Just a quick post to say that I have safely arrived in Chambly, QC! More later, once I’m settled in. 🙂
Canada
Reply to Comments About the New Toad & the Border Crossing
Croft said in a comment today:
Good to see you back on the road and I hope all the financial stuff works out smoothly! BTW, how long do you have to replace the car and are you going to start looking right away? I hate car shopping as I am a poor negotiator. I still think you should consider Internet shopping in the USA, at least to get a comparison of prices.
I have to check with the insurance company if there is a deadline for asking for reimbursement on the GST. If not, then I can take all the time I want.
I am not going to be looking in the US. I know what’s involved in importing and the money I might save won’t be worth the hoops I’ll have to go through.
I have pretty much decided on what I want, but need to finetune the research as to truck weight, gas mileage, ability to tow, bed length, etc. Since I have decided to go with a compact pickup, it makes sense to shop where there is a truck market. So I have decided to fly back to Alberta at some point this summer to buy my new toad!
Going back to Alberta will actually cut down on expenses and hoops. If I were to buy and plate in Quebec, I would have to pay PST and the registration would be almost $300 more than it would be in Alberta. When I got back to Alberta, I would have to pay for an out of province inspection. All those costs would add up to a lot more than the cost of a one-way plane ticket and the fuel to drive back to Quebec.
By buying the toad in Alberta, I’ll be able to leave Quebec in the fall with two correctly registered and insured vehicles. Plus, I know I can rely on Jody and Gary’s expertise in helping me make a good decision.
As for negotiating, I did really well one my last two brand new cars and Miranda, so I’m confident I can get a decent deal.
He also had this to say about the border crossing (with Norma (not Croft’s Norma) also wondering about this):
They may say nothing at the border (most likely) or they may ask where the car is if it shows up on their screen. They also sometimes ask if you had “repairs or modifications” done. Either way, only answer what is asked.
I put the total loss claim papers on my iPad to show at the border if the question comes up.
As for the repairs/modification question, it’s only as it pertains to work that could create secret compartments for stashing drugs. They don’t care if you get your brakes done but let them know if you had a safe welded to the frame! This is almost verbatim from the customs idiot who interrogated me last spring.
I have decided not to think too hard about the border crossing except for the fact that I have way too much beer on board! I’m off to attempt to make a dent in it!
The Museum of Westward Expansion
The Museum of Westward Expansion is located at the base of the Arch and is free. It’s not free with admission to the Arch, but free period. I couldn’t believe that considering the quality of the exhibits!
entrance to the museum
about the museum
prophetic words about New Orleans
I found these words by Jefferson to be ironic because his country has all of that and is still very unhappy
this ad for mail order brides caught my attention
In 1860, the US’s population was just under 31.5 million, which is just about Canada’s population today!
1867 is Canada’s Conferation Year. I am very impressed that this sign mentions that. In fact, there is a ton of Canadian history interspersed on this series of signs.
close up the 1867 sign
I loved this pensive image of Lincoln
I snapped this one because that’s the year the Klondike Gold Rush began (it’s noted on the sign)
ironic words from Orville Wright, who hoped that his flying machine would end the need for war
FDR’s recipe for world peace
Lewis, about penetrating into uncharted wilderness
Lewis, about his first meeting with Sacawagea
stage coach
a migrant worker took to the road because it did not want someone else to feed him
there were several of these eerily lifelike robots that moved, spoke, and even blinked!
inside of a settler’s cabin
cowboys are apparently part human…
thoughts on reaching the imaginary line between east and west (I feel it very much here, on the banks of the Mississippi)
wagon
the wagon trains compared to great serpents
“All this we have overcome now and we are in the golden land.” J.P. Taylor
giant ship’s wheel
General Sheridan felt that westward expansion would only succeed after all the buffalo were gone.
“War is Hell”, General Sherman
“Taps” played for the last time for General Sherman
the face of the Depression-era migrant works; I can’t believe she was about my age
Thomas Jefferson
Why Not Minot?
I am at the Applebee’s in Minot, North Dakota posting from my iPad. I’m off to Verizon next to see about getting the US cell phone activated with a data plan.
As I approached the border this morning, the last words spoken to me by the customs supervisor last year echoed in my mind. I made some notes in your file. As long as you’re back in Canada by April 7th, your next crossing should be easier.
He wasn’t kidding. Had the agents not struggled with getting the front door opened, I would have been through in under four minutes. My having to get out and unlock the door for them delayed the process by a whole 30 seconds. They rummaged around for a bit and then the lady handed me my passport and told me to move ahead. I asked her where she wanted me to park because her instructions seemed vague. “No. You’re clear. Have a nice trip!” Yahoo!!!
Miranda is parked at the Walmart, one of the worst lots I have stayed in, hard to get around in and on a slope. But there aren’t any obvious alternates and it’s just for a night.
I seem to have changed time zones as my iPad says it’s 12:45 and I distinctly remember pulling into Minot at that time. It’s been a short driving day having left Estevan less than four hours ago, but I’m beat and glad to call this drizzly day done.
Inching Towards the Border
I am at the Walmart in Estevan (The Energy City), still in Saskatchewan. I didn’t get much sleep last night and drove about 500km total today in the toad, so I was tempted to stay in Weyburn. But I felt that three nights there were already pushing it, that another 80km wouldn’t kill me, and that it’d be nice to start the day so close to the border (40km). If the border crossing goes smoothly, I will have a chance to do my business in Minot and still make it to the RV park I have in mind. But I have managed to get a full charge today (THANK YOU GALARNEAU), so tomorrow’s cold and overcast forecast isn’t too scary, not with sun being promised from Friday onward, and I will keep open the option of detouring to Bismarck if I do not manage to find the required services in Minot.
Estevan is rather a large city for this part of Canada. The Walmart isn’t as convenient to access as I had to drive through town, but the lot, like that in Weyburn, is nice and big with plenty of space to tuck away a 50′ rig on level spot.