The Rockies are a happy place for me, and Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park was the highlight of my summer travels. I spent two days in Waterton Lakes, in Canada, and enjoyed the laidback attitude of the park. Unfortunately, wildfires in 2017 had closed many of the park's trails, but I was still free to walk around the town of Waterton and the surrounding countryside, which were covered with wildflowers. On Canada Day, I enjoyed the morning parade, complete with bagpipers and Mounties, and in the afternoon, I took the boat tour down Waterton Lake and across the US-Canadian border to the peace pavilion on the US shore of the lake. After a relaxing couple of days in Waterton, I crossed the border to Glacier National Park in the US. The eponymous glaciers have been retreating, but the U-shaped valleys in the park show their former size. I took a Red Bus tour of the Going-to-the-Sun Road, which was an excellent way to avoid the crowds that fill the parking lots during the summer. The tour is conducted in original park tour buses that have been in operation for over 80 years, which added to my enjoyment of the tour. I also made sure to get some hikes in at Glacier, enjoying the scenery of lakes and waterfalls. I highly recommend the Rockies to all North American visitors.

Logistics: Private transportation is recommended, and passports, and potentially visas, are absolutely necessary to visit both parks completely. If you do only travel to Canada, you can step foot in the US without need of a passport/visa if you take the boat tour down Waterton Lake. Nevertheless, to travel any further into Glacier and the US, you'll need a passport for the border station once you leave the lakeshore.