Cheapflights.ca Recounts Incredible Travel Legends

TORONTO--(Marketwire - Sep 25, 2012) - The travel experts at Cheapflights.ca, the online leader in finding and publishing travel deals, all love a good travel story. Sharing travel experiences is the norm around the office. So the team decided to research and compile a list of Top 10 Unbelievable Tales of Travel featuring the wildest and most adventuresome true travel experiences out there. 

Below are five travel tales to make Cheapflights.ca's list of Top 10 Unbelievable Tales of Travel from adventurers who eschewed motors during their exploits. Whether by on foot, by bike, under sail or on skis and sled, these amazing people demonstrated commitment, perseverance and the human spirit and will inspire you to see the world differently.

• Rob Gauntlett and James Hooper's 180-degree expedition - At 19 years old, Rob Gauntlett and James Hooper set out on a 26,000-mile journey, travelling from geomagnetic pole to geomagnetic pole using nothing but human and natural power. They managed to dog sled and ski across Greenland, board a sailboat to New York, bike 11,000 miles to the tip of South America, then sail in the middle of winter to Antarctica. With little funding and a lot of heart, they were able to accomplish the incredible travel feat in a little over a year.
  
  
• Rory Stewart's walk across Afghanistan - In 2002, shortly after the War in Afghanistan began, British politician and author Rory Stewart set out on foot across the north-central part of the country. During the dead of winter, Stewart faced mountainous regions, following the Hari River from Herat to Kabul through some of the most treacherous and isolated parts of the country. He finished his journey in 32 days, and has since published a critically acclaimed book about his journey, The Places in Between.
  
  
• Frank Muldowney's walk across Australia with an empty wheelchair - Seeing a man walk down the street pushing a bright orange empty wheelchair might make a few heads turn, but that didn't stop Frank Muldowney from completing his 4,000-mile journey from Perth to Sydney on foot. The wheelchair was supposed to be carrying Muldowney's friend "Harvey", an invisible symbol for peace. Muldowney deemed his Pilgrimage for Peace "Believing in Harvey", lasting from April 2006 until September 2007.
  
  
• The Vogels' bike ride along the Pan-American Highway - Sure it's rare, but there are couples out there who are adventurous enough to take on the 17,300 miles trek from Alaska to Argentina. But to do it with two young boys is another feat altogether. John and Nancy Vogel took off in June 2008 with their 10-year-old twin boys, Davy and Daryl, on an experience of a lifetime. Biking from the northern tip of Alaska to the southern tip of Argentina, Davy and Daryl became the youngest people to bike the Pan-American Highway, completing it in two and a half years.
  
  
• Dave Kunst's expedition around the world on foot - The first verified man to walk around the globe, Dave Kunst, set out from Minnesota in June 1970 with his brother, John. With the help of several mules, the entire expedition took more than four years. Sadly, John was killed in a shooting in Afghanistan. Dave continued on after recovering from gunshot wounds suffered in the same incident, and later met his future wife Jenni, who drove alongside him in Australia while carrying his supplies. Kunst finished in 1974, and has since given inspirational speeches, even carrying the Olympic torch in the run-up to the 1996 Atlanta Games.
  
  

Rounding out our list of incredible travel legends are five who embraced a mix of transports, from trains to tractors, for their extreme journeys: Steven Shoppman and Stephen Bouey's drive around the world; Nellie Bly's unescorted tour of the world in under 80 days; Kinga Freespirit's hitchhike around the world; Michael Hodson's train adventure from Lisbon to Saigon; Manon Ossevoort's tractor ride from Europe to South Africa; and The Vogels' bike ride along the Pan-American Highway. To read more about these inspiring stories, check out Cheapflights.ca's complete list of Top 10 Incredible Tales of Travel, at www.cheapflights.ca/promos/top-10-unbelievable-tales-of-travel.

About Cheapflights Media
Cheapflights Media is an international media network helping over 11 million visitors a month find top travel deals. Our Cheapflights brand was launched in 1996 and pioneered the online comparison of flight deals for users. Today, users compare a wide range of deals from hundreds of partners including online travel agents, consolidators and airlines to find the very best flight deals. With a mission to be the starting point for travel, Cheapflights works to deliver the industry's best airfare bargains, expert tips and inspiration. There are currently Cheapflights sites in the U.K., U.S., Canada, Germany, Australia & New Zealand, France, Italy and Spain. For more information, visit www.cheapflights.ca. Our newest brand, Momondo, is a leading travel search engine for finding comprehensive worldwide pricing and availability on airfares. Winner of several awards, the site is ideal for users on specific travel schedules. For more information, visit www.momondo.com.