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a try. They don't have electricity or running water, let alone bedding—it's bring your own sleeping bag at the Merc, which is also home to a fantastic bakery. Each cabin has a propane cooking stove and lights, and the views out over the west side of Glacier National Park make the price a steal, especially if you bring the kids. This may sound like an adventure in hell, but Polebridge is a happening spot in the summer, when all the river rats and seasonal residents converge for whopping good times and tall tales about running rapids and climbing peaks.

IN ST. MARY

The Resort at Glacier

U.S. 89 and Going-to-the-Sun Rd., St. Mary, MT 59417. ☎ 800/368-3689 or 406/732-4431. Fax 406/732-9265. www.glcpark.com. 124 units, including 57 hotel rooms, 48 lodge rooms and suites, and 19 cabins and cottages. TEL. $85–$140 double hotel, $145–$350 cabin or cottage, $160–$250 lodge room or suite. AE, DISC, MC, V.

Situated at the St. Mary end of Going-to-the-Sun Road, this lodge is one of the few area properties that aren't managed by GPI. The main lodge and rooms are standard Montana fare, with tasteful ironwood furnishings. Lodging is in three different areas near the center of the complex; the lodge and motel rooms are nicely done motel-style units that may have two single beds or a queen. The nicest units are the cabins, which boast living areas with dining tables, kitchenettes with microwaves and minifridges, and queen beds in a separate sleeping area. Most rooms have TVs and air-conditioning. The surrounding complex includes a market, several restaurants, and a lounge.

IN WEST GLACIER

Belton Chalets and Lodge

12575 U.S. 2, West Glacier, MT 59936. ☎ 888/235-8665 or 406/888-5000. Fax 406/888-5005. www.beltonchalet.com. 25 units, 2 cottages. $130–$270 early June to early Sept; $95–$200 early Sept to early June. AE, MC, V.

A National Historic Landmark, this facility across from the railroad station has been completely restored to the elegance of an early-20th-century hotel. The rooms are small, simple, and old-fashioned. The bathrooms are also small. But the feel of the place is comfortable, and the staff is very friendly. Many of the rooms have private balconies looking out over the rounded timber foothills of Glacier National Park.

Glacier Outdoor Center

U.S. 2, P.O. Box 210D, West Glacier, MT 59936. ☎ 800/235-6781 or 406/888-5454. www.glacierraftco.com. 9 cabins. TEL. $230–$345 cabin; winter disocunts available. AE, DISC, MC, V.

Built in three stages since 1996, the cabins at the Glacier Raft Company's HQ are delightful, functional, and tasteful, sporting trout, moose, and bears on everything from dishes to lampshades. Backing up to the Flathead National Forest just west of the park entrance on U.S. 2, the cabins are well off the road, nestled around a grassy glen with a picnic area, volleyball court, and a trout pond where casting clinics are held in the summer. Each cabin has a fully equipped kitchen, one or two bedrooms, and a private deck with a barbecue; the two-bedroom units can sleep up to 14 people.

Great Northern Chalets

12127 U.S. 2, West Glacier, MT 59936. ☎ 800/735-7897 or 406/387-5340. Fax 406/387-9007. www.gnwhitewater.com. 5 units. $200–$300 double. AE, DISC, MC, V.

This small, family-oriented resort near West Glacier offers log chalets that have balconies facing landscaped flower gardens and a pond, with mountain views in the distance. The largest chalet is a beautifully furnished two-story, two-bedroom unit with a full bathroom upstairs and a half-bath downstairs. Smaller chalets have one large bedroom upstairs, and a downstairs level with a full-size sleeper sofa and a kitchen with service for six. A 16-foot indoor hot tub spa is on the property, as is a pond used for fly-fishing instruction.

Vista Motel

11955 U.S. 2 East (P.O. Box 90), West Glacier, MT 59936. ☎ 406/888-5311. Fax 406/888-9027. 25 units, including 5 cabins. $65–$120 double. AE, DISC, MC, V. Closed late Sept to Apr.

Perched atop a hill at the west entrance to Glacier National