Distance today = 54.10 km; Total distance = 5669.05 km; Location = Cherry Valley – 39 14.218′ N, 104 41.764′ W; Start time = 0819, Finish time = 1619

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/172306438

It’s easy to tell that I’m on the eastern side of the Rocky Mountains. The landscape now is in stark contrast to the desert-like vegetation I’ve been running by this past couple of months. Today was a mix of mountain streams, rolling hills, rustic farming country, and pine forests that afforded me cover from the strong winds which blew up as the day progressed.

I ran out of Colorado Springs this morning on a bike path that hugged a fast flowing stream. This stroke of luck was thanks to Mark, a local who was going to run with me during the morning but got caught up with work commitments. He called me instead and told me about the path.

The latter part of the morning was a steady climb of 500 metres, much of it through a lovely forest. At the top of the climb I exited the forest into an exposed area, only to realise there was a gale blowing (the forest had totally protected me from the wind).

However, as I descended again, I picked up a bit more cover from the rolling hills, and the conditions became more pleasant. The last part of the day reminded me a lot of the region between Neville and Newbridge, south of Bathurst in New South Wales. Admittedly, there was a lot more traffic, and I was three times higher in elevation, but the landscape was very similar to look at.

As the ever alert JD noticed yesterday, I was approaching 50 km of cumulative vertical ascent for the world run so far. Well, I passed that milestone today. That means I’ve almost climbed the equivalent of six times from sea level to the top of Mount Everest. I wonder how many more Mount Everests I’ll climb before the end of this endeavour?

Anyone who has been following the tracker will have noticed that it is working regularly again. This is because I have had T-Mobile reception since hitting Colorado Springs yesterday. I expect this to be the case for at least the next few days.

Distance today = 46.64 km; Total distance = 5715.69 km; Location = Aurora (Denver) – 39 35.080′ N, 104 43.611′ W; Start time = 0845, Finish time = 1528

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/172643712

Today was a tale of two halves. I began in lovely farming countryside, although it was very cool, requiring a jacket and gloves. The road was very quiet, and I passed more cyclists than motorists.

As the day heated up (and I discarded my jacket – picked up by the support crew), so did the traffic. As I approached Denver, the country roads I was on gave way to suburban roads, and that’s never a particularly pleasant environment to run in. Perhaps it was the less stimulating surroundings, but I certainly did it a lot tougher this afternoon than I did during the morning.

I finally reached my destination – the home of Peter, brother of the famous Roger “Chook” Evans. You may remember that Roger, and his other brother, Don, have very kindly provided us with the use of a car while we’re in North America. Tonight Peter has provided us with accommodation, for which we’re very appreciative. Thanks Pete.

Distance today = 50.91 km; Total distance = 5766.60 km; Location = Golden – 39 43.340′ N, 105 11.481′ W; Start time = 0850, Finish time = 1622

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/174235487 (retrospectively added)

Before I begin, I’d like to thank Peter Evans once again for the wonderful hospitality that he and his daughter, Vicki, showed us last night and this morning. It was very much appreciated.

I wasn’t really looking forward to running today. Denver is a nice city, but it has lots of suburbs, and I’ve been running through suburbia for the past 30 years (minus the last four months, of course). But if you’re going to run through suburbia, do it on a Sunday and do it in Denver.

It was actually a very pleasant run. The weather conditions were perfect and I found a cycle path along a small river in the centre of the city. I passed hundreds of cyclists, which is indicative of a good city. I even passed right by the Denver Broncos new stadium – very impressive.

The afternoon entailed a long section along West Colfax Avenue. This road reminded me a lot of Parramatta Road in Sydney, heading west out of the city towards the mountains, and replete with numerous used car yards and fast food outlets.

It’s always good to be surprised by having a nice run when you think it is going to be a hard day to get through. The only downside is that you then start to think all days can be like that, which is wishful thinking.

As was the case about ten days ago, the Garmin data will not upload to the link. I’m not sure if I’m doing something wrong, or if it is some bug in the computer. The data is sitting there (as it is with the previous case), but simply won’t upload. Hopefully one day someone can get it sorted out for me and eventually upload this data, for completion’s sake.

Distance today = 42.89 km; Total distance = 5809.49 km; Location = Boulder – 40 03.586′ N, 105 16.985′ W; Start time = 0912, Finish time = 1522

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/173445044

A relatively short day – a little over a standard marathon, which just happened to be distance between towns – saw me in a little earlier than normal.

I am now in Boulder, which is a town with quite a bit of history. Boulder has been the temporary home for a quite a few great athletes seeking a pleasant location to embark upon altitude training, including Rob de Castella in the 80s. It’s also the setting of the TV sitcom Mork and Mindy, as well as being a favourite town of many people, including Lamar North.

It really lives up to what I’d heard about the place, and even has lots of houses in the style of Mindy’s. There are also heaps of cyclists, although I didn’t see too many other runners. All in all, though, it’s great to see so many people getting around under their own steam. That’s the sign of a city that’s already living in the future.

Boulder is also the home of the US National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL). As those who are familiar with me know, I have been involved in renewable energy technology development for the past couple of decades. Tonight I’ll be catching up with a friend or two from NREL, who I’ve gotten to know over the past few years.

Today was a milestone day – I passed the 5,800 km mark, which means I have now reached 20% of my journey around the world, and within four months too. Wow, it’ll be over before I know it.