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- Sen. John Curtis walks 250 miles in Utah to celebrate America's 250th anniversary.
- Curtis emphasizes American values during his journey despite low national pride in polls.
- Fireworks are banned in Utah due to drought; Curtis is to finish the walk at Stadium of Fire.
KAMAS – Utah Sen. John Curtis is nearing the end of his 250-mile walk celebrating the 250th anniversary of America's founding.
By Thursday evening, Curtis had walked just over 200 miles in one week. He will finish his journey on Saturday, walking his final mile into Stadium of Fire in his hometown of Provo.
In Summit County on Thursday morning, Curtis told KSL the excursion across northern Utah is his way of celebrating America's 250th birthday
"I think everybody should walk the state at 3 miles an hour," he said. "You get a whole different view, and it's a good view."
250 miles for America 250
Despite averaging roughly 30 miles a day since he started near Bear Lake last week, Curtis said he shockingly has "zero blisters." He stretches, hydrates and loads up on calories.
Each night he sleeps in an RV before waking up each morning to continue his walk through Utah. He has a small security detail in tow ensuring his safety.
"There is a piece of it that is actually like 'Groundhog Day,'" Curtis said, acknowledging it's an unusual way to mark America's 250th birthday. "You see things, you hear things, you smell things that you would never do otherwise."
Curtis, who was elected to the Senate in 2024 after seven years in the U.S. House of Representatives, said his focus during this nine-day journey is on the values of America.
"They're good values. They're values that span right and left in all demographics – family, faith, hard work, patriotism," he said. "All those things that we see in our founders are what I've been seeing the last few days."
Optimism for America
While the senator expresses optimism and enthusiasm for America, not everyone else is. In a recent Gallup poll, just 33% of U.S. adults said they're "extremely proud" to be an American, which is the lowest in 25 years.
Strong pride in America was highest among Republicans compared to Democrats and independents, although even GOP enthusiasm has dropped since last year. Currently, Republicans control the White House, the House of Representatives and the Senate.
"During this walk, I've asked a number of people how they feel about our country, and it's been unanimous," Curtis said. "I think what happens is, when you complicate it with what we call the 'yuck' of Washington, D.C., and some of these big issues, I think that's where these feelings come from."
That's why Curtis said he's trying to focus on something bigger than politics leading up to America's birthday.
"That's one of the purposes of this walk is to get us away from that dialogue that's so divisive — that makes us sometimes uncomfortable with our own country — and remind people really what a special place this is," he said.
They're good values. They're values that span right and left in all demographics – family, faith, hard work, patriotism.
–Sen. John Curtis
Celebrating in Utah
This year's Independence Day celebrations may look a little different in Utah. Gov. Spencer Cox issued an executive order last week banning personal fireworks while giving cities flexibility to designate their own legal areas.
The order came in response to ongoing drought and dangerous wildfire conditions across Utah.
Curtis told KSL he is working on forest management legislation, but he believes Utahns understand they need to "make a few sacrifices" this year to ensure firework celebrations are safe.
"If you're not careful, anything can start a fire right now," he said, while noting the authority cities have to set their own guidelines. "I'm trusting those mayors to make good decisions, and I think if the cities will work with their residents, you'll find that we can all celebrate this in a way that we can have a lot of fun but also make sure we're safe."
There will, of course, be fireworks at Provo's Stadium of Fire, the longtime patriotic celebration where Curtis will finish his 250-mile walk on the Fourth of July.
"I joked with my staff the other night that I might just walk home from the Stadium of Fire," the senator said. "I do live in Provo, and with the traffic I might get there quicker."
