| Related sites for http://home.earthlink.net/~earthwalker1/ |
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World Walk Travel Adventure World Walk Travel AdventureTHE FIRST VERIFIED WALK ROUND THE EARTH6/20/1970 - 10/5/1974AWESOME CIRCUMAMBULATION ON THE NIGHT OF OCTOBER 21, 1972A GUNSHOT ECHOED THROUGH A GORGE IN AFGHANISTANBANDITS ATTACKED THE KUNST BROTHERSDAVE WAS SHOT AND WOUNDEDJOHN WAS SHOT AND KILLED   Click here for information on ordering a beautiful 6" x 11" personally autographed souvenir copy of this picture. Dave Kunst is the first person verified tohave completed circling the entire land mass of the earth(with exception of the oceans) on foot. The Earthwalker carried a torchin the1996 Olympic Torch Relayand he is featured in the1997 Guinness Record Breakers Book.With help from his brothersJohn andPete, andJenni Samuel, an Australian School Teacher,Dave walked 14,450 miles round the planet earth.See the World Walk Map.Earthwalk is an awesome, almost unbelievable tale about an amazinghistorical Odyssey that shows what can be accomplished by a determinedand motivated human being who sets a goal. Many small steps became onegiant,globalwalk of mankind. The hardcover book published by William Morrow in 1979.In addition to the book above, this epic adventure is documented at theMinnesota Historical Societyand theWaseca County Historical Society.It is also featured in the1991 Guinness Book of Records, the1989-90 Guinness Sports Record Book andRipley's Believe It or Not!A Guinness list of different ways to circle theearth was also published in the 1991 edition of the Guinness Book ofWorld Records.Earthwalk is a true story about three brothers, four mules, two dogsand an Australian School Teacher.The adventure is also listed in the2006 edition of theWorld Almanac Book of Records, Firsts, Feats, Facts & Phenomena. On June 20, 1970, Dave and John Kunst walked East out ofWaseca, Minnesotawith a pack mule named Willie Makeit. On October 5, 1974,Dave Kunst walked back into Waseca, Minnesota, from the west, tobecome the first person verified to have circled the land mass of the earthon foot (John Kunst was shot and killed by bandits half way around the worldin Afghanistan on October 21, 1972). Dave and John Kunst walked from Waseca, Minnesota, to New York City and touched theAtlantic Ocean. They then flew across the Atlantic Ocean to Lisbon, Portugaland touched the Atlantic ocean on the other side. Walking across Europe andAsia to Calcutta, India, Dave touched the Indian Ocean. He then flew across theIndian Ocean to Perth, Western Australia and touched the Indian Ocean on theother side. Walking across Australia to Sydney he touched the PacificOcean. He then flew across the Pacific Ocean to Los Angeles, California, andtouched the Pacific Ocean on the other side. He then walked from NewportBeach, California, back to Waseca, Minnesota, where he started, becoming thefirst person to walk round the earth. The walk took four years, three monthsand sixteen days!Dave walked 14,450 miles crossing four continents andthirteen countries,wearing out 21 pair of shoes, and walking more than 20million steps. The EARTHWALKER carried a plastic scroll with him around the world to document thewalk. He had the mayor of every city and town that he spent the night,stamp and sign the scroll.When the walk was finished there were six, one-foot by five-foot, scroll sheets that were totally covered with stamps andsignatures of officials around the world.Dave and John had many wonderful experiences walking across Europe, includinga visit withPrincess Grace of Monaco. Willie Makeit II, the Portuguese packmule, was a big hit with the princess who accepted a lucky mule shoe from thebrothers.While walking through an Italian town, John and Dave were invited tohave dinner in a small restaurant. When Dave went to tie Willie to a treethe owner of the restaurant said, "No! No! Bring the mula inside." Davesaid, "We can't take a mule inside a restaurant!" "Yes! yes! follow me,"said the man, "I want to cause some excitement." Willie Makeit was takeninside where she bumped tables knocking over bottles and glasses, andspilling drinks on the floor. The mule caused quite a stir and manyof the Italian people who were having dinner jumped up saying," Mula! Mula! Mula!" Then the owner made a comment in Italian andeverybody started to laugh.To the brother's surpriseThor Heyerdahl was having dinner in therestaurant. The Norwegian Scientific Adventurer wasimpressed with the brothersand their walk. He got a big kick out of the mule in therestaurant and even patted Willie affectionally on her nose while hechatted with the brothers. Arriving in Venice,Italy,Willie caused some real excitementwhile crossing the canal bridges. Mules and horses were not allowed in the citybecause of the narrow streets, the pollution and the bridges. The Italianpeople were pointing and shouting but the brothers didn't understand. Thenumber one problem they had walking round the world was the languageproblem. The Kunst brothers could only speak and understand English. TheMayor of Venice finally agreed to let Willie stay in the city but all hermesses had to be cleaned up.A Yugoslavian farmer gave the brothers a dog,but in the mountains of Western Turkey drifter was attacked and killed byTurkish sheep dogs. An American family living in Ankara, Turkey, replaced Drifter with Drifter II a Turkish dog.Drifter II didn't like walking all dayso something had to be done. In Istanbul, Turkey, the brothers were told by theAmerican Consulate to get a small wagon. The Turkish tourist bureau alsoinsisted they must have a wagon to carry the water and food they would needto cross the deserts in Iran and Afghanistan. A dog house was built under thewagon so Drifter could ride, thus solving that problem. The commander of anAmerican Military Base just outside of Istanbul had his men put a canvascover on the Turkish Wagon.That meant no more sleeping on the ground because the supply wagon became ashelter for the night. The brothers called their home on wheels the USA-TurkMachine.  InIrana camel driver wanted to trade his fine camel for the big Portuguesemule, he kept saying, "Yes! Yes! Yes!" Dave kept saying, "No! No! No!,"because the brothers wouldn't walk a mile with a Camel! The manwas serious and called some of his friends. John was concerned they might takeWillie. Dave then remembered what he had been told at the American Embassy inTehran that if they were confronted by locals they should have some Americandollars handy (Iranian village people only made what amounted to acouple of Americandollars a week and the money would probably capture their attention). Davethen reached into his pocket and pulled out a fist full of dollars.The camel driver's eyes got very big and he grabbed the bills out of Dave'shand. While the Iranians were fighting over the cash, the brothers walked outof town. Halfway around the world inAfghanistan, Dave and John walkedthrough the Desert ofDeath where temperatures hit 128 degrees. But it was in thefoothills of the Hindu KushMountains of Afghanistan that bandits attacked. They thought the brothershad money in the Turkish Wagon. An Afghan newspaper printed by mistakethat the walkers were collecting money for UNICEF. The fact is they weretelling people to send money to the Children's Fund but the Afghan reportermisunderstood because of the language problem . When thebandits startedshootingDave was wounded andJohn was shot and killed,ending his search in life.It took Dave four months to recuperate and then his other brotherPete took John's place.Pete brought along aletter of recommendation from then Governor RonaldReagan of California.To honor John's memory and to showspecial recognition for the walk, the governor of Minnesota proclaimedWednesday, February 21, 1973, to be "KUNST BROTHERS DAY."Governor Wendell R. Anderson also presented the brothers with awooden plaqueshaped like the state of Minnesota with an inscription on a brassplate.Read Al Austin's editorialcomment about the KUNST BROTHERS on WCCO-TV,October 24, 1972, which is a tribute to all who chose the path of adventure.Dave and Pete met withSenator Hubert H. Humphrey,from Minnesota, just before they restarted the walk in Afghanistan.John and Dave had met the former Vice President just before the start ofthe walk in 1970. At that time he presented them with aletter of recommendation and mentioned thathe would follow their progress across the world.Senator Humphrey also attended John's funeral in Waseca.Early in 1973, with the help of the American Embassy, Dave andPete started at theEXACT spot in Afghanistanwhere John had been killedand the walk continued into Pakistan. The brothers got special permission to walk through theKhyber Pass ofPakistan because a Pakistani tribal prince agreed to walk with them.It was printedin a Pakistani newspaper that the Kunst brothers were the first non-Asians towalk to and through the Khyber Pass since Alexander the Great.The prince pointed outplaques on the mountainsideidentifying many of the British regiments including the Khyber Rifles,that served in the area . He said they were a memorial to the twelve-hundred-ninety-six British solders who were massacred by Pathan tribesmen in 1847.Arriving in Islamabad, Dave and Pete were welcomed at the AmericanEmbassy. After rest and relaxation they continued to Lahore, Pakistan,and then into the Punjab area of the Indian subcontinent stopping inAmritsar, India, to visit theGolden Temple.Passing theRed Fort on their way out of New Delhi, Pete, Dave,Willie Makeit II and Drifter II followed the Grand Trunk Road walkingthrough the masses of India during the Monsoon Season.After touching the Indian Oceannear Calcutta, India,the brothers and their Turkish Wagon crossed the Indian Oceanto Perth, Australia. Willie Makeit II and Drifter II had to stay in Indiabecause Australians don't allow animals into their country. Willie wasgiven to an Indian who owned horses and Drifter was given to an AmericanLady at the American Consulate.Australia, the world's largest island andsmallest continent is two-thirds desert sothey took the Turkish Wagon(Australian Tourist Commission provided the brothers with a mule topull their Turkish supply wagon but there was a big problem? The Aussiemule kept running off with the wagon and almost wrecked it twice.Montie Montana Jr.was in Perth to promote his Wild West Show and theAmerican cowboy offered to help. Montie visited the mounted policestables where she was stabled and showed Dave and Pete how to stop amule from running off with a wagon. He tied a rope around both frontlegs and when the critter started to run with the wagon, Montie pulledher front legs out from under her. Down she went with the wagon almoston top of her, and that was the last time she ran off with the wagon).It was January, which meant summer time down under and there were over a thousandmiles of desolate outback to walk.With an Aussie mule, named Will WillieMakeit II, the brothers headed across theNullarbor Plain. It was hot, dry and dustyand it was the fly season so the brothers were bothered by thirsty fliestrying to get moisture from their nose, mouth and eyes.The Australian people were friendly and helpful like the family who posedwith Dave and Pete in front of theClub Hotel.Halfway acrossAustralia, Pete, who had taken John's place for one year, had to return to hisjob in California. A few days later Will Willie Makeit II died of a heartattack and Dave couldn't find another mule. It was Australian sheep countryand there weren't any mules for a thousand miles. He was about to continuewithout the wagon when an Australian schoolteacher namedJenni Samueldrove up to have a chat and ended up takingWillie's place. Jenni agreed to tow the wagon with her car one thousand miles,in low gear, to Sydney while Dave walked along side. Dave and Jenni had fallenin love.However, the walk continued and after touching the Pacific Ocean and kissingJenni good-bye, Dave flew backto the USA. The Mayor of Santa Ana, California, presented him with a muleretired from Knotts Berry Farm. Touching the Pacific Ocean at Newport Beach,California. Dave started the final leg of the walk. When the California mule gottired and stubborn Dave left Willie Will Makeit II and walked alone acrossthe western USA. According to the officials at Colorado's Eisenhower Tunnel,Dave was thefirst person to officially walk through that underground passage.On October 5, 1974, the EARTHWALKER walked intoWaseca, Minnesota in triumph asthe first person to have walked round the earth.Find out how it was possible to walk the world.After the walk Dave returned to Western Australia to get Jenni.A year later he brought her to the USA where they got married. Today theyare still happy and together living in Orange County, California.Dave has told his amazing story to school children and s throughout theUnited States. The Earthwalk story is a remarkable story,and you have tohear the EARTHWALKER tell it to believe it. No one has walked the walk hewalked and no one can talk the talk he talks! Check out thebeginning of theEarthwalk presentation on YouTube.Dave Kunst is an author andlecturer and has been featured in numerous magazineand newspaper articles during and after his walk.One such example would be the story in theCampus Press, from Boulder, Colorado.In 1996 Dave was selected as aCommunity Hero Torchbearer for the CentennialOlympic Games in Atlanta. He carried the torch near Dana Point, California,on Sunday, April 28, 1996. After finishing the short walk, Dave said, "It wasthe most exciting walk I've had since I finished walking round the earth on Saturday, October 5, 1974."Dave will be donating his Olympic Torch to the Minnesota HistoryCenter to be displayed with other paraphernalia from the walk.To contact the EARTHWALKER for more information you can E-mail him atearthwalker1@earthlink.net.References available upon request. Inquires welcome. The Minnesota Historical Societycommemorated the Kunst brother's walk around the world with an exhibitat theHistory Center in St. Paul, Minnesota,from July 9, 2002, until July 9, 2004. The exhibit featured the wagon that the Kunst brothers used during the walk, along with some other artifacts. Caledonia, Minnesota,the birthplace of David, Peter, and John Kunst,honored the brothers with abig, beautiful sign, and an awesomebronze plaque on June 11, 2004.News Stories:Star Tribune - 6/11/2004La Crosse Tribune - 6/12/2004Spring Grove Herald - 6/2/2004Page from Waseca, MN, Chamber of Commerce web sitePage from 2005 Guinness World Records web siteThe Caledonia Argus - 7/3/2002Pioneer Press - Minnesota History Center - 6/17/2002KCRW Radio - Earthwalker Interview - 1/4/2002 (requires RealPlayer).If you do not have RealPlayer, you can download atranscript of the interview (MicrosoftWord format).Waseca County News - 11/29/2001Boomers International - Special Interview - 3/25/2001The Minnesota DailyOnline - 6/26/2000Camarillo, California paper covers Earthwalker Talk Story - 1/14/2000History Channel - This Day in History, October 5Campus Press from Boulder, ColoradoLA Times story - 8/1/1990Other Links: Beginning of Earthwalk Presentation on YouTube.com Gene Bedley's Bureau of Essential Ethics Education Who's Who Online Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Run The Planet - Walk The Planet Culture Connect Environmental Organization WebDirectory Balboa Island Home Page About.com - Walking Home Page for Caledonia, Minnesota My brother's home page My daughter in-law's businessThis site maintained by Dave's son Brad. To contact the Webmaster, send E-mailto kunsts@bigfoot.com |
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