British adventurer ends 13-year human-powered world trip

LONDON (AFP) - British adventurer Jason Lewis on Saturday arrived in Greenwich, south-east London, ending a 13-year round-the-world trip using only the power of the human body.

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The 40-year-old completed the final leg of his 46,000-mile (74,000-kilometre) odyssey by pedalling his 26-foot (7.9-metre) boat Moksha up the River Thames.

The last effort into London followed a 3,000-kilometre bike ride from Turkey through Bulgaria, Romania, Austria and Germany to Oostend in Belgium, where the boat was waiting for him.

During his circumnavigation, he capsized in the North Atlantic Ocean, broke both legs, was chased by a crocodile in Australia and arrested on suspicion of spying in Egypt and threatened with a 40-year prison sentence.

Bearded and looking tired, a clearly emotional Lewis crossed the Greenwich Meridian line at the Royal Observatory by carrying his boat with the help of supporters and cheering well-wishers.

Lewis set off from the same spot -- zero degrees longitude -- bound for Portugal in July 1994. The 16-leg journey also included hiking, kayaking and hiking.

"It feels fantastic. I came over the line and I was choked. I blubbed (cried) like a baby," he told reporters.

"Everything I've been doing for the last 13 years has been in some way connected to this trip and tomorrow that will be no more."

Among the welcoming party was Queen Elizabeth II's cousin, the Duke of Gloucester, who is patron to the Expedition 360 adventure and who named Moksha in 1993. The name means "liberation" in Sanskrit.

Lewis has twice crossed the English Channel in Moksha as well as the north Atlantic, the Pacific and parts of the Indian Ocean.

He said his lowest points had included breaking both legs after being run over by a car while crossing the United States on rollerblades. Doctors told him at one point he risked having his left leg amputated.

Other lows included being thrown in jail in Egypt on suspicion of spying after illegally crossing the border from Sudan.

But he said the highs more than compensated.

"There have been many high moments," he added. "To be honest, it's always good to reach the other side of an ocean.

"But if it was just about the physical challenge I would have got bored.

"The 'why?' question changed over the years. I started circumnavigating the world ... but it became more about using the expedition as an educational tool to enhance children's learning experience in the classroom."

Lewis, from Dorset in south-west England, said he planned to rest this weekend before embarking on a career organising "mini-expeditions" for young people and giving talks about climate change.

He was initially accompanied on the voyage by expedition founder Steve Smith. He left the adventure in Hawaii in 1998 to pursue other interests as they attempted to cross the Pacific from San Francisco to Australia.