After an 18-month pause, Paul Salopek will restart his Out of Eden quest.

The COVID-19 pandemic halted Salopek’s long march across Asia in early 2020. Stuck in Myanmar, he posted a few cryptic videos during Myanmar’s military coup but has otherwise been quiet.

Now, Salopek has headed to Shanghai and managed to secure the documentation needed to continue his journey into China. He will resume his journey from the Myanmar-China borer and plans to head directly through central China toward the distant north-eastern border with Russia.

This segment of his walk will cover 3,600 miles and 10 Chinese provinces. He estimates that it should take a year and a half.