Even if you've never spent a day in the saddle, it's hard not to be impressed by the Royal Mounties, Canada's famous horse-back police force. As home to the Royal Mounties Training Academy, Regina, Saskatchewan's capital city, is not just about police activity, but also offers a range of cultural attractions to entertain visitors of all ages. Located on the Trans-Canada Highway as it skirts the southern end of Saskatchewan, Regina is not far from the US states of Montana and North Dakota.

Many of Regina's sights, beyond expected tourist amenities, are natural or historic. Find, for example, reconstructed period buildings at the Last Mountain House Provincial Historic Park or an array of waterfowl at the Waterfowl Display Ponds. Peruse the Royal Saskatchewan Museum for a glimpse of the province's developing eco-regions. Today's golden wheat fields were once icy glaciers - but if this brief introduction to earth science leaves you itching to get more hands-on, try the Saskatchewan Science Centre. Here the young (and young at heart) can do some science experimentation of their own. Art-oriented won't want to pass the MacKenzie Art Gallery by or leave without a quick look at the wheat field made of glass on display at the Regina Plains Museum.

When you're ready for wide open spaces, take an afternoon and steer clear of city life for Qu'Appelle Valley. Pack a picnic and stop at one of the parks and lovely landscapes here, or head southeast instead to the lakes of Moose Mountain Provincial Park.

Regina is 100 miles southeast of Saskatoon and about 500 miles from Billings, Montana.