Tim and Linda took us in a day early at their lovely home in Helena, MT, after our soggy debacle the night before at the north gate of Yellowstone. It was so comforting to hang out our equipment to dry, process two weeks of laundry, revel in hot showers and home cooked meals. We ate it up.
Tim is one of my favorite coworkers, and one of the first Canonical employees I ever met, as he interviewed me in Austin several years ago. Even then, I realized how much we had in common with our respective passions for outdoor adventure.
A week before, we spend the Labor Day weekend rafting and camping along the Snake River south of Jackson Hole, WY. And now, here we are on Tim's back porch, enjoying micro brews and looking over the thousands of acres of public land and national forests behind his house. This first visit of ours to the north country was clearly long overdue.
We hung out on Friday evening with Linda, and their son and his girlfriend who were in town too. Linda made us dinner, a delicious chicken cider stew, and pumpkin bars for dessert! We chatted with Sam and Melanie and Linda about Helena and Montana, and recounted much of our Yellowstone adventure. Tim arrived late that evening, returning from a work trip on the west cost.
Kim and I slept later than we probably should have on Saturday, but a real bed was positively intoxicating.
After our AM caffeine doses, we split up along estrogen/testosterone lines. Kim and Linda visited craft stores, the old town, and lunched at a creperie.
Tim and I hiked six miles, up, down, and around a few of the hilltops...
...descending down Last Chance Gulch...
... and landing on a couple of bar stools at Tim's local watering hole -- a venerable brewery called Blackfoot River Brewing Company. I had a round of tasters and tried to comprehend and obey the local arcane liquor laws.
Kim picked us up, saving us from a long, dark walk home through coyote and black bear country :-)
Actually, that was the plan all along. Tim and Linda had to bolt out for a party, so we hung out with Sam and Melanie for a bit, talking mostly about the wicked ski slopes in the area.
On Sunday, Kim and Linda tried to take a tour train around Helena, which happened to be closed on Sunday. So they settled into Linda's sewing room and Linda captivated Kim with an amazing collection of her handmade quilts. Once again, Tim and I managed to find something else to do. Mountain biking wasn't in the cards due to technical reasons. No matter, we entertained ourselves humping a pair of high-powered rifles back over the hills and blasting away at a half-inch thick slab of plate metal from 250 meters away. [Insert grunting noises here.] We didn't shoot up the sign, though I was intrigued by the abandoned mine it was guarding.
Satisfied with our marksmanship, we dropped off the canons, and hopped on a pair of bikes and rode to the Blackfoot tasting room again. Tim ran into some friends there, made a few calls, and put together an ad hoc backyard barbecue for the evening's entertainment.
And that it was! In addition to us, they also hosted Erin and Mike -- a couple that we met the previous weekend rafting. We grilled steaks and tilapia, while Linda made strawberry shortcake. After polishing off a couple of growlers of Blackfoot, we stayed up *way* too late on a school night.
Monday was a standard work day for me, which was quite comfortable and productive from Tim's digs. Once again, we're staying in the basement. Basements are so damn cool! Jeez, we need to hop on that train in Texas. I, for one, will have a basement in my next house. After work, Tim and I set off for another walk through the hills. The weather was just gorgeous. When we got back home, Linda had made dinner, but in course of doing so, had changed her mind entirely, and all four of us went out to the Mediterranean Grill for dinner; it was delicious, of course. Kim spent her Monday on the tour train, learning about the history of Helena, the gold rush, and Last Chance Gulch. She checked out the mansion district, the governor's mansion, and some of the pioneer miner's cabins.
Work, as usual on Tuesday. But, after work, again, Tim and I set out on a long walk to the far side of the mountains, toward (you guessed it!) the Blackfoot tap room :-)
That evening's hike was far more, erm, exciting, with the small war in the clouds taking place over our heads.
Big black clouds were swirling, thunder rumbled, and a few bursts of lightning flickered in the distance.
I trusted that Tim knew his Montana weather patterns better than I. To my eyes, skies like this over Austin spell hail-and-flooding.
We got damp, but hardly drenched. Just below the rocky outpost of the Mount Helena crag, we met an elder runner from Calgary, and enjoyed a brief chat with him about distance running. Getting thirsty, the Blackfoot below was beckoning us with beer. Their call was irresistible. Linda gave us a lift home, this time. She had made dinner once again, a mouthwatering hamburger soup, and cookies. Tim and I finished the evening with a few racks of pool in the basement, while Kim started a new embroidery project.
I had a productive work day on Wednesday, mostly unhindered by meetings and distractions. Kim cleared a final load of laundry and we packed up and hit the road for Spokane, WA. We spent 5 great nights with the Gardners, and that was after a 3-day weekend camping with them on the Snake River the previous weekend. To Tim and Linda -- thanks so much for having us, sharing your home, touring us around Helena, and perhaps most of all, for all of the home cooked meals :-) Your hospitality is so much appreciated. We can't wait to get back to Montana!
:-Dustin
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