More of Montana (Part 1)

Once we arrived in Missoula, I had three days to enjoy with my mother and sister before they had to return to the Eastern time zone. The first day was spent doing major unloading, returning the Budget truck, and napping.

On Tuesday, August 4 we did a little campus exploration, including a trip to the bookstore, and then we decided to check out Lolo Pass. We had planned on bringing lunch, but our start was slow. Still tired from all of that traveling! In any case, we headed south out of Missoula on Route 93 to Lolo, and then turned west on Route 12. This is the route followed by Lewis & Clark through the Bitterroot Mountains (and back again). (There is quite a bit of L&C info available - brochures, signs, etc., but I'm not familiar enough with the story to share any meaningful info. Sorry Nancy E-S!). We did stop at a few of the turn-outs to read the signs, and also learned about the "freak" windstorm that blew down many of the trees leading to the pass.

The pass (5233') is located virtually on the Montana-Idaho state line. Add another state and a fourth time zone (Pacific) to our list for this trip! The Lolo Pass Visitor Center is in Idaho. It is a very nice rest stop and interpretive center. Wetland meadows are found here at the pass, and there's a nice, short trail through the area adjacent to the visitor center. There were many different plants and wildflowers to look at - my apologies again for not being able to identify them (Nancy E-S?). I need to pick up some field guides for the area. I have more photos, but this gives you the idea:

After leaving the visitor center, we headed back to Missoula. On the way we stopped to dip our toes in a small river. Excellent on a 90 degree day! Later on, back in Missoula, Susan and I headed to dinner. We tried the Iron Horse Brew Pub, one of many pubs and breweries in the area. It was excellent, but I doubt I'll go often on my TA salary! Missoula has many local breweries: Big Sky (makers of "Moose Drool" brown ale), Bayern ("Dancing Trout"), and Kettle House ("Fresh Bongwater" pale ale, I'm sorry to say). This will be a difficult place to be a geology grad student.