MISSOULA & BITTERROOT VALLEY

MISSOULA & THE BITTERROOT

The Salish word from which ‘Missoula’ is derived translates roughly to “river of ambush/surprise,” a reference to the inter-tribal conflicts that often happened in the area. Today, Missoula only reflects that history as a captivatingly pleasant surprise: a thriving college town of 73,000 people buzzing with community minded energy, and yet just minutes from the solitude and adventure of the Montana wilderness. Both culture and adventure thrive here, even in the heart of town: kayakers surf Brennan’s Wave on the Clark Fork River while, just blocks away, locals and visitors stroll the unique shops and restaurants of the “Hip Strip,” the thriving downtown business district.

For those who like just a little more wilderness in their Montana, the Bitterroot Valley is home to eight charming small towns along the scenic stretch of Route 93 south of Missoula. Located between the mountains of the SelwayBitterroot and Anaconda-Pintler Wilderness Areas, the Bitterroot offers a combination of small-town charm and rugged natural beauty, from Stevensville in the north to Sula at the southern end. Charming Hamilton, with its historic downtown, anchors the valley as the county seat, but all of these towns are growing and thriving, thanks to their deep community roots and their proximity to Missoula’s opportunities and economy.

WHERE THE WILDERNESS MEETS CULTURE AND CHARACTER

THE GRAND DAME OF MISSOULA’S MUSIC SCENE

THE WILMA THEATER HAS BEEN CENTER STAGE SINCE 1921

Edna Wilma was a star of the northwest vaudeville circuit in the early 1900s when she caught the eye of Billy Simons, an entrepreneur who produced Wild West shows and ran a thriving theater empire. They got married, moved to Missoula, and in 1921 built the Smead-Simons Building, an eight-story skyscraper (as Montana buildings go) on the banks of the Clark Fork River that featured apartments, offices, a cafe, and an Olympic-sized swimming pool in the basement—Missoula’s first indoor pool. The building’s showpiece was the gorgeous, gilded Wilma Theater, a Louis XIV-style palace theater with a pipe organ and seating for over 1,000.

The Wilma—as the entire building quickly became known—was built just as silent movies were becoming popular, quickly replacing vaudeville as the preferred entertainment for the masses. From its earliest days, the theater was home to both live entertainment and movies: the first live performance, the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, took place on May 11, 1921, just two days before the first film, The Mask of Zorro, starring Douglas Fairbanks, was shown. Even though the vaudeville circuit faded from popularity, Edna Wilma, who was known as a “light opera” singer, performed in the theater and the cafe throughout her life and was an active member of the Missoula community until her death in 1954.

Today, the Wilma remains both a sentinel of historic downtown Missoula and the beating heart of the city’s burgeoning live music scene. The modernized theater retains the gilded charm of the original while also offering an intimate, world-class concert experience that landed it on Pollstar’s list of the top 100 clubs in the nation. A show at the Wilma is a chance to be up close with anyone from an up-and-coming band to a big name: Ben Folds, The Shins, and Lyle Lovett have all graced the stage in the past few years.

The University of Montana and its 10,000 students also routinely draw the biggest names in music for shows at the Adams Center, which does double duty as a concert venue and the school’s basketball arena. Headliners have included Pearl Jam, Bob Dylan, and Elton John, to name just a few of the star-studded performers to come through town. In 2017, Missoula added an outdoor venue to its live music options with the 4,000-person Kettlehouse Amphitheater, just nine miles east of downtown, providing the opportunity to experience world-class artists under the endless horizon of a Big Sky summer.

A FESTIVAL OF FUN

SUMMER CELEBRATIONS IN THE BITTERROOT VALLEY

Small-town life doesn’t get any better than on festival days. Old friends come home, neighbors gather together, and everyone enjoys the nostalgic fun of a Main Street parade or a good old-fashioned pie auction.

Festival season in the Bitterroot Valley kicks off with Stevensville’s Western Heritage Days in June, celebrating the town’s claim to fame as the oldest permanent settlement in the state. Events continue throughout the summer’s sunny weekends, including Strawberry Days in Darby, which has raffled strawberry shortcakes, fishing trips, and other prizes as a fundraiser for the town’s fire department for decades. Stevensville is also the home of the Creamery Picnic, a 111-yearold event celebrating the town coming together to rebuild the Bitterroot Cooperative Creamery after a devastating fire in 1911.

PHOTO CREDIT TOP & BOTTOM: PERRY BACKUS

Many of the valley’s other festivals happen in and around Hamilton, the county seat, including the Bitterroot Celtic Games, Hardtimes Bluegrass Festival, and Daly Days, named for copper king and Hamilton founder Marcus Daly. The season wraps up in October with the Mcintosh Apple Day Festival, named one of National Geographic’s Best Fall Events in Montana, which has expanded to also include the Liquid Apple Night hard cider festival. Mark your calendar for one—or more—weekends of small-town fun at its finest in the Bitterroot Valley!