Enjoying An All-American Summer Experience - The overnight vacation.
June 24, 2013
Posted By: Shaunescy
This is Lewis the Lion
I kind of love baseball. That is to say, I am not a real, Capital "F" fan but, I love to see amazing athletes really going for it. The pitcher bends and twists himself into the most unbelievable yoga warrior-like contortions to launch the ball at another dude who wears protective gear and swings a bat. And the swelling upward roar of success when ball and bat connect. Heck, I even like how the sound of the crowd turns into a low groan when the batter gets caught out. Who needs Disneyland when you can find mascots and thrills in your own backyard?
In our current issue, editor Leigh put forth the challenge, "Be Brave, leave the comforts of home behind and plan a weekend of cultural discovery around a festival not taking place in your hometown. Yes, I'm pimping a staycation of sorts. As in, stay in Montana, but not in your own zip code."
I took it to heart. We looked at our calender and saw the perfect opening. Before our summer camp schedules started up and before the 4th of July we booked a room at the Red Lion in Helena and packed up our gear. We were off to the Helena Brewer's home opener.
Crack!
The clouds that day were ominous but the sun shined on through. We arrived in Helena early to make sure that we could go to ExplorationWorks! to mess around with the flight simulators and get a bite to eat at the Brewhouse. We had 24 hours and we were going to do it all! Simple, zero screen time, all American fun.
All standing for the national anthem.
Kindrick Legion Field is a classic ballpark, with a wooden covered grandstand the focal point of the stadium and new aluminum bleachers for general seating. And one thing I really noticed was that in addition to the small snack shack that you often find at ballparks, the concession stands were truly abundant. Corn-dogs, 3 beer and wine stands, picnic tables and memorabilia create a hustle. And with ticket prices for the game under $10 a pop, this is truly a fun and affordable getaway.
Yummy brunch lives here.
After the ball game, the museum and the pizza. Swimming in the hotel pool past regular bedtimes and sleeping in late the next morning, we headed to the Park Avenue Bakery for breakfast. If you have kids in your life under the age of 10, then you can translate 'sleeping in late' to mean, 8:15 AM. Which gave us plenty of time to grab a tasty brunch and wander around a sleepy Helena and stroll the grounds of the Capitol. Lazy bliss.
Check it out for yourself. The Brewers games have a really fun-community fueled vibe.
You can click here for the Helena Brewers schedule.
Hope your summer plans turning into everything you hoped they'd be.
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All my best, BunnyFufu
