If you’re like me, you’ve already planned most of your summer. You’ve marked each weekend on your calendar from now until the middle of September. There are festivals, camping trips and weddings that must be squeezed into the fleeting sunny months. It flies by, but luckily has only begun.
The beginning of the summer and winter seasons are the best of each. The possibilities seem, even if they aren’t, endless. Jamming it all in is impossible. Something always interferes, like rain, sunburns and unexpected visitors. You must have a plan, then a backup plan.
I habitually write lists. Each weekday morning I jot down what needs to be accomplished within the next 10 hours and I cross the items off as I complete them. I approach the summer the same way. I tape race schedules to my wall and scribble checkmarks next to those in which I expect to compete. Inevitably, I fail to attend at least half of them.
At least the days are long, which helps when you need to catch up on your to-dos. If you missed your planned huckleberry-picking jaunt and a scheduled float down the Middle Fork, no worries. It stays light until 10 p.m. – squeeze them both into one day.
These lists can be daunting and no one wants to waste a sunny weekend. That’s why we began publishing this annual summer guide. We’re here to help you make the most of the season. Whether you’re a weekend warrior, or just want to soak up the sun on an outdoor patio, tape the suggestions in our current issue to a bulletin board and mark the ones you find appealing. Then make good on half of them and don’t feel bad about it.
There’s a number of places I’ve failed to visit and expeditions I’ve failed to complete over the last several years that I’m almost embarrassed to acknowledge. But I will here, so you can collectively gasp.
First, I’ve never been to the Polebridge Mercantile – yes, the same place we featured on our front page two weeks ago. I enter Glacier National Park more than a dozen times a year and have not, since moving here several years ago, traveled north to Polebridge.
I’ve never explored the Yaak or visited the Dirty Shame Saloon, which is in itself a dirty shame. On the rare occasions I head that direction, I traditionally end my trip near Marion, at Little Bitterroot Lake. There would be so much more to see if I just kept driving.
Last but not least, I’ve never floated the Swan River. I’ve spent several days on the Middle Fork and Flathead River, but never the Swan. I’ve been invited multiple times, but those expeditions always interfered with something else.
Each of these will be added to my list this year, but if I mark off two out of three, I’ll consider it a success. This region is vast and, in many ways, we’re lucky it takes so long to explore – often adventuring two days at a time on the weekends and during late summer evenings.
Summer is about to begin, and many of the days off are already spoken for. Life is about to speed up a bit as we head to the lake, the mountains and the farmers markets. My list keeps growing and discussions among friends and family are veering toward whatever events and expeditions rise to the surface. Which ones can we just not miss?
It takes a plan to soak in as much summer as possible. Northwest Montana can pull you in several directions. My marker is out. I’m making a list. I hope to see you all out there.