumstances more than any willpower
that they have, it allows you to accept your limitations and your faults and do the same for others as well.
“That’s probably the most transformative of many lessons.”
After a few years on his journey he moved across to Europe when he suddenly caught an illness which caused him to lose more than three stone.
The Covid hit, meaning his plans to go to Australia were over. He also couldn’t enter Kazakhstan or Mongolia and was trapped in Azerbaijan for six months - his first extended break.
Incredibly, for all his walking, he suffered no serious injuries and eventually returned home.
Savannah, his dog he adopted shortly before setting off, has now gone to live with Thomas’ father.
However her walking days are not over as they go for four mile walks every morning.
Thomas wrote on his social media page: “This year has been as strange and challenging as any I've had on the road.
“A few months after the walk finished I was genuinely surprised to find life kept going.
“The World Walk meant so much to me for such a long time that it was difficult to imagine living without it.
“The dream that guided me for half my life was behind me. The purpose that filled my days was no longer there.
“In the fall, I harboured a nagging sense of inadequacy - I was entering a world where friends had homes, hobbies and careers while I didn't even have a wardrobe.
“After the glow of finishing the walk wore off, it felt as though I were tilling an empty plot of land.
“But through winter, I found peace in that.”
