Montana, what an amazing state. Though I again only saw a small sliver of it as I zoomed through on my way to meet with friends, I was struck with how empty the Eastern half of the state was. All the beauty and amazing-ness of the state seemed to be confined to the Western half. Greeted with a beautiful sunset and rain storm was a beautiful way to do so. I also slowed down a lot from my previous pace the past two weeks. It reminded me that I am human, and not out just to cram as much as I can into a week, but to also smell the proverbial roses and enjoy this amazing journey I’m on. ]
I’ve been so driven to fill my days, and always go go go, that having a minute to stop, sleep, breath and shower was a huge relief. Playing with Sam, Max’s 2 year old nephew, showed me that just sitting down and enjoying the simple things (rule 32) was one of life’s greatest pleasures. Helping the family to move, though exhausting, reminded me of the hard work that my mom had me doing growing up, and brought back some great memories. Seeing Max and Kristin taught me that I really do have the best of friends, all scattered around the world. Though the time we spend may be short, we will always have the drive for adventure, and will meet up again.
MissoulaFrom spending a few days biking around, to seeing the Saturday morning farmers market, Missoula is a great small-big city. Big enough to have all the necessities and luxuries of a large city, with the quaint feeling of a small town, and walk-able downtown. The river running through its heart and the “outdoors culture/vibe” made me reminisce of what Denver was like as a kid. Finding all the small local shops to eat and relax at was awesome. I may not have set aside a whole day to explore, but I feel like living with a family and running around with them gave me that experience.
A wealth of climbing is not too far from the city limits, with single and multi-pitch aplenty. A huge ice climbing culture, and watersports community. This place feels like the quint essential mountain town, a hidden jewel not far from its famous sibling, Bozeman.
Glacier National ParkAnother national park, and this time, a first as I got to go with friends! Though it was a bit of a rough start with the permits and what not, it was totally worth it. The hiking was beautiful, and the full escape from everything was great. I’ve come to really like backpacking as a way to explore while solo. Though I still love and miss climbing, the chore of finding a climbing partner is rough at best. But being able to load up my pack and walk off for days on end is a great feeling to have, and very empowering. The hike was a blast, and again pushing myself to new limits. It was great to have Max and Kristin along with me, as Max had insisted on driving, I could fully stare out the window at the beautiful landscapes around us.
But with only a small portion of the park seen, I’ll have to return, if not to complete Going to the Sun Road, but then to hike the Many Glacier loop, and maybe actually see some glaciers.
