A 72 Year Old Man Is Walking Across Wyoming

Last fall I got a call on the Wake Up Wyoming morning show from a 72 year old man who had begun a walk across Wyoming.

Not all at once.

He was doing it in sections.

His name is Bob Linfield

I chatted with him on air for a bit and he told me he had found Wyoming's state wide radio show when he was looking for something to listen to as he walked.

The way he was doing this was - unique - to say the least.

Since he was alone he would park his car, walk 10 miles, then turn around and walk 10 miles back to his car.

Every day that had good weather would be the next day that he would drive up from his home in Colorado to where he left off is Wyoming.

By the end of the fall he was just past Casper and heading toward Shoshoni, on highway 20/26.

This is BOB! He looks good for 72 doesn't he?

He described to me how many people stop and ask if he's okay and needs help.

After all, there's this old man walking all alone along a Wyoming back highway.

All of those nice, concerned people, restore his faith in humanity.

By this time his wife had gotten nervous about him being out in the middle of nowhere, without cell service, walking alone.

What if the weather turns bad while he's walking?

So this year she's helping.

She drops him off and drives up the road a bit, keeping an eye on him, and providing water and a rest if he needs it.

After each leg they drive all the way back to Colorado.

Bob used to be a computer scientist, before he retired.

Despite that he's not much for social media, or the internet. But someone finally convinced him to put up a Facebook page. You can follow his progress at that link.

He called the radio show again on Monday, May 1st, 2023, to tell me he had made it as far as Shoshoni, and we discussed his rout from there.

During my career as a computer scientist, I often thought about a book I had read called, “A Walk Across America”, by Peter Jenkins. I found it inspiring and thought about doing something similar once I retired. I later read, “The Walk West: A Walk Across America 2”, by Peter Jenkins and Barbara Jenkins, and “Meditations from the Breakdown Lane: Running Across America”, by James E. Shapiro. I also followed along on Steve Vaught’s journey, which he chronicled and dubbed, “The Fat Man Walking”.

Bob began walking to heal a bad knee.

Building some muscle with a show gentle stride did wonders for his knee, and the rest of his health.

Once he started, he just kept going.

After reaching Ft Collins, and then the Wyoming state line and Cheyenne, my goal grew into walking to Bozeman, Montana, where my parents grew up. But the lion’s share of my walk takes place in Wyoming. Ultimately, I will have covered that state from Cheyenne to the West Thumb of Yellowstone Lake.

At the time of that first long walk, I had no idea it would morph into 32 walks by December 7, 2022, and would take me from Thornton, Colorado to Casper, Wyoming. After reaching that milestone, and with shorter days and weather setting in, I had to quit for the winter.

 

Spring is here. The weather has improved and Bob is back on the road.

So if you see an old man walking down the highway, he's probably fine.

Just roll down the window and yell HI BOB!

I've asked him if I can join him for a leg of the walk. He was agreeable. I'll post another story with pictures when we do that.