Colder states have their charm, I guess

Visiting colder states has never been my idea of a “fun” time.

When I see snow pictures I immediately turn back the years to childhood on the farm where snow just increased the work necessary to keep animals fed and as comfortable as possible while also adding chilblains to the “comforters.”

Pictures of Montana normally include shots of snowcapped mountains – even in summer.

I considered packing a heavy coat in our travel bags a couple of weeks ago when Christine and I left Oklahoma to visit our daughter, Ellyn, who lives in Michigan – between Kalamazoo and Battle Creek – and our son, Robert, who lives in Missoula while attending the University of Montana.

Kalamazoo is a Pottawatomi term meaning “the area where animals wounded by Indians crawl to die.”

I was surprised that the May days we experienced visiting in the two states were pleasantly warm.

I checked the temperatures there daily against the weather in Kingfisher and was surprised to find those places had temperatures about the same as those back home. One daytime reading in Missoula was even warmer than the Kingfisher temperature for that day.

Michigan with its rich agriculture and well-established history reminded me of Oklahoma more than Montana did.

We visited the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor for Ellyn’s graduation from Nurse Practitioner school – the main reason for our trip.

In Michigan, Ellyn took us to Holland, a city that emphsizes ts its Dutch heritage with tulips along streets and a tulip park, featuring an original Dutch windmill.

But it was Montana that grabbed my attention. People in Missoula, the state’s second largest city, were observed walking daily, often leading a dog, or riding bicycles, along numerous walking paths that were well-maintained – usually wearing sort-sleeved tops and shorts, in the valley city of 77,757 population. (Helena, a much smaller town farther west, is the capital.)

And, yes, the mountains surrounding Missoula still had snow caps.

Robert said the snow caps sometimes disappear there in late summer.

A favorite Montana summer saying is that the state has three seasons – July, August and winter.

Ellyn describes the two seasons in Michigan as winter and traffic cones – ya know, when the orange barrels are put out in construction zones to remind drivers to be careful of the road crews working to restore the highways after winter damage.

We found the people in both states friendly and welcoming.

That didn’t change my answer when Robert asked me if I was ready to move to Montana. That was a definite “No.”

I told him it might be all right up to Oct. 1. He said I was being a mite optimistic about that. Apparently the heavy snow begins before that.

I thought of the difficulty of climbing one of the seemingly mile high mountains stretching up from the valley floor when it was covered with snow.

Yes, it was beautiful and I observed people – mostly young – on nature walks on the mountain slopes.

You might be interested to know that the average home price in Missoula is $549,000 with many selling much higher, especially those located on a mountainside, providing a scenic view of the valley, which appeared to me to be about a square mile in area.

The average price for a house in Bozeman, Mt., south of Missoula and home of Montana State University is reported to be $750,750.

Yes, billionaire move-ins from California and New York, apparently enthralled by the cowboy aura of the area, have sent property prices soaring. At least, that’s my guess.

Wikipedia describes Missoula this way: It is located along the Clark Fork River near its confluence with the Bitterroot and Blackfoot rivers in western Montana and at the convergence of five mountain ranges, and thus it is often described as the “hub of five valleys.”

The Lewis and Clark expedition stopped at the site twice – going to and coming back from the Pacific ocean in its historic survey of the West.

I checked the cattle herds while touring outside Missoula and found them much the same as here – mostly Angus, black and red. I did see one small Hereford bunch and a sprinkling of white cattle, which I thought might be Chianina.

What we did see a lot of were bands of Mule Deer does, all ragged looking as their winter coats were shedding.

Robert says deer often are seen on the Montana University campus.

I didn’t see a single Grizzly bear, thankfully. Incidentally, Montana U. sports teams are called The Grizzlies.

I’m sure there are many people who would be delighted with Montana’s winter and the cold-weather sports that provides. I didn’t hear any complaints about the cold while we were there, but then the days were beautiful throughout our short visit.