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7/18
Gary washed the filthy truck (from all the dust heading for that ghost town) in the morning. We met a couple from Utah parked next to us who were basically on their honeymoon. They have known each other for over 35 years and each had lost their spouses early in 2007. Later that year they married. Bought a big class A motorhome in May and are on their first long trip. We laughed over the idea that if they got through this trip still liking each other, they could weather anything. Very sweet people. We headed for downtown to scout out some places we’d like to visit when John & Ellis arrive next week. We also visited the Missoula County Courthouse, a most imposing & beautiful building in the heart of the old downtown. Taller than most buildings in downtown, its elegant tower is seen from many locations. From any direction you can read the time from one of its four clocks facing the four points of the compass. When it was built, there were eight Edgar S. Paxson murals commissioned to illustrate events important to the history of Western Montana & Missoula County in particular. Paxson was a contemporary of Charles Russell, already written about in an earlier entry. The Paxson murals are so compelling and wonderful. We are distressed because they are placed where there is so much light & possibly direct sunlight that they must be getting damaged. They looked a little faded to me. Paintings that old usually get a bit darker & were often painted in dark hues. Some of these are so light, I can’t help but think they are damaged. This is a working courthouse & does not have anyone to answer the queries of visitors. We found the interior of the courthouse to be neglected & somewhat dirty. Kinda sad. There is a newer annex attached across the back & it appeared to be getting all the attention. Driving back to the RV park we noticed a sight we haven’t seen since we left home. A group of migrating homo sapiens whose trip probably began south of the Mexican border. They were waiting, sitting on a curb, probably for someone to pick them up at the end of their workday. The corner they were sitting on was near some manufacturing plants, Missoula airport (which does have regularly scheduled airlines taking off & landing) & the Smoke Jumper Training Center. Wonder which of these is employing these folks?
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ABOVE: Just thought this little diner with a style from a time long past was kinda cute. Most buildings downtown are difficult to shoot as they are surrounded & obscured by a plethora of poles, wires, street signs, & street lights installed carelessly long after these buildings were built.
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The Missoula County Courthouse. It was built over two years in 1908-10
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Blooming as if they are the happiest things on earth, these daisies are part of the landscape outside the court building
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The interior style of the building is very grand. The rotunda extends upward to an ornate dome. Left: Just after you enter the building, this is what you see. To the left & right at the top of the stairs are 2 of Paxson’s murals.
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The ironclad dome is topped on the outside with the tower I wrote about. In the tower is a 2 ton bell that rings on the 1/2 hour & on the hour. The paintings around the dome’s top were done by various local artists.
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Right: Paxson’s image of the treaty between Governor Stevens and the Salish, Pend d’Oreilles & Kootenais one mile from Missoula in 1855. The large trees pictured are still standing.
Below: Paxon’s view of the July 3,1806 travel day of Merriweather Lewis & various named members of the party on the Bitterroot River.
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Such a pretty church spire spotted near the courthouse. It actually has a bell ready to ring instead of the recorded stuff.
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7/19
We had anticipated this treat all week. The Missoula Farmer’s Market opened with a hand-held big brass bell being rung at precisely 8:30 am. About 75 vendors of food items were smiling & ready for us. Beautiful, beautiful very fresh vegetables, huckleberries, raspberries, & cherries along with the purveyors of jams & jellies of all flavors, made for a colorful display. Some home baked breads, cookies, rolls, as well as 2 retail bakeries, brought out the sweet stuff and one vendor of coffees, smoothies, etc., kept everyone refreshed. We had a great time picking through the stuff and came away with bags of all the good stuff we are supposed to eat. Why is it so much better when bought directly from the person that grew/baked/cooked it? Partly, I suppose, because the fresh stuff is fresher. It is also somehow personal & makes everything probably more attractive than it might be under the lights in a store. There were a couple of ethnic surprises for us. We knew there was a large population of Hmong people here. We didn’t know that some are farmers & were well represented at this market. We didn’t know there is also a large population of Russian people here, some of whom farm. Their women were the ones we noticed selling produce. Their manner of dress and their hairstyles set them a bit apart from the general population. It was fascinating to watch the interplay of the women as they spoke to one another in a language I didn’t recognize. The crowds grew thicker as the minutes rolled by. More & more people thronging to this market. Some only came for a coffee & roll and enjoyed the lovely morning with friends. Some left the market with bags stuffed with produce, cut flowers & potted plants. Really a special morning under the sunny skies of Missoula. We then took a drive to Hamilton, a small city south of Missoula about 50 miles away. We checked out Angler’s Roost campground & made reservations to stay there after we leave this area July 28. A lovely drive marred only by some pretty intense road construction. The Roadhouse is gonna get rattled when we bring her down here.
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Gary always gets stuck carrying the bags! The site of the farmer’s market is at the old train station in downtown Missoula. The market is doing a brisk business.
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Shortly after taking this picture as the market opened up, the concourse was totally filled with people jostling to get to their favorite stand.
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This area at the end of the train station was beginning to fill up with people drinking their beverage & having a baked goodie to go with it.
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People drove their cars, rode their bikes & walked to the market. This enterprising man took flowers & cherries home in the wheeled child trailer on his bike.
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As I mentioned, the marketplace soon got very crowded. At the edge of the market, people began sitting on the curb of the park to eat their goodies. At the center of this picture, we noticed this dog and his man.
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This dog never took his eyes from the iced roll the man has in his left hand. The dog’s nose isn’t but 4 inches away from that roll. He never tried for it, he never slobbered, he never whined, he merely stared. We can only hope his patience was rewarded.
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TO GET TO THE WILD LIFE
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Had to get something for the coach & stopped in at Bretz, a huge RV & Marine dealer. Saw this in the showroom & burst out laughing. We have seen pop-ups coming out the sides & back & even the front, but NEVER the top! This is a brand-new product with its top pop-out, complete with HD TV and comfort seating. The pic on the right shows the stairway to the stars. We thought we’d seen everything, but a 2 story RV? What next? For those of you who want to view your sports in comfort, here ya go!
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