Plymouth man completes 20,000-mile pub crawl

Ben Coombs, 38, from Plymouth, started at at the most northerly pub in the world and ended at the most southerly, crossing three continents from the Arctic Circle to the tip of Chile to complete his journey.

Speaking to the BBC, Coombs described the final pub as "a dive", but said: "it's the journey that matters, not the destination".

Remote beginning

The idea for the crawl came to Coombs over a pint in a pub on Dartmoor, and his journey began on the Norwegian island of Svalbard in an abandoned mining settlement called Pyramiden, which has a population of just four people.

From there, Coombs travelled across Euope to Southampton, where his car – a 20-year-old TVR Chimaera, called Kermit – was shipped to New York City in August. He then travelled across the United States to California, before heading south to Mexico.

Although there are bars in Antarctica they are located on bases and are not accessible to members of the public or are not licensed. Therefore, Coombs last destination was Puerto Williams, Chile, where the 38-year old arrived on 12 February and found the southernmost bar.

Chilean Dive Bar 

Describing the venue, Coombs said: "It's a bit of a dive actually. We're talking plastic patio furniture inside, Chilean line dancing on the TV, and a menu that consists only of lager and cheap whisky.

"There are probably more appealing places to travel 20,000 miles to get to, but that's not really the point. It's the journey that matters, not the destination."

Coombs’ car is said to have dealt well with the journey, with a replacement clutch in Nicaragua being the only major repair, and it will now be shipped back to Devon.