SURVIVING members of the Sir George White Special bus group reunited last week (Tuesday, March 14).

The five surviving members of the group held an illustrated talk at Aerospace Bristol, sharing the story of how they travelled from Bristol to Canada, North America, Mexico, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru in the 1970s.

This was, until the bus sank when crossing a river in Peru, bringing their 22 month-long journey to an end.

The surviving members who gave the talk include Mike Conway of Nailsea, Sally Rich, Bernice Poole, David McLaughlin and John Winter.

In a nod to the vehicle that took them thousands of miles, the group arrived to the event in an identical double-decker bus, although this one was green.

The group also met with Sir George, from South Gloucestershire, who helped launch the bus with a bottle of West Country cider.

Not only did the event provide a chance for the group to share their story, but also helped to advertise and launch a new book ‘Bus to Bust’, written by journalist John Winter.

John joined the group for nearly a year.

He said: "It was an amazing journey, putting so many people together in such a confined space there were inevitably arguments.

''But it was unlike anything any of us had ever done. I stayed with the group for about a year.

''We all rotated as leader of the group, I became leader of the group for three months - by which time I'd had enough.

"The bus really was the hero of the story, we had totally torn out the upper floor to fit beds and living space.

"Unfortunately we bought a bus that was too high for the American roads - so as soon as we got there we started hitting bridges.

"Usually the police were very good and gave us escorts sometimes, but eventually in California we were stopped by a determined policeman who wouldn't let us go.

"We had to take the bus off the road, but eventually were given permission to drive on by Ronald Reagan - who was Governor of California at the time.”

People were given the chance to enjoy a baked potato with the crew and learn more about this incredible adventure.

Copies of the book are available on Amazon.