Montana
From the 50 State Visitor Guide :
Mont. Code Ann. 2021 §§46-23-504 through 46-23-520.
Registration Triggers and Deadlines:
Three business days for initial registration and updates; transients shall register within 3 business days of entering state.
Visitors: Must register within 3 business days of entering the state for a temporary residence of 10 days or more, or for an aggregate period of 30 days in calendar year. §§46-23-504, 46-23-505.
Residency/Presence and Other Restrictions:
None
Duration & updates:
Life. Petition to remove – T1 - 10 yrs; T2 – 25 yrs.
Updates by mail: T1 – annual; T2 – 6 months; T3 –90 days; Transients in person- 30 days. §§46-23-504, 56-23-506.
Most recent visit - August 2026
For registered visitors Montana is a relative safe haven among Northwestern states. While it’s true that anyone moving to this state must register within three business days, if you are only visiting you get nine consecutive days to visit (because the tenth day triggers your obligation to register) and return visits are permitted up to 30 days aggregate per calendar year. Furthermore, there are no residency or presence restrictions to be concerned about, at least at the state level.
All this means that Montana is your best staging point for a visit to Yellowstone National Park. Wyoming, where most of Yellowstone is located, allows you only two consecutive business days in-state (because the third day triggers). So stage yourself in nearby Montana on a Thursday, enter Yellowstone early on Friday (in both states any partial day in-state is going to count toward your total, so make the most of those first and last partial days), enjoy America’s most famous national park over the weekend, and return to Montana late on Monday.
I visited Montana twice in 2025, first in July when I visited Yellowstone over a weekend as described above. See my Yellowstone/Wyoming blog entry. The second time was in early September, when I camped at Ft. Peck Recreation area. On that trip I also visited the Nakota/Dakota Nation (Ft. Peck reservation). See my Lakota Nations blog entry.
In August 2026 I spent five days, including two partial days, traveling through Montana as part of my 2026 Pacific Northwest road trip. Partial Day 1 I entered Montana from Wyoming on I-90 and easily found a campsite – with no reservation on a Wednesday night – at Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area, which is within the Crow Nation. See Crow Nation under “Montana’s Native Nations” below.
Day 2 I traveled north on US 87 and US 191, passing through the Charles M. Russell National Wildlife Refuge. This enormous NWR also includes many recreation opportunities. In 2025 I had camped at Ft. Peck Recreation area, over 100 miles to the east, while visiting the Nakota/Dakota Nation (Ft. Peck reservation). To the west, Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument is also part of this complex.
That day I also visited Great Plains Dinosaur Museum and Phillips County Museum (which also has dinosaurs). They are next door to each other in Malta, MT. That night I found a motel in Harlem, the anglo town just outside Fort Belknap Aaniih & Nakota Nation, which I visited the next morning. See my Lakota Nations blog entry.
Day 3 I continued west on US 2 with
my only aim being my reserved campsite at Red Eagle Campground in the Blackfeet
Nation. See Blackfeet Nation under
“Montana’s Native Nations” below. Day 4
was Glacier National Park.
Glacier National Park
Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park & World Heritage Site is one of the most spectacular places in North America, and most of it is in Montana. A smaller part is in Alberta.
Siyeh Creek, Glacier National Park
However, as you can see in its name, it’s an International Peace Park, which I visited on Day 4 in Montana. In addition to having a great day in a national park I researched the Canada-flirting opportunities available to visitors. I will be reporting on all that in my next blog post as part of my Flirting With Canada Series. That evening I had a reserved campsite in Kootenai National Forest, west of GlacierPartial Day 5 I was on my way to Washington State, but on my way I stopped to have a look at a couple of small towns:
Small town notes
Eureka – A little better than average. A lot of mobile homes, but well-maintained.
Libby – I have to say, the Eagle at their main intersection is
impressive (see photo). However, what was originally supposed to be a grand
promenade through the neighborhood is neither grand nor promenady. You know
what I’m talking about, Libby.
Roundup – Prosperous anglo agricultural town named after a dangerous
chemical.
Chester – Another prosperous anglo agricultural town, this time named after fast food chicken franchise.
Montana's Native Nations
Crow Nation
I have visited the Crow Nation twice, most recently in August 2026. I entered Montana from Wyoming on I-90 and easily found a campsite – with no reservation on a Wednesday night – at Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area, which is within the Crow Nation. Bighorn Canyon NRA is part of the Yellowtail Dam Hydroelectric Project. I hope they got a favorable deal on electricity in return for drowning the Bighorn Canyon.
The little dam town of Fort Smith is a prim and proper anglo town. The following morning I took a look around. As usual, the agricultural economy is similar to it’s surroundings, which in this case appears to be adequate. The principle tribal town is Crow Agency. It is a picture of reservation poverty. So is Lodge Grass.
Native memorial at Little Big Horn National Monument, Crow Reservation
The Crow Nation does have a couple of things going for it. Ready access to electric power is one. I-90 going right through their nation is another. Just east of I-90 on US 212, the Crow Nation is the home of Little Bighorn National Monument, which I visited in 2023. This monument was established not by the Crow, but by the American government. Therefore most of the original monuments and displays were pretty tone deaf to any native point of view.Fortunately most of that cowboys & indians mentality has been removed over time. There is a memorial honoring the tribal warriors who fought and died here (and celebrating the victory).
Blackfeet Nation
August 2026 was my second time visiting the Blackfeet Nation, and my second time staying at Red Eagle Campground, which is in the Blackfeet Nation on SR 49 about 45 minutes from the east entrance to Glacier National Park. Also, the second time I had to settle for that crappy little drive thru restaurant in Browning because there are so few food options there.
Browning is the Tribal Headquarters town and has all the facilities and symbolism you would expect there. It also has the Museum of the Plains Indian and I would have liked to have seen that but unfortunately it was already closed for the night. Browning is also another case of reservation poverty. On the other hand, as usual, the ranchland economy of this large native nation appears in good shape.
Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes Flathead
In 2023 I traveled through the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes Flathead Nation. Being curious, I stopped in the little tribal town of Hot Springs to see if there was really a hot spring there, which there is but unfortunately it was long ago privatized and incorporated into what’s by now a fleabag hotel.
The principle town of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes Flathead Nation is Polson, but it’s not really a tribal town. It’s really an anglo enclave town with all manner of commercial chains, hotels, fast food and recreation infrastructure geared around Flathead Lake, which despite its name has nothing to do with the Flathead Nation. It’s a lake created by a hydro-electric dam.
My last stop at the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes Flathead Nation was the National Bison Range, which redeemed every other disappointment of the day. It’s great! It was unclear which “nation” is referred to in the name, but I do hope it’s the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Nation and not the United States.
Nakota/Dakota Nation (Ft. Peck reservation) and Fort Belknap Aaniih & Nakota Nation
See my Lakota Nations blog
entry.
