Missoula, Montana

Flat Stanley arrived in Missoula, Montana on October 8th, 2012 at the Stockdale household.  The Stockdales are a family friend of the Henkes.  They used to live in Carnegie, but moved northwest in 2006.  When Stanley arrived, it was chilly but nice; about 45° and sunny.  

Missoula is a much smaller city than Pittsburgh, but it is the second largest city in the state of Montana!  About 70,000 people live in the city with 40,000 more people living in the surrounding counties.  Many people from outside of Missoula travel there to do business, shop, visit doctors, etc.  Missoula hosts many festivals throughout the year.  They also have an art museum, children's museum, natural history center, and minor league baseball and hockey teams.  

The city of Missoula is surrounded by the Rocky Mountains, and just like Pittsburgh, it has 3 main rivers!  Many people enjoy spending time outdoors in Missoula; going camping, fishing, hiking, hunting, kayaking, bird watching, skiing, and more!  People enjoy the winter activities, and they're ready for snow in Missoula.  They can see the snow on the peaks of the nearby mountains!  

Missoula just hosted the "Shred Fest", which is a festival for snowboarders.  They made their own snow so they could snowboard downtown!  Flat Stanley got to test out the snow, but was sad he left his snowboard in Pittsburgh!  

While in Missoula, the Stockdales took Stanley to their favorite diner for breakfast.  It is called the Uptown Diner.  

They also went to the Missoula Public Library to get books.  Then they walked along the river to "A Carousel for Missoula", which is very special to the town. All of the horses on the carousel were carved by volunteers from Missoula!  Thankfully Eric was kind enough to hold on to Stanley so he could enjoy a ride, too!  They do not have a big amusement park like Kennywood in Missoula, but their carousel is open year round!  

The Stockdales are very happy in their new home in Missoula, Montana, but they miss their old friends and neighbors "back east" in Pittsburgh.  They were happy to have Stanley visit and will be sending us a special treat in the mail! Team Lewis can hardly wait!  

Thank you for taking Stanley on an awesome adventure!  Today it is 80° in Pittsburgh (YES! On October 25th!), so we are glad Stanley could experience some snow!