NEW HAVEN, Conn. (WTNH) – It is not a great day for walking, but Senator Chris Murphy kept going anyway. He better. He is trying to walk all the way across the Connecticut this week.

“It’s been an amazing trip so far,” Murphy said. “I’ve met so many people, visited so many places that I would never have encountered if I wasn’t walking across the state.”

He started Monday in Voluntown, on the Rhode Island line.  Along the way, he has been stopping and chatting. He’s also been posting lots of pictures and video on social media to document the trip.

He says people are much more open and honest when he’s not wearing a suit and tie.

“I think about a guy I met yesterday in Clinton who is working 50 hours a week,” Murphy remembered. “He’s got 4 kids. One of them is blind, another with serious autism. He can’t afford to put food on the table.”

Murphy made it to New Haven on the first day of September, which is when the city tries to encourage people to walk more…or ride a bike, or take a bus, anything except getting into a car. It’s called the car free challenge. Last September, Go New Haven Go got almost 500 people to give up their cars, eliminating about 50,000 miles driven. This year, they’re trying to double that.

“We’ve got great resources for employers on how to think outside the car, how to get tax benefits,” said Doug Hausladen, New Haven Transportation Director. “This is a free resource for employers and employees to get around downtown.”

Senator Murphy can now attest to the benefits of walking to work.

“It makes you feel great,” Murphy said. “Every morning I have sort of a natural high that you don’t get when you go immediately into a car”

Murphy’s plan is to make it to Bridgeport tonight, then somewhere around Darien Friday night, finishing up in Greenwich Saturday morning