We’ve been in Montana for a month. That’s a record for time in any one state, except Texas, where you can spend a full month just tryna cross the darn thing. We’re moving on, but first, here are three-count-em-three charming attractions not to miss in Western Montana!

Garden of One Thousand Buddhas

(29 miles north of Missoula, plenty of RV parking) I’m not sure which words intrigued me more: “Garden,” “1,000,” or “Buddhas.” But put those three together and you’ve got something we just had to see.

This Tibetan Buddhist monument, set in the middle of nowheres-ville Montana, was founded by a Tibetan master regrettably named Gochen Tulku Sang-ngag Rinpoche, which is neither memorable nor pronounceable. He picked it after recalling a prophetic dream from his childhood, which resembled this land in Montana. (I’m guessing it was also cheap land.). And to think my childhood dreams just involved dinosaurs chasing me, trying to stomp my head into the ground.

A quiet and sacred place, it includes the as-advertised 1,000 Buddha statues, arranged in the shape of the Dharma Wheel (a big spoked wagon-wheel thingy), representing the Buddha’s teachings.

As if 1,000 buddhas weren’t enough, it leans heavy into the 1,000 theme with 1,000 stupas, symbolizing the enlightened mind, around the outside edge. Stupas house sacred relics, and even just seeing the shape of a stupa is considered to bless and transform the mind of anyone who sees it … a “blessings by proxy” situation.

In the center of it all is a shrine to Yum Chenmo, the Great Mother of Wisdom, who represents perfect wisdom in Tibetan Buddhism. God knows — I mean Buddha knows — we could all use a little more wisdom. Ear-worm Indian music plays continuously, not deterring the barn swallows whose mud nests dot the underside. Will they soon start chirping in Indian?

Statues to some lesser-but-still-important dignitaries (think: Art Garfunkel, to Paul Simon) also dot the property. In the distance, up a steep hill, an open air assemblage of prayer flags flutter in the distance.

The Garden is open to everyone and serves as a place for meditation, prayer, and spiritual ceremonies, and we left feeling not only inspired but a little guilty for our greedy, Western ways and our love of garbage TV shows.

So, if you’re in Western Montana, there are One Thousand reasons to visit the unique Garden of One Thousand Buddhas.

(EDITORIAL NOTE: this isn’t our first attempt at religious enlightenment and learning more about other forms of spirituality. Check out our most adventurous foray at a fascinating Hare Krishna shrine we visited in West Virginia by clicking here.)

Miracle of America Museum

(south end of Flathead Lake, in Polson, plenty of RV parking out front) This place defies description. No, really. I dare you to go, and then succinctly summarize. Nearly impossible, I say!

Like the Garden of 1,000 Buddhas, it’s also a shrine — but a shrine to somebody’s refusal to throw a single thing away. And you thought YOUR parents were hoarders just because they kept all those Hummel figurines, and salt and pepper shaker sets!

Basically, its a ginormous conglomeration of stuff strewn over 4.5 acres, including a Huey helicopter, antique vehicles, rebuilt buildings of yore like a beauty parlor and one room schoolhouse, UFO display, logging equipment, a rebuilt soda fountain, whimsical metal “art” sculptures, and more.

It’s weird, it’s wacky, it’s wonderful … and ya just gotta see it to believe it. Every step is part of a big treasure hunt, or at least the fodder of some really interesting nightmares.

Founded in 1981 by Gil Mangels, and probably the bane of his very own children’s existence to this day, it’s a charming don’t-miss tribute to all kinds of American history, and not the boring kind you remember from fourth grade.

Many of the items have been donated by people who don’t know what to do with their very-own junk. A lot of the displays are handmade pieces of art (made of: junk, of course), like this cool viking ship made of hubcaps.

One of the coolest features of this not-quite-a-museum is their willingness to let you climb in and on many of the items. Especially great for kids (and dogs) (and curious 72-year-old husbands), who are sick of being told “DON’T TOUCH THAT.”

Anything tagged with “Enjoy, Don’t Destroy” is fair game for climbing, touching, exploration. The kids’ UFO-themed playground is one of many places where little ones are encouraged to interact with the exhibits.

The Miracle of America Museum just might be the nation’s junk drawer … all in one place. Hey! Could this be America’s first RV?

(EDITORIAL NOTE: For more cool recycled treasures, check this post for other interesting places around the country!)

Quinn Hot Springs

(20 miles east of St. Regis, NO readily available RV parking on-site) From the trashiest to the classiest, we find Quinn Hot Springs. It’s part of a resort in the perfectly-named Paradise, Montana, so don’t be surprised to see affluent, robe-clad guests in the dining room or wandering the parking lots.

Even if you aren’t staying here, hand over a crisp $20 bill, and you too can join a four-hour window of time in one of the seven hot springs pools! The natural flow pools range from a 62 degree cold plunge to a scalding 105 degree soup pot, and two of them are family-friendly, salt-water-treated pools.

All of them are the perfect place to peacefully gaze out at the Bitterroot Mountains surrounding the resort, while listening to the chug-chug-chug of the train passing in the distance. Guests of all ages dunk under gurgling waterfalls, rest in the shade of boulders, and chat amiably with each other about everything and nothing.

Separate men’s and women’s changing rooms and showers are beautiful, modern, and spacious, belying the fact that the resort has been here since Irish miner Martin Quinn started this place 141 years ago in 1885.

Quinn’s has a poolside bar (and your credit card number is built into your wristband, so no wallet required); sipping an adult beverage (2? 3?) is an easy way to let the hours slip by while you soak your worries away. Another guest turned us on to my new fave: spicy margarita, splash of pineapple juice, with a tajin rim. Ooooooh boyyyyyy!

We go to bed at 9:00, sometimes 8:30, occasionally 8:15, but in another life, we would definitely come after dark for amazingly dark, starry skies. For us, daylight hours will have to do.

This is a year-round resort, and we could only imagine how spectacular it would be in the winter — steam rising off the pools, snow-dusted treetops, a hot toddy in our hands instead of one with ice cubes. But any season is a good time to visit!

(EDITORIAL NOTE: Longtime readers know we love hot springs … here are some of our favorites!)

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More on Missoula

Our base camp for this portion of the trip was Missoula, Montana. We’ve been here before, and another “don’t-miss” charming destination is the Smokejumper Center — seriously cool, really fun, and even more relevant now as wildfires run rampant around the country and the world.

Another careful-or-you-might-miss-it place to wander through in downtown Missoula is the historic Florence Hotel, which is no longer a hotel, but which evokes a Nighthawks by Edward Hopper moody, days-gone-by feel.

The lobby is filled with amazing relics of its former days, and a charm which makes you want to cozy up here forever.

Missoula is very hippie, very bohemian, most very >>dumpy<< (sorry I said it, but it’s true) so for a breath of fresh luxury here, get a few miles out of downtown and check out Cafe Florabella on Brooks Street. We loved it!

Lastly, if you love off-road biking paths, don’t miss the Bitterroot Trail, which originates in Missoula and goes 50 miles south. (The start of the trail is inexplicably hard to find. Benefit from our troubles by putting “Milwaukee Road Path And Bitterroot Trail Intersection” into Google Maps. Make sure you’re picking the Bitterroot Trail and not the Milwaukee Road option. You’re welcome.)

We took a 12-mile, moderately-hilly journey on the Bitterroot south to Lolo, where the Lolo Peak Brewery beckons with a cold brew and shaded outdoor patio before the return trip.

Montana, you never fail to amaze! Read any of our Montana posts by clicking here. We’re leaving the state and continuing west!