Remembering How it feels to be Content: Bike Missoula

Missoula. Montana. Why have I not discovered this place sooner?

When we finally arrived in Missoula, not only was I excited to be there because it meant a 3-day respite from driving in a car, but also because it is such a neat, unique college town. Without a doubt, it is the most biker-friendly city I have ever been in…the cars stop if they see you about to cross the street and the majority of the major thoroughfares have a bike lane. Many businesses have bike racks outside of their establishments. Leslie and I vowed not to get into a car for the next 3 days and aside from making a trip to REI on the outskirts of town for a new sleeping bag, we stayed true to the vow. We took a tour of campus, and I met a ton of Leslie’s friends whom I had heard about all semester but of course had never met until this point in time. We drank lots of coffee at the many unique coffee shops around town. Without a doubt one of my favorites was “Liquid Planet”, a shop with everything from coffee and sweets to local wines and beers, lots of reading materials, and a general good vibe about it. We literally rode our bikes all day long, to wherever we decided to go. Having spent most of the semester relatively immobile, to find myself riding miles and miles on a borrowed bike through the streets of Missoula with the green and rolling foothills surrounding me, I was more than happy. I explored a bit on my own while Leslie went to work, and this, as usual, turned into an adventure. Luckily Leslie armed me with some great maps of Missoula before she left or I could have become rather lost. I found myself weaving around but ultimately navigating and treating myself to a beautiful sunset on the bridge overlooking the mountains and river that snakes through town.

Leslie and I put our creative skills to work when, upon returning home to her apartment, Leslie realized her roommates had owned most of the kitchen supplies she had been using all summer. We attempted banana pancakes Friday morning using the crockpot warmer plate, oil, and a fork-knife pair turned pancake flipper. Considering our resources, we cooked up some fairly delicious breakfast vittles and even added fresh strawberries to the mix. Visiting the local Saturday Missoula farmers’ market was an experience and yet again another taste of sweet summer--we bought rhubarb and leslie later made a fantastic rhubarb-strawberry crisp.

The river and surrounding foothills complete with a white “M” on the hillside provided some beautiful views and many moments of pause to simply feel content about life. Those 3 days were some of the most beautiful Leslie said she has ever seen in Missoula—we had sun every day and it got up to the mid-80s every day. Glorious summer. Combine that with the ability to do whatever, whenever and it was a delicious recipe for a small taste of summer before heading to Yellowstone, where summer has not yet arrived. I tried huckleberry ice cream at the Big Dipper—a popular ice cream establishment in town and a local Montana flavor. We rode around town many times, and tried to find Rattlesnake Canyon but were largely unsuccessful though it was a good ride nonetheless.

I could easily see myself not only often returning to Missoula but even potentially living there—it has such an attractive vibe to it that one simply needs to experience individually. Everyone seemed so laidback and very outdoor-oriented. I can confidently say that I felt more at home in Missoula than I ever have in Indiana, in the sense that the people I found myself surrounded by were just as adventurous, if not more so, than I am. Corn, flatland, and corporate office buildings may be fine for some but as for me, I seek the clean and pure mountain air, high on life and surrounded with a variety of opportunities and activities with which to occupy my time that there is rarely a dull moment. I taste that in the West. I do not wish to conform to corporate America but rather seek an endeavor that gives me just enough money to love life and experience it to the fullest and allows me to enjoy the great out-of-doors. To finally be free of the car and driving long hours every day, encountering new sights, sounds and smells, was a refreshing feeling.

While traveling the country was quite an adventure and loads of fun, the adventures to come make my heart beat a little faster and I feel that small absent-minded smile I felt flowing through every part of my body while in Chile coming around again. After a long, arduous semester full of a variety of trials and tribulations, to finally feel contentment again is a more than welcome feeling that I am determined to follow and capture. Maybe it’s that new place-traveling-creating new adventures excitement again. Meeting new people, realizing that yet again the world is at my feet to explore. I guess it’s safe to say I am addicted to new places, new people, and squeezing all that I can out of life. So here I am, at it again, stretching to reach the first sweet and juicy peaches of the season from this tree. The winter was harsh, but spring is bringing something great. While traveling through Iowa City I saw a sign that struck me as incredibly true: “If we had no winter the spring would not be so pleasant.” Peace out winter, bring on the spring!

May each of you find your own clear mountain air this week. Keep in touch!

-Katie

p.s. so i never figured it out in chile and im really not sure how i missed the most obvious picture attachment link, but here's a few pictures i took in this enchanted town! (note, okay so there WOULD be pictures if my internet connection was better. i'll work on that)