Mayo man walks 6,000km barefoot across Europe from Istanbul to Mayo

Eamonn Keaveney, originally from Claremorris, Co Mayo, set off from Istanbul in March 4, 2025, with an ambitious goal: to walk barefoot across Europe, set a new Guinness World Record, and raise money for causes close to his heart. Ten months later, having crossed multiple countries on foot, he has returned to Ireland and is now completing the final leg of his journey to Mayo.

After almost a year of walking barefoot across Europe, Keaveney is finally on the home stretch of an extraordinary journey, and has raised for youth mental health charity Jigsaw and environmental group Friends of the Earth.

With a fundraising target of €10,000, Keaveney is now approximately €2,000 away from reaching his goal, which he hopes to achieve before arriving home in Claremorris in February.

As of January 11, 2026, Keaveney has covered 5,869.24 kilometres barefoot across Europe. In early September last year, on the 185th day of his challenge, the 33-year-old broke the Guinness World Record for the longest barefoot walk at the border of Hungary and Austria, surpassing the previous record of 3,409.76 km.

Speaking as he makes his way across Ireland, Keaveney said he is looking forward to finishing the journey on familiar ground.

“I'm delighted to be returning to Ireland after so many months of walking. It's great to be coming back to familiar territory, it really feels like I'm on the home stretch and I'm more certain with every day that I'll make it back to Claremorris,” he said.

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Eamonn's epic journey started in March 2025.

He also expressed gratitude for the public support he has received throughout the challenge, particularly during a difficult economic period.

“I'm thrilled with the donations made to the fundraiser, especially given the cost of living crisis that so many are struggling with. It helps on difficult days to know that I'm not sort of needlessly struggling but that there's money and awareness being raised for an important cause. I'm optimistic about reaching the fundraising goal as well, which would be a real cherry on top.”

Support for Keaveney’s effort has also come from the organisations he is fundraising for. Deirdre Duffy, Chief Executive of Friends of the Earth, praised both the scale of the challenge and its wider message.

“We are so grateful to Eamonn for shining a light on and supporting the work we do here at Friends of the Earth and for the young people in Ireland that Jigsaw supports through their services,” she said.

“Eamonn’s epic journey is a really great example and reminder that climate action can come in all shapes and sizes. At the start of 2026, it’s good to be reminded that there are incredible people doing incredible things like this. Eamonn is a true example that we can all do and achieve hard and crazy things.”

Crossing Europe is not Keaveney’s first barefoot feat. In 2016, he walked 2,000km barefoot across Ireland, before climbing 10 mountains barefoot in 10 days in 2018.

Throughout the journey, Keaveney has been documenting his progress through daily updates on his Instagram page, @barefootacrosseurope, sharing insights into the physical demands of walking barefoot long distances and the landscapes and communities he has encountered along the way.

Now, with Mayo firmly in his sights, the final kilometres represent not only the conclusion of a record-breaking journey, but the culmination of months of persistence, public support and commitment to raising awareness for environmental protection and youth mental health.

You can donate to Eamonn's chosen charities here. 

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