It’s a “down” day so we did dishes, laundry and went grocery shopping in preparation for going north. We need more “down” days. The day is filled with chores. Little time for reading or relaxing. We’re working on this!
Smoke from nearby fires fills the air and hides the neighboring hillsides. Yesterday, driving along Hwy 200, there was smoke and flames near Thompson Falls from a fire that’s been burning for over a month. So, we decided to visit the Missoula Smokejumpers Visitor’s Center.
MISSOULA SMOKEJUMPERS VISITOR’S CENTER: It’s an awesome tour. They explain what they do, how they do it, what training is required then take you around their facilities. We didn’t realize that they make a lot of their own equipment and patch a lot of their parachutes and equipment with heavy-duty sewing machines. When they are not training or jumping, they are exercising to stay physically fit, practicing maneuvers or packing equipment. Part of the tour takes you INTO (!!!!) the jump plane where you find out how they actually jump out of the planes into a forest filled with fire!
UNIVERSITY OF MONTANA: The University of Montana is in Missoula. It’s a very big part of this city and it’s culture.