Mapping Our Roots: Launching Our Missoula Map
Maps make sense of our environments. They bring order and reveal patterns and relationships that can help us better understand where we live or visit. They also remind us of places that have become special to us for a reason: a place we once lived, a great vacation, or a location with sentimental value.
At Xplorer Maps, we know the strength between maps and the communities they represent. Our mission is to “connect people and place” through multiple maps and map products, all hand-illustrated and detailed, telling stories about the places they show. Yes, maps are geography, but they are also history, guidelines, personal memories, and storytelling in general. This is why all our maps are carefully prepared together with their respective communities, ensuring that we capture the most relevant and important information about the places we depict.
Working with Destination Missoula, Xplorer Maps is proud to have developed the Missoula Map that brings together not just all the essential information about the town, but also lots of personal connections and places of high sentimental value and relevance to the Robitaille family and the XM family as a whole. Here’s how this map came about, a little history about the collaboration between Xplorer Maps and Destination Missoula, and a look at how we make all our unique, hand-illustrated maps.
Missoula & the XM Community
When Greg Robitaille, Co-Founder of Xplorer Maps, arrived in Missoula over 30 years ago, he immediately felt at home. Everything from the vibrant downtown core to the eclectic shops and lively music scene spoke to Greg’s interests and passions (you’ll know he’s an avid fan of live music from our blog about how sound connects us to places). There’s a strong resemblance between Missoula and Greg and his brother Chris’ childhood town, Toronto, so he immediately felt like he belonged there and wanted to support the community.
While Chris traveled the world, Greg was first a tennis coach in Missoula - an opportunity that led to him crossing paths with Destination Missoula’s Emily Rolston, who was his student (more on this friendship later). Later on, after launching Xplorer Maps, developing the business, and finally opening the brick-and-mortar store in November 2023, the time came to look back at an idea that developed over 12 years ago - the illustrated Missoula Map.
Although we are known for our hand-illustrated maps, crafted with love by Chris in collaboration with contributors around the world and in the United States, we don’t often focus on singular cities (instead putting the spotlight on national parks or states). But the connection between Xplorer Maps and Missoula is unlike any other place we’ve depicted. The Missoula map was on Greg’s agenda from day 1; it just needed a catalyst to bring it to life at the right place and in the right context. Moreover, this is a particularly important project because of the huge place Missoula occupies in our hearts - not just as the hometown of Xplorer Maps, but also a place that is deeply interconnected with the Robitaille family history.
Ultimately, the map is the fruit of a strong sentimental connection between the Robitaille family and the town and its community. In line with our tagline “Connecting People and Place,” it will hopefully inspire and connect many visitors to the town, as well as those who live in it and enjoy the elements we’ve featured on it.
It was also important that, when we launched such a map, it would be in partnership with a really important and inclusive collaborator that shares our values. Our brick-and-mortar store became an anchor and a place to meet and come up with exciting new ideas. Greg and Emily connected over their love of Missoula and shared memories here. It’s where they decided to bring the map to life. And, one year on since the store opened, what better way to celebrate this than by launching a map by Missoulians, for Missoulians and others?
Having a physical presence in Missoula has been a fantastic experience: it allows us to connect with our customers and to exchange stories, becoming an incubator for new ideas and adventure plans. But, more importantly, the store gives our connection with Missoula a tangible dimension. It’s allowed us to create more engaging community activities (such as Cartography Comes Alive). The Missoula map will be a central piece in the store, initiating conversations with tourists and locals, and showing our community link even more strongly.
Come visit us at our Brick and Mortar in Missoula!
Drawing the Map
So, how did the Missoula map come together? And how do all our maps get drawn? It’s a unique process that relies 100% on original, hand-drawn illustrations created by Xplorer Maps Co-Founder, Chris Robitaille. It takes around six weeks for maps to be created, starting with a preparation phase where we discuss the content with all our sources and then sketch out a rough layout for the illustrations that will accompany the map itself.
To create unique pieces of art, Chris moves the elements around until they “feel right” and both him and Greg believe there is the right amount of focus for each item. It then takes Chris one to one-and-a-half weeks to draw everything in pen and ink, before coloring, which is the finishing touch.
We always work with local stakeholders to ensure we capture the most important and relevant aspects of any place we map out. From traveling there, to identifying the most appropriate partners, and gathering feedback from local actors in the community, it all contributes to painting a recognizable picture that speaks to visitors and to locals, too.
As for timing and deciding to create a map, it’s all linked to a relevant starting moment. The Missoula Map would not have seen its launch now, despite the fact that Xplorer Maps’ Greg has dreamed of creating it for so long, had it not been for a serendipitous meeting with Destination Missoula’s Emily Rolston, at the grand opening of the brick-and-mortar store in November 2023. They both saw an opportunity to bring to life a custom map where our close connection to the town and our partnership with Destination Missoula can be expressed. This felt like “the right time and the perfect partner,” both Greg and Emily agree.
Missoula Map Sneak Peak
Missoula Map: The Ultimate People & Place Connection
To depict Missoula, we naturally drew on our own experiences and local knowledge. Greg says there are only two activities on the map he hasn’t done yet, and by blending in stories and memories from our XM family and our partners at Destination Missoula, we’ve added the essential flavors of what it’s like to live in and visit this city. Barbara Neilan, Executive Director, and Emily Rolston, Group Sales Manager of Destination Missoula, were part of the group of contributors who brought their local knowledge and personal stories to the table when depicting everything about Missoula, from the Peace Sign to elks in winter.
The end result, after months of working in a close group inputting into Chris’ illustrations on the map, goes beyond geography. It is “storytelling through art” and an inspiring, detailed view of everything Missoula has to offer: history, nature, wildlife, activities, people, art, music… all united by the common passion we all share for this place.
Xplorer Maps and Destination Missoula have agreed to commit ten percent of proceeds from the Missoula Map and product line for the next ten years to Destination Missoula’s work across the community focused on sustainability and stewardship, being a welcoming and inclusive destination, and enhancing quality of life for residents and quality of experience for visitors. Additionally, one hundred limited-edition signed and numbered giclee prints will be available for purchase and all profits from these prints will be donated to support the work of the Missoula River Ambassador Program.
Join us for a day of celebration! Be part of the first-ever public unveiling of our new, hand-drawn Missoula Story Map! Created in collaboration with Destination Missoula, this map captures our beloved city's spirit, history, and natural beauty. We’re also celebrating the 1st Anniversary of our Missoula store with a Griz Tailgate Party, complete with food, drinks, music, and community fun! For more information check out our event page!
