Friday the 27th July and Frank is still in Colorado and is still in Leadville over 10,000 feet up in the mountains. This old silver mining town was has captured Frank's heart!!

As reported last week Frank is making such good progress reckoning he is now nearly 2/3 of the way along his walk that he has slowed down and so decided to have a "holiday" here, and why not! He is nearly 2 miles above sea level. The views from this town include some the highest peaks in the U.S. amongst the range nicknamed "The Forteeners" (all the peaks above 14,000 feet). He is quite close to some of America's most famous ski resorts such as Aspen, Vale etc and the scenery is some of the most beautiful he has yet seen. He feels he is closer to heaven.

He is staying in a backpackers lodge exchanging stories with other people who are walking, cycling, climbing or running around this range of mountains. He recently went white water rafting on the Arkansas river which is supposed to offer some of the most exciting rapids in Colorado (if not the western part of the US. )

During the mornings whilst it is clear and cooler he has been seeing the tourist sites nearby, the mines and so on. Later on as it the sun climbs in the sky he has caught up with reading as this hostel has a superb collection of books. Due to the altitude the temperature is a more comfortable 75F and this suits Frank as he has put up with a lot of heat before getting here (up to 105F.)

Tomorrow, Frank will walk out of Leadville to climb another 3000ft to a pass between the "Forteeners" after which the route will head back West to the plains and Junction City. The intense heat will return and Frank will have to find his strength and resilience to cover the rest of the trip. We will see how far he has got by next week.