America’s 250th birthday! We celebrated this occasion by sleeping in until 8:30, and then procrastinating going into Missoula until 12. The procrastination wasn’t without purpose however, as Carol and Bill Clark (the couple who took us in last night) prepared a hearty breakfast of pancakes and fruit. After we’d made our way into the city, us trekkers did some window shopping and watched surfers in the Bitterroot River. And, for the 3rd time in a row, Eric Smith showed up! For context, he’s a biker doing the Trans-Am journey using a similar route to ours. For lunch we got food from Cafe Mimosa, which was easily the best we’d had on the entire trip, and for some the whole summer. After taking a dip in the Bitterroot, the trekkers made for Carol & Bill’s place where we enjoyed an incredible hamburger dinner. Once everyone had topped off on ice cream, we climbed a tall hill to watch Missoula’s firework show and reflect on the day.