Historically speaking, the flooding this spring was not the worst Missoula has ever seen. It is, however, the worst anyone in living memory has ever known. In 1908, the Clark Fork River rose to 17.4 feet and, among other things, swept one of Missoula’s central bridges towards the Pacific Ocean. This year, the Clark Fork peaked at 14.3 feet and, while all of the city’s bridges remain intact, the effects of the flooding were felt throughout the floodplains.
When the river transitioned from its usual full to bursting in May, Missoula called for action and the response was overwhelming. Several companies donated sand and empty bags. Thousands of people volunteered to fill them. The Facebook page Missoula Flood Support popped up overnight and, after scanning locations which needed help one evening, my husband and I joined a long line of volunteers at Mallard Way. There, we carried and stacked sandbags for over three hours - building a retaining wall which eventually saved several homes from the rising swell of the river.
I was astonished to see the power of social media at work as pallets of sandbags and truckloads of volunteers kept coming. I was asked several times who the owners of the houses were, but nobody seemed to know. It didn’t matter. We hadn’t shown up to help neighbors of friends, we had shown up to help fellow Missoulians fight back against a rush of nature. By the end of the evening, our numbers had grown from 50 to almost 200. We had built two retaining walls: one at the primary property and one next door. We left with sore muscles, mud in our shoes, and the pride of a job well done.
The trip was not only memorable for the amount of animals we saw but also for the people and accommodations at the two camps where we stayed. Our first guide, BK, was a wealth of information about the animals, landscape and down to the plants and what they were used for. Everyday out was a learning experience with him. All the people at the camps were gracious and the food was excellent.
Our second camp in the Okavanga was just as good as the first as far as the staff, accommodations, food and animals. After our experience at the first camp we amazed that the high quality remained the same. Our guide, G, made sure we were able to enjoy every experience including a rush through the bush to witness a cheetah and an ensuing hunt that he heard over his radio.
In both camps there were enough guides out that if they saw something the other guides were informed which helped in seeing as much as possible. It was also nice that the concessions were large enough that we did not have vehicles following each other throughout the day.
Normally there is always something in a trip of this length that we think could be improved upon but this is the rare case where we cannot think of anything. From the time we left the States to when we returned it was one of the most hassle free vacations we took.
Perhaps emphasizing the use of the laundry facilities at the camps would be useful because of the luggage restrictions would be the only thing I can think of as an improvement to future clients.
Kenneth Dropek
2 days ago
Mary was so pleasant and professional. She made sure all of our questions were answered.