Many years ago, a BIL and his family lived in Montana.
Even though I came from UT where we got plenty of cold and snow in the winter, I had never heard of having to have a heater to plug in at night so your car would start in the morning but learned that that is what they had to do.
I remember them talking about something like a “chinook” or something like that.
That’s what they waited for.
I love winter but I think that Montana might even be too extreme for me.
First thing to remember is that for Montana, the season is always spelled Winter.
Final words are that Montana Winters are the way they are just to sort those who can Hack/exist in the place from those who cannot.
(You can identify a genuine native Montanan best by listening for a discussion about vacationing or moving to Alaska because they're bored with the tourists down here/the last couple of mild Winters.)
Granny,
“The Chinook is named after the Chinook Indians who lived along the Columbia River, and who were the first people to tell stories of “The Great South Wind”, or, in their language, the “Snow Eater”.
Vet, my husband was born in Reedpoint and the winters there were mighty cold and snowy. When they moved to Billings I don’t think it was near that bad as you are getting out of the mountain area.
People talk about how beautiful Montana is, but they don’t realize after Billings it is pretty much barren flatland. I didn’t realize that until I took Amtrak to Chicago and going through Montana after Billings, took forever with nothing to see. :-(