Montana

The wide open US state of Montana, bordering three Canadian provinces, boasts no major big cities, but is the fourth largest state in the Union, stretching across the prairie of the Great Plains, known as 'Big Sky Country'.

Plains? 'Montana' is Spanish for mountains, and indeed the State is usually regarded as mountainous because the Rocky Mountain chain traverses its western zone. Sixty percent of the state, though, is prairie. Agricultural lands provide Montana's bread and butter, and some of the USA's most attractive and renowned national parks, wildlife refuges and forests provide a tasty topping.

In Montana are the renowned Yellowstone National Park, the Glacier National Park and the Bighorn Canyon, to name just a few natural attractions under the big sky. Yellowstone, with more than two million acres of geysers, is the largest and most famous national park in the world, spilling over into Idaho and Wyoming, while the magnificent Glacier park covers one million acres of rugged mountain terrain, forests, waterfalls and glaciers.

Montana is thus an outdoor enthusiast's paradise, with a multitude of opportunities for hiking, riding, hunting, and fishing in summer, and skiing in winter. Native American culture also features high on its list of attractions, the prairies having been home to legendary tribes like the Cheyenne, Crow and Blackfeet. The various reservations are strongholds of their heritage where traditional dress is worn, rituals are performed and arts and crafts produced. Also fascinating for visitors is to explore the 'ghost towns' that were left behind after the 1862 gold rush, the many museums and art galleries, and the historic buildings and battlefields of this multi-faceted state.