CNN
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Standing on the South Pole at first of the 12 months with the wind whipping throughout the Antarctic, journey blogger Johnny Ward felt a surge of aid.
Only a week earlier than, in early January 2024, he’d struggled by snow and ice to summit the Vinson Massif, Antarctica’s highest peak.
Years earlier than, in 2017, he’d grow to be the primary Irish individual to go to each nation on the earth.
Now, after many years of touring and mountaineering, Ward might declare one other world first – the Final Explorer’s Grand Slam, which entails reaching the best peak on each continent, and visiting each the North and South Poles along with visiting each nation.
“I really feel relieved,” Ward informed CNN Journey as he slowly made his method again to his house in Thailand after conquering the Vinson Massif (4,892 meters excessive,) after which setting foot on the South Pole.
“But additionally I’m conscious I’m a standard man, not a world-class athlete, so I suppose it was extra about resilience and willpower greater than any skill.”
Ward had beforehand devoted a decade of his life, between 2007 and 2017, to visiting each nation on the earth (Ward’s rely consists of all 193 UN-recognized nations, plus the Vatican, the Palestinian territories, Taiwan and Kosovo).
The unimaginable journey noticed him hitchhike a trip on a container ship from Oman to Socotra in Yemen, journey overland from Cairo to Cape City and journey from South Korea to Australia by bus and boat.
“I all the time wished to be free. And initially I assumed the freest you could be is to go to each nation,” he mentioned.
“As soon as I obtained near 100 nations, I set the objective of being the primary Irish individual to go to each nation, and at that stage one of many youngest to finish it.”
However as soon as he’d managed to go to each nation on the earth, Ward says he went right into a tail-spin.
“It had been an enormous life objective, over a decade of my life, after which once I completed that I used to be a bit misplaced,” he mentioned.
“I began consuming badly, ingesting an excessive amount of, placing on weight and I ignored my enterprise.”
Ward determined that one of the simplest ways to beat this was to problem himself once more.
He started working ultramarathons and climbing mountains, and shortly discovered that with excessive function and path, he was again to loving life once more.
“So then I simply ran with it,” he defined. “I determine in case you’re going to run, run the toughest race on the earth. And in case you’re going to climb mountains, set your sights on Everest.”
Already one of many estimated 250 individuals or so who’ve visited each nation on the earth, Ward set his sights on one other unimaginable achievement, The Explorer’s Grand Slam.
To finish this problem, adventurers should go to each the North and South Poles and climb the best summit on all seven continents – together with Mount Everest, Mount Denali and Mount Kilimanjaro – a feat which solely round 70 individuals are thought to have ever accomplished.
When Ward realized that he might maybe grow to be the primary individual on the earth to each go to each nation on the earth, and full the Explorer’s Grand Slam, he didn’t hesitate, spending seven years mountaineering in the direction of his objective.
“To be the primary?” mentioned Ward, after finishing what he’s now calling The Final Explorers Grand Slam.
“Loopy. I’m going to begin an internet site for it now to assist others, and hopefully, I gained’t be the one one for lengthy.”
In accordance with Ward, essentially the most troublesome side of those challenges wasn’t essentially the logistics, coaching or health, however having the cash to take them on.
Visiting each nation on the earth was costly sufficient by itself, but climbing Mount Everest cost Ward $77,000, and that was simply certainly one of seven peaks he was required to summit.
As soon as this was paid for, he nonetheless needed to spend massive sums on visiting the North and South Pole.
Ward has been in a position to fund his travels by his entrepreneurship. The life he has at this time is one thing he by no means would have imagined as a toddler.
Born in Galway, Eire, informed CNN Journey how home points compelled him, his mother and sister to alter their names and flee to Northern Eire – a part of the UK – the place he would develop up, whereas his father was in jail.
“We spent the following 10 or so years on welfare,” Ward mentioned. “I all the time keep in mind college pals going to Spain, or Florida, on vacation and being so jealous.
“Perhaps that’s what lit the journey spark for me, and as quickly as I completed college, I took a flight lower than 12 hours later. Just a little hungover, I landed in New York and I by no means lived within the UK or Eire once more.”
To pay for his travels, he taught English in Thailand and South Korea, labored in Australia and even signed up for medical analysis.
Alongside the way in which, he launched One Step 4 Ward, a vastly profitable journey weblog, which has turned him right into a millionaire.
“I’m undecided what I’ve performed is especially necessary per se,” Ward mentioned frankly.
“However I do assume it’s a pleasant message that coming from a background like mine, individuals like me can do fairly cool issues with their life too.
“You don’t want a rich household or the correct education. Anybody can obtain their desires.”
Calling Ward pushed can be an understatement — he casually determined to run an Antarctic Marathon whereas he was ready for the climate to clear for his journey to the South Pole.
He’s now hoping that he doesn’t fall into unhealthy habits once more after finishing the newest of his bucket checklist challenges.
Because the journey neighborhood turns into extra aggressive – the youngest individual to go to each nation on the earth was simply 21 after they did so – challenges like this haven’t solely grow to be harder, however extra extravagant and costlier.
So the place will Ward go subsequent, for instance? Area? The underside of the Mariana Trench, the deepest level of the ocean? Or does he do each nation on the earth over again?
“Good query. In a social media period, everyone seems to be searching for one thing, nevertheless obscure,” Ward informed CNN Journey.
“I hope the Final Explorer’s Grand Slam is one thing different individuals can be part of me in although. It could be a fairly epic membership.”
For now, Ward is placing all his efforts into serving to others to realize their journey objectives, launching a sequence of endurance occasions to get individuals out of their consolation zones.
The primary is a three-day, 150-kilometer extremely marathon within the Sahara Desert, which is going down in December 2024.
He additionally has a extra typical problem on his checklist.
“I lately turned 40. I need to have children, in order that’s an enormous plan for certain,” mentioned Ward of his future plans.
“From an journey perspective, I actually, actually, actually need to present ‘regular’ individuals simply how a lot advantages they’ll get from wild experiences.
“All good issues come after struggling, and I need to share that with individuals. In order that’s the following plan.”