Jousting, Mead & Mayhem Coming to Missoula

Missoula’s Renaissance Festival is happening this fall. I’m talking turkey legs, chainmail, and an alarming number of awkward corsets.

Running September 20- 21st at the Missoula County Fairgrounds, the Missoula Renaissance Festival is the first and only one of its kind in town. This isn’t like some backyard LARPing, though. There’s a real program of entertainment, knights in armor, fire eaters, belly dancers, and tons of vendors selling everything from hand-forged swords to historically inaccurate coffee mugs.

The big draw? Jousting. Real jousting. Guys in armor running into each other on horses. It’s operated by a group called Sons of Epona, and they aren’t playing around. If you’ve never watched a grown man get absolutely wrecked by a lance while struggling to keep a feathered hat on, you haven't been living.

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Then there’s live music, comedy acts, and lots of local Montana flavor. The schedule includes names like Butte Magic, Horned & Hilarious, and Missoula Belly Dancers. It’s a little history, a little fantasy, which means a lot of consenting adults who finally may wear cloaks in public without shame.

So dust off your chainmail or just a robe and call yourself a “wandering alchemist.” There’s no PBS-certified credential-checker.

You can purchase tickets and see the whole lineup at missoularenfest.com or follow them on Facebook for updates.

If you like knights, mead, and saying “huzzah” for no good reason at all, this is your opportunity. Missoula is going full Renaissance, and I am ready for a giant turkey leg.