Montana, Montana

Hey friends! Thanks for checking in.

We are Pat and Michelle, born and raised in Minnesota, and currently taking our 'GAP' year in our 50's. We have decided to leave normal life behind in search of something different... We recently launched full-time travel life in our Brinkley travel trailer with our dogs, Indie and Louie.

Dear Wyoming, We will see you Next Time...

July 21, 2025. We clipped the corner of Wyoming heading out of South Dakota, but didn't stay for any length of time as we were too excited about getting to the KIDS and the mountains, and our favorite place to visit. (Sidenote, we HAVE had a lot of fun in Wyoming the past couple of summers --Jackson Hole, Alpine, The Grand Tetons-- We love you, Wyoming, just had to get to Montana asap this trip!) :)

July 21 - August 11, 2025

Our Montana summer adventure was earlier and longer than usual this year, clocking in at three whole weeks!

Our intentions for this included...

First and foremost, spending some quality time with our kids. Packing up their childhood home and selling most of our belongings took a lot of inner energy and has required us to embrace change in a big way. We were needing a bit of HOME (in the sense of that special place that lives inside your heart, not on a geographical map).

Secondly, we wanted UNhurried time in Montana, something we've never experienced. Typically, we pop in for a long weekend / week at the most and try to cram everything in on full-vacation mode (eating / drinking / spending our way through a flurry of fun) and this trip we did some of that, but also wanted to explore a bit more and spend a different kind of

t i m e, unhurried.

It was a good experiment. We are considering the possibility of landing in Montana once this adventure wraps up and therefore needed time slowed down to see what it would feel like to live (as well as simply play) in the mountains. We did both and loved it!

We are also still trying to figure out ‘life on the road’ logistics and wanted to try some different kinds of camping…in different settings and levels of connectivity. We were completely off-grid for a couple of our Montana adventures. We had full hook-ups right in town for a few chunks of our time. And we tried a couple of things in-between.

{We moved around a lot. Too much!}

We are still learning what we can/cannot live with/without and how much we want to spend for convenience and comfort. I have a feeling it will be a bit before we know our exact formula for success here. We are learning that the perfect formula is something that is different for everyone, so you just have to try a variety of things and observe what is working (or not, haha) along the way.

{Side Story} Our low point was a night where Louie got sick in the middle of the night and we woke up to a mess (think literal shit-show, I’ll let you use your imagination) AND a dead battery (meaning NO water pump, no lights, ugh) The rest of our days were better, and it sure makes you appreciate a working battery, electricity, outlets to power modern conveniences, running water, not to mention cell service and reliable internet! We tell ourselves that it is all learning and gives us the opportunity to practice gratitude for the things we have, when we have them!

On this note, we did decide to jump on the S t a r l i n k bandwagon after talking to several other travelers who have raved about the consistency of internet this has provided them. More on this soon, we will let you know how it is working for us a few states down the line. So far so good, though!

Some highlights of our Montana Summer…

-Caamp at Bridger Brewing in Missoula under the vast Montana sky…just, magic.

-Music on Main with la familia, drinks and woodfire pizza, strolling Main, summer sunshine.

-Climbing Peet’s Hill whenever we felt like it, best in the early morning…followed by Wild Joe’s Coffee.

-Main Street…Country Bookshelf, Heyday, Chalet, Revolvr, ACE Hardware, all the favorite spots! 

-Camping off-grid at Langhor campground on Hyalite Creek, so many trees, so quiet, nature at her best. Visits from the kids…Ella and Gianni camped overnight too. Gianni turned 25! wooHOO.

-Celebrating Sam’s 25th. (How can that possibly be?!) Rooftop drinks in the summer rain. Dinner at Shan was epic, exceptional food served family-style, such a unique vibe - loved the atmosphere, best company possible. Ice cream at Genuine. Favorite, favorite!

- The Garden of Beadin' with Ella…projects, ideas and creative juices flowing!

-Michelle’s stickers now available at Biome in Bozeman…

yippee, LOVEloveLOVE this place!

-Floating the Madison River with Ella and Gianni, the weather was all over the place and we flipped over and lost the cherries but we saved Gianni’s hat and made it out with only a few scrapes. It was one to remember, loved it so much!

-Family dinner at Montana Ale Works.

-Airport sendoff to Ella and Gianni - Switzerland is calling and they must go…

Not to mention taking in the

s m a l l and s i m p l e p l e a s u r e s

like a late-night lightening show in Billings,

watching the sun set with mountain views all around,

hanging at Ella’s new house,

so many dog walks,

listening to the creek at Langhor,

hiking through a meadow of wildflowers,

accidentally ending up at the SweetPea Parade on Main Street,

finding Flathead Cherries at the Farmer’s Market,

lunch at Fink’s,

grilling out and watching the sun set from Sam and Hannah’s balcony while tracking all the flights to/from BZN airport,

Boone kisses, Coffee pie, dock jumping, dog-park playtime..

and really just hanging out and visiting

with the kids about plans and dreams

and work and fun adventures

and future ideas and funny stories

and all the things.

It was just the dose of H O M E we needed to fuel our next stops on this adventure.

We left a piece of our hearts in Bozeman, but it’s alright because before you know it, we will be back! x o x o

Thanks for stopping by to check in on us! :)