Cape to Cape Challenge Success

British fine-art photographer and explorer John Balsdon has completed the legendary 20,000km Cape to Cape Road challenge and beaten the 42-year-old record from 1984.

During the astonishing journey, across 25 countries, John and his team also set a number of additional records including achieving the record whilst towing an expedition trailer and having two cars complete the route as a convoy.

The remarkable 20,000km voyage took the team across 25 borders in 28 days with no shortcuts, flights or support vehicles starting from Nordkapp, Norway and taking them from the most northerly point in Europe to Cape Agulhas, South Africa, the most southerly point in Africa.

Breaking the pre-existing record of 28 days and 13 hours, by 5 hours, John and his team’s effort was an astounding display of human resilience.

Faced with challenging conditions, bureaucratic inefficiencies, dangerous trails and extreme weather ranging from -28C to +48C across the four week journey, John and his team were pushed to their limits with continuous driving across the African continent with barely any breaks, including the final days where they drove 3500 kilometres in just over two days days through Angola, Namibia and finally South Africa. John also became the first person to fully document on film what still remains one of the world’s most challenging long distance driving events.

"This was the hardest thing I have ever done, and at times I genuinely questioned whether it was worth it. But the journey concentrated the human experience in almost every sense — visually, emotionally and creatively.

Being taken so far beyond my comfort zone for such an extended period taught me an enormous amount about myself, and brought a new clarity to how and when I want to document the countries we passed through. It was profoundly valuable, and it left me deeply grateful for both what I have and the opportunities I have been afforded. This trip reminded me of the importance of continuing to learn, grow and expand our sense of what life can be.” — John Balsdon

Many congratulations to John and his team.

Watch his amazing video, capturing the end of his incredible journey, below: