RocketDog Comes Home!

The small dog is Vinny, a Montana Jack Russell terrier and not the naming inspiration for our new/old VW Vanagon; we call the van RocketDog. That's because it is neither a rocket (we wind it out at about 60-65 mph) nor a dog, in the pejorative sense (it is terribly cute -- all tricked out, above, for a first showing to friends). When Vinny and his buddy Tigre come sniffing this new fellow "dog," we say sternly, "No Dogs!" Kind of funny, but they obey.

Here is the van in Missoula, on pick-up day, a week ago yesterday...

...and here it is from another angle, that day. The boys with their toys are, at right, my husband Alex, at left, Scott Quinnett, restorer extraordinaire of vintage VWs via dragonflyvans.com. He is based out of the Missoula airport. He rents a fleet of restored vans there in the summer to folks who fly in and want the luxe-vintage experience of camping in Glacier and Yellowstone national parks. Over this past winter, Scott restored this van for us. He'd found it -- a 1990 -- rust-free in Montana and was looking for a client. Now, with new engine, new transmission, new fuel lines, new brakes,  raised chassis, new pop-top, new truck fridge, new bumpers, new tires, new awning -- it cost us way less than it would have on the pricey West Coast. Follow Scott on his Facebook page. It's a trip, literally.

One of our first outings is up on Milner hill, with friends Kelsey and Eric. The awning takes a bit getting used to. But it's a beautiful addition, a whole new room under which to arrange fold-up camp chairs and a little table.

A detail of the awning (from Fiamma.)

Again a bit of the kitchen, plus the backseat. The seat pulls forward a few inches and then folds back to meet another big rectangle of foam behind it...

...We plan to camp out next week on it as it is, with a duvet or two added for comfort. But in two weeks, we get our own custom-made, cotton-and-wool futon to go on top of the foam, from the Missoula shop Small Wonders Futons. (Above is a peek into their workroom.)

Here is the van today, minus pillows and old rug. Scott came up yesterday to fix a leak in the sink,
and brought us not only new signature Dragonfly carpeting for rear and...

 

...front, plus mats on top...

...but also a snap-on rear screen to keep out bugs (bears? I think we'll close up tight in bear country).

Meanwhile, neighbors Dave and JoAnn gave us this lovely camper van book, as we all sat under our awning and sipped a little wine.

I bought commemorative Hendrix stamps in honor of my almost-hippie days. This van is reminding us a bit of that time.

Happy little hippie chic, eh? Check out Alex's '70s look...

... One part scary to two parts mellow. He was/is the real deal and deserves this van, right? We both do!!! More to come after our first camping trip.

A Wildflower Walk

We take a first spring walk up Blodgett Creek Trail in nearby Blodgett Canyon. And we see wildflowers galore. Just in this one patch are: the sunflower cousin Arnica cordifollia, or Heart-Leaf Arnica with bright yellow ray flowers on 6-to-12-inch stems;  Castilleja rhexifolia, or Common Paintbrush with scarlet clusters of flowers;  and the beginning blooms of Lupinus sericeus, or Silky Lupine with whorls of purple flowers on very erect stalks.  What a privilege to have your path edged with such beauty.

Trillium ovatum, or simply Trillium, is one of the first mountain flowers to bloom in spring. Its showy white flowers have faded to pink by the time we see it.

When we look up from the trail, we see craggy peaks to the north...

...and still more crags. We scope the scree with binoculars, hoping to see wildlife. And yet, all is still and severe in its beauty.

Back on this often shaded, duff-strewn trail, it's a quiet, contemplative walk.

A Fragile Fern (Cystopteris fragilis) catches my eye as it thrives on shallow, rocky soil.

So does a pale Blue Clematis (Clematis occidentalis) as it starts its vining habit.

We love getting high enough on the trail to get a peek into more than a million acres of roadless, protected Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness.

Finally, we stop for a snack where the creek meets the trail. It is much calmer than the downward-falling stream below. But still, it is gorgeous!

March of the Democrats

"I tell you, it's so good to see Democrats out marching in Ravalli County," the old gentleman said to us, after yesterday's parade. That's my "Proud to Be" button with an American Legion poppy.

We loved marching in the Corvallis, MT, Memorial Day Parade! There were vintage cars and bag pipers,  bikers,  costumed dogs, massive fire trucks and quirky floats galore. Main Street of this small dusty town was packed three deep, with children in front to collect the giveaways -- mostly candy, sometimes tiny American flags.

And of course, there were politicians. We walked behind the car of Clint Burson, Democrat who's running for County Commissioner in District 4 (a seat now occupied by right-wing Republican Jeff Burrows). Clint is a young Montanan, full of a love for the environment plus plenty of ideas for righting wrongs in recent Republican-dominated goings on in the county.  Vote for Clint! (And, St. Louis friends, he is a copy editor at the Lee-owned Ravalli Republic newspaper -- with full approval of his candidacy by his superiors. He may be out of a job, anyway, in the fall, since Lee apparently is moving its newspaper design desks to three centralized locations -- one of them is not Montana.)

Mark West (great name for a Montana candidate, eh?) is the Democrat running for County Commissioner in District 1, a seat now occupied by the right-wing Republican Ron Stoltz.

Mark, too, is a supporter of the forested, local environment and showed that in one of his two vintage trucks, full of young trees in the back and hanging baskets on the rear-view mirrors. Nice touch!

Another marcher, for Mark.

Nancy Schneider (D) brought a truck full of family members with signs to campaign for House District 86 seat occupied Ron Ehli (R).

Veteran marchers practiced...

Young cowboys huddled...

And local businesses touted their wares (cider, in this case, from Swanson's Mountain View Apple Orchards).

We were told that no horses, mules (elephants? -- large animals, in other words) would be allowed to befoul the parade this year. And yet...

...Some Republican managed to get poop (horse) on the streets. No surprise there, I guess!

Mornin' Missoula

I take my 11-year-old Subaru to Missoula for servicing. The day happens to be on one of the sunniest, most beautiful so far this spring.  I'd made a reservation at the estimable Kent Bros. Subaru for an oil change, tune up, new wiper blades, the works, and I leave the car there early and walk. And walk. And walk. 

Missoula is just waking up as I start walking. Windows get washed. Much coffee is consumed (I myself sit for a few minutes with a latte and scone, at Le Petit Outre bakery.) Folks everywhere seem to be slowly shaking off a night's sleep and getting out into this day. Many stores don't even open until 11 or noon.  

But bright, beautiful vintage-looking new fabric is out on display as I trek past a favorite haunt, Selvedge Studio. (Today, May 16, is part of their annual sidewalk sale -- 30% off of everything, in case you're interested!)

                                                                           

And "surf" is up in the Clark Fork River that runs under a long bridge into downtown. Who knew?

I take a quick, angled photo of the beautiful and historic Wilma theater, trying to make it look hip. It doesn't need my help for that! I walk onward to the St. Patrick's Hospital doctor's office building, where I have an annual checkup with my internist. I walk back the same route to Kent Bros. It's almost three hours later and car's still parked in the same place. Grr.

Oh well. Many folks have Subarus hereabouts. I'm not in a rush. I tell them that I'm walking to Caffe Dolce for lunch and will check in later.

And I do get to Dolce at a primo time. The lunch crowd at this popular place is thinning. I grab a table, place an order for a salad with grilled, wild-caught Alaska salmon, people watch and hook into their excellent WiFi.

Ambling back to Kent Bros. on Higgins -- the so-called Hip Strip -- I drop into Habitat Floral Studio for a look at garden accessories.

I'm in love with concrete containers right now and almost buy some, but Kent Bros. calls and my car is ready. Hooray. I'll get back to Habitat someday soon. I get the car; it's a bargain. They checked everything out, and I don't need a tune-up for another 10,000 miles, just the oil change, wiper blades and a quick going over. I drive off to the eye doctor for a ten-minute exam. Then on to the Good Food Store, a 40-year-old establishment that started as a small, crunchy-granola emporium and now is all grown up and wonderful. By this time, I'm tired and ready to drive the 40 miles south to home in Hamilton. At least, on this stellar day, I get a big dose of exercise and manage to avoid the congested highway that leads to Costco and Target. All in all, a great trip to the Garden City. (Except that I missed driving to another favorite spot -- Garden City Garden Supply; twist my arm and I'll drive back to Missoula very soon.)

Oh, I missed telling about one final wonderful thing that I just read about this town. Here's what happens some spring and summer nights when college kids and others dance the night away on the streets of Missoula.

Vantana

In winter,  these little loaves-of-bread look-alikes are part of a fleet of VW Westfalias in storage, rented out in summer by Dragonfly Vans based at the Missoula, Montana, Airport. We are so lucky to have come across this business, because...

Missou
...we are in the process of buying a fully restored 1990 Westy Vanagon from the mechanic/entrepreneur/owner of Dragonfly, Scott Quinnett.  Whoop! We've long wanted a VW pop-top camper van. We started looking in earnest when we moved to Montana. How else to explore this spectacular state than with a warm, off-the-ground, stand-up-inside, kitchenette-included, bear-proof(!) camper? We even traveled to Portland to look at uber expensive Roadtreks, complete with shower and toilet in their shiny new, small Sprinters with Mercedes engines. Too rich for our blood, not to mention too low to the ground for exploring Forest Service roads. So online, we saw that Scott was looking for folks who wanted a complete restoration of a classic van that he'd purchased. He wanted to fill his off season -- winter and early spring -- with a substantial project. We bit!

Right in our own backyard, metaphorically, was Scott (in van, above; he also has cameos in the Missoula-made documentary The Bus and is featured in several stories in The Missoulian about his and wife Rachelle's move of their 17 vehicles over wintry mountain passes from Coeur d’Alene to Missoula).

The original engine from our van -- a goner.

Shiny new (rebuilt) shrink-wrapped engine from the California company GoWesty; it specializes in parts for and restorations of these classic old vans.

Empty housing for our van's engine, and...

...new engine installed weeks later. Whoop!

The van is making its way to a body shop this week for buffing and partial painting.  Besides a new engine, Scott has installed amazing new brakes and shocks and is raising the chassis. In his shop, ready for further work, is a new, three-window pop-top, new curtains, new bumpers, a new high-tech refrigerator and a new,  crank-out 10-foot-long awning. We'll be ordering a hand-made futon from Missoula's Small Wonders Futons to supplement the fold-down bed.

Our last view of the van (last week) before final work. Scott estimates an ETA of May 15!!

We plan on tricking out the interior ourselves, with an old Oriental rug, paisley duvet and my Peter Max pillow among other hippyfied fabrics and items. Above a basic Westy floor plan: (1) swivel driver and passenger seats; (2) swing-out table; (3) rear seat; (4) sink; (5) two-burner propane stove with refrigerator underneath; (6) counter over storage; (7) wardrobe; (8) folds down bed over more storage (think rolled up futon during the day, fishing equipment, camp chairs, wine collection). Hey, we are pumped!!! "After" photos coming soon! Oh, and we'll name this thing. Scott suggests it. Vantana (get it? Van + Montana) was one of our early choices. We're now joking about RocketDog (this van's neither a rocket nor a dog). That one may stick. So excited!!!!

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P.S. Not all is perfect in Vanland. Yesterday, Tues. May 6, we learned that a first outing to Spokane got called off as a result of transmission problems. "Oh no," we said to each other. There were a few moments of gloom and doom. Then we quickly regrouped, contacted our new best friends at GoWesty and arranged to have a 5-speed transmission on its way to Dragonfly. Now EVERYTHING has been replaced, and nothing else can go wrong, right? At least our little RocketDog got out of the shop and to a gas station (see Scott's photo, below).