VACATION DAY 1 & 2

Day 1: Missoula

VACATION!!! I was actually able to get up before the sun on a Saturday since we were on vacation. Joe was already up and had the truck packed before I could drag myself out of bed. We hit the road by 6am and were ready for the long drive to Missoula. It was a normal rainy day in Seattle but as soon as we entered central WA it was beautiful and sunny so our moods were lifted. In Eastern WA as we were driving a bird played tag with the truck and lost, when we stopped for gas we checked out the damage and the poor bird was twisted up in the grill of the truck so Joe had to do surgery to get it out. That darn bird hit so hard that it actually did a little damage to the grill.
Selena did a wonderful job on the drive, the first two hours were a little rough but we got out at a rest area and she ran around and pooped that what was bothering her. After the poo she was just fine.
We reached Missoula and did some food shopping before making our way to Clinton, 15 miles East of Missoula. We camped at Ekstrom and it was a very rustic kind of place. Joe hates camp grounds but since we had five days of camping a head of us I told him one night at a camp ground wouldn’t kill him. We were actually the only tent set up, there were some camp trailers on the other side of the property but the tent sites are in the back along the river and it was just us. There was a biker rally and classic rock concert going on about a mile up the road so we didn’t get a lot of sleep with the music lasting until 2am but heck its vacation.

Day 2: The Hike

The morning we woke up was very cold but sunny, after not getting a lot of sleep I was having a hard time actually getting out of the sleeping bag but when Joe brought coffee to me I was up. It was fathers day and Selena and I had picked up the book by ultimate fighter Chuck ”Ice Man” Liddell. Joe loves ultimate fighting. Joe cooked his own fathers day breakfast because he is a much better cook than me.
By 10am it was warm enough for shorts and we set off to explore Missoula and went to the Lolo Pass area. After driving up the pass and checking out the lodge we headed back down to find some hiking. Now Joe and I love hiking and do it quite often but there are two little contraptions we never need to take with us while hiking back home. A gun and bear spray. I didn’t know there was such thing as bear spray but it is explained as pepper spray on steroids, I had read the pamphlet the night before and that could have been another reason that I didn’t sleep well and had bad dreams. So with the monster on my back all 35 lbs with the pack, her, food and water and Joe with the gun on one side and the bear spray on the other we were ready for a family hike. Although the thought of running into a bear and actually having to use the spray may have clouded my enjoyment of the hike. When we got back to the car Joe actually said he was disappointed that he didn’t get to shoot the gun or use the spray. Ummm, sure, okay Joe.
We then headed back to camp to do a little fishing and Selena’s favorite rock throwing before eating burgers and enjoying the evening sun. This time there was no music, just the peaceful sound of the river and birds chirping.