By WILLIAM R. HOLLAND
Times Publisher

With an interested group of local residents on hand at Fort Morgan's Senior Center Friday evening, Joe Hurley of Danbury, Conn., shared the progress of his trek across the nation via Route 6 -- a trek that began in late March from Provincetown, Mass., and has so far had him going through four pairs of walking shoes.

Hurley shared that in 1999, while still a reporter for the Danbury News-Times, he realized he knew very little about the eastern side of Connecticut. So he presented the idea to the newspaper's publisher of walking across the state and writing about the towns and people he would visit along the way.

The idea was approved, and the stories and photographs that followed were a big hit with the newspaper's subscribers.

After his walk across Connecticut via Route 6 -- the nation's second oldest coast-to-coast highway -- Hurley turned his post-retirement thoughts to walking the entire 3,600 miles of Route 6 from Provincetown to Long Beach, Calif.

When asked what prompted him to walk the entire route from coast to coast, Hurley replied, "The desire to meet and write about people along the way. The trip isn't about me (Hurley) walking, it's about the people I meet."

Hurley said that when he started his trek, he calculated the odds at 300 to 1 that he would be able to complete the entire route. Now that he was within four days of Denver, he believes he'll finish the entire trip.

Hurley isn't alone, however, He's accompanied by his faithful sidekick and photographer, 27-year-old Travis Lindhorst. While Hurley walks 21 miles a day, Lindhorst goes ahead in their Geo Metro to finalize lodging accommodations and scout out the next community on the route.

Hurley walks 21 miles a day Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays,

beginning around 8 a.m. and ending in mid-afternoon.

He takes Thursdays off to write his stories about the people and communities he has visited.

Mondays are reserved for visiting sites along the way that may be off Route 6 or going back to places he walked through the previous week.

As for being delayed by bad weather, Hurley has only had to stop once to wait out a thunderstorm, being lucky enough to find shelter in a nearby culvert.

As for a fond memory of his trek, Hurley shared the story of a little boy in White Plains, Pa., who came up to him and handed him a banana and a dollar bill to help him on his trip.

When asked about the topography of the country, Hurley laughed and said, "Iowans told me that once I made it to Lincoln, Neb., it would be flat after that."

As for the people he's met along the way, Hurley said he's been through large metropolitan cities to Lamar, Neb. -- population 24 -- that threw a watermelon feed in his honor.

A common theme he's heard from residents in the small communities along the way has been that this used to be a much bigger town. But Hurley was quick to point out that people have been very welcoming, especially since leaving McCook, Neb.

As for what's ahead, Hurley isn't looking forward to stretches of Route 6 in Utah where towns are 100 to 150 miles apart, but he plans to keep his focus on reaching the Pacific Ocean sometime around Thanksgiving.

On a budget of $1,500 a month, and the generosity of people along the way, Hurley said he may consider publishing a book of his travels once the trek is completed, but only after he finishes all the household projects his wife is storing up for him.