Water runner: 200-marathon journey begins in desert and dust – in pictures

On World Water Day on 22 March, Mina Guli started a challenge to run 200 marathons across 200 countries in a single year to draw attention to the global water crisis. She has run 27 over seven weeks throughout Australia, and aims to complete the remainder – in Central Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Europe, India, Latin America, South East Asia, Mexico and the US – by March 2023, when the UN Water Conference is held in New York.

‘Australia has some of the driest places on the planet. However, while I completed these marathons, Australians confronted another harsh reality of the water crisis as they dealt with the deluge of heavy periods of rain and flooding throughout News South Wales and Queensland,’ she says

Jackson Gallagher

Main image: Mina Guli runs most marathons along dirt tracks but the sand dunes of the Simpson Dessert were unavoidable, making this section one of the most challenging of her journey. Photograph: Jackson Gallagher/The Guardian

  • Mina Guli takes a break mid-marathon to watch the sunrise beneath the Algebuckina Bridge, Oodnadatta Track, South Australia.
    Mina Guli takes a break mid-marathon to watch the sunrise beneath the Algebuckina Bridge, Oodnadatta Track, South Australia.

  • Team physiotherapist, Ann Davies, looks on as Guli takes a break at the Algebuckina Bridge in South Australia.
    Team physiotherapist, Ann Davies, looks on as Guli takes a break at the Algebuckina Bridge in South Australia.

  • Early morning light over the salt plains of the Wabma Kadarbu Mound Springs conservation park. Guli sets out for marathon No 6, heading towards Kati Thanda-Lake Eyre, South Australia.
    Early morning light over the salt plains of the Wabma Kadarbu Mound Springs conservation park. Guli sets out for marathon No 6, heading towards Kati-Thanda-Lake Eyre, South Australia.

  • Guli runs marathon No 9, near Mungeranie, South Australia. The runner frequently negotiated dust storms while running in the desert.
    Guli runs marathon No 9, near Mungeranie, South Australia. The runner frequently negotiated dust storms while running in the desert.

  • Guli crosses paths with a road train along the Oodnadatta Track. Food and supplies had to be flown in on privately chartered light planes to these remote areas earlier this year after the road trains’ supply routes were flooded.
    Guli crosses paths with a road train along the Oodnadatta Track.

  • Guli tries to soothe heat rash after finishing a marathon in Oodnadatta, Australia’s driest town, in 40C heat.
    Guli tries to soothe heat rash after finishing a marathon in Oodnadatta, Australia’s driest town, in 40C heat.

  • Drops of water from a leaking pipe cool Guli down after her third marathon along the Oodnadatta Track. She and the team set up camp that evening in a dried-up river bed along Edward Creek.
    Drops of water from a leaking pipe cool Guli down after her third marathon along the Oodnadatta Track.

  • Running back-to-back marathons through Queensland’s Simpson Desert in 40C heat took a huge toll on Guli physically and mentally. Here, she seeks shade from the relentless sun in a moment of recovery and composure.
    Running back-to-back marathons through Queensland’s Simpson Desert in 40C heat took a huge toll on Guli physically and mentally. Here, she seeks shade from the relentless sun in a moment of recovery and composure.

  • Guli runs along the overgrown remains of the Old Ghan Railway on the Oodnadatta Track, which is dotted with former railway sidings, such as the Algebuckina ruins.
    Guliruns along the overgrown remains of the Old Ghan Railway on the Oodnadatta Track, in South Australia. The track is dotted with former railway sidings, such as the Algebuckina Ruins.

  • Sunrise over the Algebuckina Bridge, South Australia. The bridge spans Neales River and is the longest along the Old Ghan Railway.
    Sunrise over the Algebuckina Bridge, South Australia. The bridge spans Neales River and is the longest along the Old Ghan Railway.
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