The army garrison was small, the nimíipuu’s ability to maneuver around obstacles was already demonstrated, and the Montana settlers who lined the road to watch were content to let the nimíipuu pass through if the nimíipuu gave assurances of peaceful behavior.

The Bitterroot Valley portion of the journey was, in retrospect, one of the calmer periods of the flight.

The nimíipuu paid for goods in the valley’s small settlements, maintained their commitments not to harm the local population, and moved through without major incident.

It was Looking Glass’s confidence, after this relatively quiet passage, that contributed to the decision to slow down at Big Hole.

The army had been outrun.