Thursday, May 13, 2010

Let the Road Trips Begin! Philipsburg, Montana

Today was the last day of the Grandparents' visit, so we decided, even though it was a early in the season, we'd take them on a good, old fashion, Montana road trip. Just in case you've never been to Montana, and aren't sure what a "Montana road trip" entails, let me tell you,



it means a lot of driving.

Our destination for today was the tiny, western town of Philipsburg, and historic Anaconda, "where Main street meets the mountains". It's a lot to tell about all at once, so I'll start with Philipsburg.


It's difficult to go anywhere in Montana without encountering a history lesson.















We found this scene in front of the itty, bitty Philisburg Public Library.


We took a picture of the sign displaying the library hours - just in case any of you have ever been frustrated by inconvenient library hours. Looking through the windows though, we could see the small space is bursting with books, so I have to assume it's better than nothing.

On the other side of the library, where you can see the person going in, in the library picture above, is a bar, which was open - even though many of the other shops in town, including our favorite coffee shop, won't open for the summer season, until this weekend. I guess the town closes down quite a bit during the winter months.

The candy store was open, though.


And, it's pretty impressive. The lighting inside was terrible, but I think the shots below will give you an idea of the children's joy.






It almost made the 300 mile, round trip, drive worthwhile. That, and spotting the moose! But, I'll tell you about that tomorrow (Lord willing).


It's great to be a homeschooler.

8 comments:

Ticia said...

I love statue scenes like that. We've got one that we pass by often for a cattle drive, and I love it.
And I love historical markers.

And finally, I promise I will not complain about my library's hours again, for at least a week.

Anne said...

What a neat tour! Hoping to take my boys on some cool road trips as they get a little older!

Christianne Page said...

What a quaint little library! I love how internet access is available during library hours... I'm guessing they don't have WiFi (or do they turn it off when the close the library)? Looks like a great little field trip - such beautiful country!

Unknown said...

I REALLY want to come and visit your state- small towns and beautiful scenery...LOVE it!

Natalie PlanetSmarty said...

Well, it's definitely not Silicon Valley :) How exciting to almost really go back in time like that. I hope we will visit your beautiful state for real one day.

Natalie PlanetSmarty said...

Lovely pictures! When my parents visited us a few years back for Memorial Day, we drove to Lassen Volcanic Park and found it completely snowed it. Mind you, it was end of May! That's what I like about California as well - the very new lives side by side with very wild and very old.

Debbie said...

What a great road trip and history lesson! I love all the pictures. I miss seeing Moose, they are very neat looking! Thank you for linking up!

Tonya @ The Traveling Praters said...

I loved seeing the pictures and the candy store? WOW! We're hoping to make it out West this fall- if we can arrive before the snow, we're hoping to see Montana. I'll have to remember to be on the lookout for Moose along the roadways! Thanks for linking up- I enjoyed reading your posts. Blessings!:)