Gavin Booth and Adam Wilton pull their carts across the desert
January 27, 2025
A chartered surveyor from Chiswick is part of a team that became the first ever to make a self-sufficient crossing of the world’s largest sand desert.
Gavin Booth MBE was joined by Adam Wilton MBE in a 780-kilometre trek over 22 days which ended last Tuesday (21 January). They carried all their own supplies across the Rub’ al-Khali (the “Empty Quarter”) in Saudi Arabia, the largest continuous sand desert in the world.
The duo walked from As Sulayyil to Haradh, via Ash Shalfa to become the first ever exhibition to do this on a fully self-sufficient basis. Carrying all their supplies and water, in self-built rickshaw-style carts weighing over 200kg each, the expedition was a huge physical challenge. The route depended on a critical stop at the Ash Shalfa oasis, in the centre of the desert, to replenish water reserves.
The expedition partly covered the tracks left by British explorers Wilfred Thesiger and Harry St. John Philby, in the 1930s and 1940s. Booth and Wilton are experienced adventurers who have completed several expeditions in extreme environments, including an unsupported 2008 expedition from the edge of the Antarctic continent to the Geographic South Pole
Upon finishing ‘The Crescent Crossing’, the pair commented, “There was always a high degree of uncertainty as to whether it would be possible to haul a huge amount of weight across the sands. The trade-off between weight and speed and having enough water was critical. There were times when we had doubts, but we pushed through. We are truly grateful for the opportunity to journey through this incredible landscape and are humbled by the hospitality of those we met along the way”.
Adam Wilton and Gavin Booth sitting in the desert
Khalid Al Rabiah, CEO of Mallah Al-Doroub for Travel and Tourism Company, who provided advice and logistics to the expedition, commented, “The Empty Quarter desert is one of the harshest and most difficult environments with a variety of challenging terrain, and it is amazing that Adam and Gavin managed to finish this journey on a completely self-sufficient basis. This is a unique achievement, and their persistence and planning paid off. Well done Adam and Gavin!”
In line with the expedition’s reliance on water, the team is supporting the UK-based charity Frank Water, which works to alleviate water poverty, enhance health, and promote sustainable water management in India, Nepal, Kenya, and beyond. Over 19 years, Frank Water has reached more than 500,000 people across 747 vulnerable communities. The adventurers have self-funded the expedition, ensuring that 100% of any money raised goes directly to the charity. Wilton and Booth hope to inspire corporate sponsors and individual donors to support Frank Water’s impactful work.
“This journey underscores the critical role of water in human survival and the necessity of sustainable water management,” says Wilton.
“We believe in doing extraordinary things to inspire and give back,” says Booth.
You can support their fundraising by donating here.
Like Reading Articles Like This? Help Us Produce More This site remains committed to providing local community news and public interest journalism. Articles such as the one above are integral to what we do. We aim to feature as much as possible on local societies, charities based in the area, fundraising efforts by residents, community-based initiatives and even helping people find missing pets. We’ve always done that and won’t be changing, in fact we’d like to do more. However, the readership that these stories generates is often below that needed to cover the cost of producing them. Our financial resources are limited and the local media environment is intensely competitive so there is a constraint on what we can do. We are therefore asking our readers to consider offering financial support to these efforts. Any money given will help support community and public interest news and the expansion of our coverage in this area. A suggested monthly payment is £8 but we would be grateful for any amount for instance if you think this site offers the equivalent value of a subscription to a daily printed newspaper you may wish to consider £20 per month. If neither of these amounts is suitable for you then contact info@neighbournet.com and we can set up an alternative. All payments are made through a secure web site. One-off donations are also appreciated. Choose The Amount You Wish To Contribute. If you do support us in this way we’d be interested to hear what kind of articles you would like to see more of on the site – send your suggestions to the editor. For businesses we offer the chance to be a corporate sponsor of community content on the site. For £30 plus VAT per month you will be the designated sponsor of at least one article a month with your logo appearing if supplied. If there is a specific community group or initiative you’d like to support we can make sure your sponsorship is featured on related content for a one off payment of £50 plus VAT. All payments are made through a secure web site. |