Glacier National Park, Montana

We left Banff and again enjoyed the scenic drive along the Trans-Canada Highway. Past Calgary however the scenery was rather different - this was cowboy country. Wide open and flat prairies, with a house every couple of kilometres and a 'town' every 45 minutes or so, all against the backdrop of the distant Rockies to the west which we tracked all the way to the American border.

Just the other side of the border crossing is the 'town' of Babb - a gas station, general store (looking like something out of Victorian Britain), and a church were about the only things in it...I'm not even sure where the houses were. So we filled up the car and headed into Glacier National Park - what a sight. Something like Banff crossed with Monument Valley. The colours of the mountains was incredible, and photos do neither them nor the scale any justice. The road in was rather rough, but we eventually made it to our 'historic cabin', a little two room wooden hut nestled in Swiftcurrent valley.

We had a bison burger for dinner from the hotel up the road, a Swiss-chalet-looking affair on the edge if Swiftcurrent Lake before taking an evening stroll to Fishercap Lake where we watch some moose and deer splashing about in the water. The creek we crossed on the way was full of the most colourful array of stones from the surrounding mountains and the trees and flower meadows were alive with colour. But perhaps most striking was the crystal clear reflection of the mountains in the lake as the sun went down.

Of course, all this awe and wonder was balanced by the fact we were surrounded by buzzing things and I got bitten to hell despite having layers of deet on! On the plus side, we bought a massive bag of trail mix for tomorrow.

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