Time Zone Trivia
One of the quirks of doing business in far Northwest Montana — in this case, with a local logging company — is determining whose time zone applies.
The company rep and I had agreed on an 8 a.m. breakfast meeting in tiny Troy, Montana, just 10 miles from the Idaho border (and barely 40 miles from Canada).
The catch?
The company rep was coming from Moyie Springs in Idaho, which is on Pacific time**, and I was coming from Libby, Montana, which is just to the east and on Mountain time.
Fortunately, we clarified the potential glitch the night before — and agreed to get an extra hour of sleep by making the meeting time 8 a.m. Pacific.
**While many states straddle two time zones, Idaho is the only state where the division is north-south rather than east-west. The northern Panhandle is on Pacific time — a nod to the economic influence of nearby Spokane, Washington.
Meanwhile, the southern part of the state — home to Boise, the state capital and largest city — is on Mountain time.
See also, “The Human Slingshot: Criss-Crossing 4 Time Zones in 3 Days.”
