Welcome to VISIT MISSOULA

By MARGARET DEWILLIAM HORTON

Let me tell you a bit about myself. Right up front it’s probably best I let you know that I reside in the suburbs of a large and busy city in the somewhat rainy, but green Pacific Northwest. That I’m not a Missoula local or even a Montana native.

What I am, however, is a frequent visitor to this beautiful city and the surrounding area and each visit has kept me coming back time after time for years. In fact, the sum total of great experiences and memories gave me the idea to write a blog about it. When I contacted Make It Missoula, they thought it sounded like a pretty OK idea, so that said….here I am.

Throughout the coming weeks I’ll share details, photos and stories that refer to the time I’ve been able to spend in the Garden City. Some are more personal, some not. Although my natural impulse is to get into a long conversation, talk at length and tell you all about it right now, for the purposes of having something to post each week, I really shouldn’t.

I will let you know that although occasionally I come here by myself or with a friend, my usual traveling companion is my husband, Marc, so you’re bound to hear a few things about him and what he thinks, as well. We travel well together, look for similar things in new places and have fun. As a pair we’ve been coming to Montana for about 28 years and separately much longer than that. He lived in Helena for four years while he went to school. I’ve been visiting places in Western Montana since I was pretty young for one reason or another.

I’ll also let you know that one of the reasons we currently visit is that two of our three sons live here in town. I’d love to introduce you to them and that could definitely be a possibility in the future……but for now I won’t invade their privacy, no matter how very tempting it is to mention their names and fill you in on what they’re up to.

Having worked in the field of teenage and young adult parenting (….as their parent) for the last few years, I know how very much they would hate that without me obtaining a detailed release-of-information first. And then it would just be too awkward every time I came to visit…..wondering if they would choose to see me or not. So for now…let’s just say I have three sons, two of them chose Missoula as a place to live and all of us are pretty happy that they did.

Now that you know some things about me, I’m hoping to find out a bit about you and so would really love it if you left responses to my posts in the way of comments, questions, ideas or suggestions.

Let me know…are you a local Missoulian? A want-to-be local Missoulian? Someone who has not yet visited, a frequent visitor like I am or a frequent visitor who wishes they could live here? Are you considering making Missoula a trip or vacation destination or will it be a quick, fun stop on your way to one of the National Parks or stunning recreation areas in the state? Do you frequently make road trips on I-90 and choose Missoula as an interesting place to stop for the night?  I look forward to sharing my experiences and hearing about yours too, so please do share.

Until next time,

Margaret

If you enjoyed this Visit Missoula entry and think you know someone else who would, please do link and share! If you’re interested in using the written piece or photos for any other purposes, please contact its author, Margaret DeWilliam Horton at thisfriendlyvillage@gmail.com. She will be more than happy to help you out with that. Peace!

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Margaret is a writer, photographer and mom who lives in the rainy but green Pacific Northwest. She has been a frequent visitor to Missoula and the surrounding landscape for many years and knows that a part of her lives there as well. Please stop in to find out about her visits and why she looks forward to coming back each time. Hopefully it will make you want to visit as well. You can find out what else she’s been up to, thinking about and take a look at more of her photos on her website at www.thisfriendlyvillage.com