Edwards, Colorado. Out of a Pontiac Firebird stepped a tall young gentleman by the name of William. We talked for a bit about my walk and he made a great donation. After a school bus full of kids pulled up and a short shirtless fat man jogged by I knew it was time to thank William and keep trucking.

Later on that day several miles down the road, William caught up to me and we got a bite to eat. We spoke about a wide array of different topics including our personal lives, where we grew up, current aspirations, hobbies, the importance of traveling, and females.

It was definitely a pleasure meeting and conversing with a young gentleman with such class, holding a clean slate in an world of endless opportunity. I wish William all of the best!

ASIDE: Also big thanks to Corrie (stay awesome), Jesse, the woman that provided me the sandwich & goldfish crackers while I was walking in the rain, and the guys that truck that donated.

5/16/13
SoilTrek.com

NOTE: All photos taken on first day in Denver except newspaper photo.

Denver, Colorado. The two-day trek from Wiggins to Denver was very difficult, however I had to be there on time to meet several people. Shout out to Roman!

The trek there was very cold, snowy, and windy.  Having slept under a bridge that night with noisy birds and farm dogs making noise outside my tent around civil sunrise.  I was highly motivated to get somewhere halfway warm.

For most of that walk I saw nothing but a couple of cars, no people, just snow everywhere -- this is how I envision Siberia.

Once I entered downtown Denver I was pleasantly welcomed in the falling snow by Colorado's Prince Hall Grand Master (MW De Los Reyes), Grand officers, Prince Hall brothers, Delta sisters, Fox 31, and Denver Weekly News.

After meeting and greeting we all had dinner at Rocky Mountain Lodge #1.  After a great welcome after a long walk it was nice to have a great meal!  Later on Brother Sandy drove me to The Double Tree hotel where I had two nights comped along with hot breakfast.  Let's say I slept extremely well that night.

Hanging out with Sister Peggy & Jill, who were fantastic, I toured several places around town including the African American Research Library, tons of other historic Denver sites, and to city hall to meet the mayor.  A tremendous help to me also in Denver was Brother Dwayne and his wife Michelle.  He assisted me in getting a haircut, sending off donations, getting gear at REI, checking my health the 9 Health Fair, etc.

As far as food and entertainment, Denver had a plethora of places to choose from and explore.  I dined at such places such as The Berkshire, Bar Louie, and Welton Street Cafe.  Visited a couple bars and even the movies to see Iron Man 3 (which was a little disappointing).  Shout out to Michelle!

Thanks to WM Alex Burse for the tons of beef jerky and also for the Mayweather fight invitation at one of the brother's homes.  I enjoyed the comradary, the fight was good, and the food was fanominal!

After experiencing bits and pieces of Cinco De Mayo and several mini tours of The Mile High I realized how diverse Denver was, which I honestly didn't expect.

My hotel stay was very relaxing and felt like home. After staying a total of 5-days it was time to hit the mountain.  Brother Dwayne, who was a tremendous help sent me off from my final point of stopping.  I thanked him for all he and his wife Michelle had done, said good-bye.

By my luck I was fortunate enough to do one last news interview with Jon Bowman of Fox 31 before hitting the city limits and slowly hiking up into The Rockies.

5/1/13
SoilTrek.com

Lincoln, Nebraska. I met Jeff through his little brother, Derek who had spotted me on TV. Jeff works as a landscape artist/consultant, was someone I connected to very well especially in regards to similarities in our own personal philosophies.

The conversations we had surely deepened my way of thinking on certain topics, which I believe is important to do.

I got to meet some of his closest friends in town and also ate at some great restaurants in the Lincoln area including the Haymaker district, Go Cornhuskers! In addition I experienced a good tour of the city.

Lending assistance in my journey Jeff helped produce extra business cards when I ran out, helped me to get postcards to send back to New York, and took me to pick-up my new Northface boots at the local FedEx my ex-girlfriend had ordered and shipped me.

Jeff was a terrific individual that I'm glad I got to know closely and who was also a fantastic host!

4/3/13
SoilTrek.com

Denver, Colorado. Thanks to the wonderful Peggy and her daughter Jill I was able to meet and talk with the mayor if Denver, Mr. Michael B. Hancock.

He definitely was a great, down to Earth, and positive person to converse with. I was also amazed by how large his office was. Before departing he gave me his mobile number and told me to keep in touch.

After leaving the mayor's office, I also met with Mr. Wellington E. Webb, Denver's first black mayor.


5/2/13
SoilTrek.com

Davenport, Iowa. On my way out of town I was very hungry and wanted some breakfast to get me going. The local Subway restaurant was closed as well as all the other eateries, I guess because it was early Sunday.

Not wanting to start walking on an empty stomach I saw two gentlemen walking the opposite way I was going and so I asked them where I could get some food. At first they were a little hesitant, but by my attire and manner they could tell I really needed food from somewhere.

One of the gentlemen was Matthew and he told me to follow him to a place that serves meals. We walk into the place and it turned out to be a soup kitchen. I normally serve food at one of these places, however now I was on the receiving end and had no shame about it.

Matthew kind of stayed away in the corridor and so I interacted with the other individuals there. Most seemed to have fallen on hard times and had a tough past. Some of the guys there didn't want me there because I wasn't homeless and thought I was getting preferential treatment from the staff which I was totally unaware of. The rest had great interest in my journey and had a barrage of questions.

Before Matthew and I left, I said my good-byes to the guys and to the staff before the facilities manager handed me a music CD sang and recorded by her, which was a great gesture.

From that point after leaving the soup kitchen Matt and I was together a majority of the time. Which was cool because until then mostly everything I did was solo dolo.

Before Matthew and I left, I said my good-byes to the guys and to the staff before the facilities manager handed me a music CD sang and recorded by her, which was a great gesture.

From that point after leaving the soup kitchen Matt and I was together a majority of the time. Which was cool because until then mostly everything I did was solo dolo.

We went to church together that same day after a lady recognized me from the TV news and invited me. I got a great tour of downtown Davenport along with video I shot on the Skybridge where I met some of Matthew's good friends.

That last day was extremely cold due to the brutal wind, I was one layer short of being okay but I manned up and just dealt with it. Matthew had a non-verbal urge to join the trek I was on. It would have been great however I'm glad he chose to stay and iron out some challenges he was facing.

Matthew was definitely a great guy to hang with, we said our good-byes that day, however our paths will most certainly cross again.

3/3/13
SoilTrek.com

Fort Morgan, Colorado. I would like to give thanks to the following great I've met in recent days...

Big thanks to The Kotschwars in Big Springs (who I will post about soon), John in Crook (who I will post about soon), Rob in North Platte (who I will post about soon), Ike near Iliff, the guys that gave me the Coca-Cola on the highway, Bill in Hillrose, the nice woman that bought me dinner in Hillrose, Sterling Library staff (couldn't find the picture we had taken), Sterling Walgreens staff, and the Sterling Wells Fargo staff.

Laurie, Amanda, & Cassie of Walgreens in North Platte were a huge boost for me. They were totally excited about what I was pursuing, it felt great just being around them. They were very accommodating and I loved it!

Paul of Penny's Diner in North Platte, Nebraska was a great person to meet. He journeyed on a similar walk after the military. Paul gave me an beautiful tour of Sutherland's northern landscape and gave me some great survival advice. Paul thanks pal it was a pleasure, still love the Mountain Dew car interior!

Mychelle, Paul's co-worker, was mentioned as the best waitress ever on Foursquare website. And you know what? She is in fact honestly one of the best waitress I ever had.

Penny's Diner
473 Halligan Drive
North Platte, NE 69101
(308) 535-9900

Sterling, Colorado. After camping out at the local park and performing a few errands around town I decided to eat lunch at Subway. I know, I know, Subway again. Well this time I stepped in to Subway and there was a swarm of teenage girls everywhere. I automatically thought I would have to sit outside to eat because there was no place to sit or even lean against for that matter.

While waiting to place my order a few of the girls approached me in awe and asked me several great questions about my excursion. I discovered these ladies played soccer for the Scotts Bluff Bearcats in Nebraska. Soccer is one if the coolest sports in my opinion and its always great to see young females involved sports.

After placing my order the cashier informed me that one of the team members had already paid for my meal. What? How awesome was that? My meal was covered before I even placed it! Thanks to the lovely Celeste for buying me lunch, I truly appreciated it!

We took the above picture before the team departed. I believe I'm in the photo, somewhere in a sea of Bearcats.

Thanks again to Celeste, shout out to Rikke and the whole Scotts Bluff Bearcat soccer team!


4/27/13
SoilTrek.com

Julesburg, Colorado. Finally crossed the state border into Colorful Colorado! The plan is to be in Denver on May 1st, no days off, and so far so good!

Thank you to Susan in Julesburg, the woman that offered the water in addition advice about rattle snakes, and also to the trucker the gave me the energy drinks!


4/24/13
SoilTrek.com

Exira, IA. When approaching a town I've come to enjoy the anticipation of having a good meal, nice place to stay, or a great conversation -- regardless if it happens or not. Knowing there's a chance gives me enough satisfaction to even deal with it not actually coming to pass.

Down the road I could see the town where I may have my next meal, the Red Barn Restaurant was my target, and I had 3-miles to go.

As I was marching towards the eatery a SUV pulls over, a woman jumps out and hands me a bag of M&M Rice Krispy's, a coffee with sugar, and offers to pay for my meal at the Red Barn. I thanked her profusely, said good-bye, and she drives off.

After devouring the treats and consuming the coffee I no longer was hungry hungry (just hungry) and had enough energy to part Lake Michigan. New plan: Eat light & quick to fill reserves and keep walking to the next town of Atlantic, Iowa (The Coca-Cola capital of Iowa and the halfway point between the Atlantic & Pacific Ocean).

As I'm about 1.5 miles away Judi pulls up again. She informs me Red Barn is closed, offers me a place to stay, and invites me to a community fish fry. Wanting interact with some people and also feed my belly I agreed.

On the way to the fish fry I had the delight of meeting Judi's husband and brothers who were also wonderful. As for the fish fry it was great, it's held weekly at a church in Audubon on Fridays and people from the surrounding townships attend. It's an excellent way for the community to get together.

It was very nice to randomly meet such a caring person such as Judi. She let me stay in her father's house (who had past away last year). When he was alive her father would often put walkers and hitch hikers up for the night, so through Judi he was carrying on with the tradition even after he's no longer here.

Thank you for everything Judi!


3/22/13
SoilTrek.com

Des Moines, Iowa. After the long stretch of several days steadily walking from Waterloo to Des Moines I was extremely happy to reach a place where I could hopefully relax a little.

When I arrived into town I stopped into the local library where MW Eddie Sauls picked me up. WM Sauls is the head leader of all Prince Hall lodges within the Iowa jurisdiction. We had only spoken previously via phone, he has such a great a energy about him, so it was great finally meeting him face-to-face!

I had Jimmy Johns (mid-west sandwich restaurant chain with fast delivery) for the first time and enjoyed it. We also went to the barbershop because I was overdue for a cut. While waiting there I met some other great brothers from North Star Lodge #2.

MW Sauls later had to leave to get ready for a conference and so I chatted with the customers a bit and took pictures as I waited to meet WM Dominique Strode.

WM Strode, a hard working intelligent brother, soon picked me up and gave me a great tour of the Des Moines and also the North Star lodge. The meeting hall was one of the best I've seen on this trip. Talking with WM Strode was awesome and gave me some great incite.

Later he checked me into the Baymont Inn, reminded me he would be back to get me for a dinner prepared by his beautiful
wife, and then left. The Baymont was a very gorgeous hotel with very large rooms that were highly relaxing. So much so I set my alarm, put on ESPN, and went straight to sleep while laying on the couch.

Dinner that night was excellent! WM Strode's wife Tonya made a great southern meal along with a delicious red velvet birthday cake for the occasion.

Much love to MW Sauls, WM Strode and his wife, in addition all the individuals from North Star Lodge #2 That I had the pleasure to meet.

Thank you for truly taking care of fellow brother, I truly felt welcomed!


3/16/13
SoilTrek.com