Snow Laden, Missoula, Montana

Sunday’s sunshine pulled me out of doors to check an item off my to-do list by driving up to Pattee Canyon Campground to see what there was to see. Driving roughly four miles up the road from a main thoroughfare put me in a different world - one of the fascinating benefits of living literally up against national forest lands. No town noises or street lights, the woods quiet all around except for the shush-shusshh of intermittent cross-country skiers. My walk back to the parking area was enhanced by soft reflections of sunset skies painted pinks, orange, and red.
Varied terrain and generous trails hold promise for many more explorations, winter and summer. To be accurate, late summer, after a hot spell drives the ticks further up the mountain. I get up there as much as possible in the winter to avoid all the bugs and miss none of the beauty!