Montana and Glacier National Park

We took the drive to our next destination, the Glacier National Park, a bit more relaxed. It took us across Montana. The landscape was green and lush, and a little cooler. Once again, we covered many miles on endless roads. We visited a few towns, including Livingston, Bozeman, Butte, and Missoula. They all had a certain cowboy flair, mostly settlements or remnants from the pioneer and mining era... a bit of a gold rush atmosphere. Their love for firearms was also made very clear to us. During a visit to the camping store (we needed a spare part for our gas stove), it sent chills down our spine. We had never seen so many weapons in one place. From pistols to pump-action shotguns to assault rifles... in a camping store! It was quite disturbing. Well, apart from that, Montana was a very beautiful state.

One morning, our car battery died. It wouldn't start, and it smelled strongly of sulfur, with battery acid leaking out. And we were in the middle of the woods, far from everything. Once again, we were impressed by the friendliness of the locals. The first car that passed by on the next road stopped, and the driver asked how they could help. They didn't have any jumper cables, but they told us to jump on the back of the truck, and they would take us to the nearest campground. The first person we approached there immediately dropped everything and once again let us onto their truck, driving us back into the woods. Jump-starting the car worked, and so we at least made it to the next town - Hungry Horse (and the name was fitting here). No phone, no internet. But the first woman we asked immediately gave us her phone and said we could make as many calls as we wanted, as she would be nearby for another two hours. Her ID and credit card were also in the phone... In terms of friendliness, trust, and open-mindedness, there's a lot to learn here... This way, we were able to call the car rental company in Los Angeles, hundreds of miles away, who quickly organized everything. Shortly after, a mechanic arrived from a neighboring town with a new battery, and the car was running again. Everything was done within 1 ½ hours. We were impressed!! In the middle of nowhere, on a Saturday morning... Respect!

Now we could continue on to Glacier (fortunately, the battery didn't die there). Another great national park. Unfortunately, not much is left of the huge glaciers that have carved into the mountain landscape and the continental divide here. Nevertheless, it's a beautiful landscape with many crystal-clear mountain lakes. In addition, the "Going-to-the-Sun Road" runs across the mountains. Very impressive with equally amazing views. We embarked on many small and medium hikes. One highlight was definitely the especially beautiful specimen of a mountain goat, a very rare and surprising moment!