2010 USA Roadtrip Winthrop, WA to the Canadian Border and Immigration Control

We left Winthrop at 9:15 a.m and arrived at the Canadian border at 1:45 p.m. thoroughly enjoying the Cascade Loop Scenic Highway. We drove slowly enough to soak it all in (we drove Regions 7 and 8).

Jack Mountain (9066') with Diablo Lake in the foreground

The vistas of glaciers were lovely.

Our new Subaru and bikes with Snowfield Peak and Pyramid Peak in the background on the Cascade Loop Scenic Highway

The line at the Canadian border control was not long at 1:45 p.m. on Saturday afternoon. The woman at drive up window asked us how long we wanted a visa for. Dimitri had read that a 6-month visa was standard and asked for that. She asked where we were going and Dimitri said Vancouver. She asked where we were going to stay and Dimitri said in a hotel. Then she asked "for 6 months?" Dimitri said "no, we'll find an apartment while staying at a hotel." She asked "which hotel?" Dimitri said we hadn't made a reservation at a hotel; we'd get to Vancouver, look around and then decide. She asked if we had relatives or friends in Vancouver and Dimitri said "no." At that point she said we should park and go inside the immigration office. 

The immigration officer inside asked us the same questions as the woman outside had and seemed equally perplexed by our answers. She went on to ask about our finances and whether we work. We told her that we are retired and have been traveling slowly from country to country for 15 years; we weren't sure that she believed us. Audre added "we have a blog about our travels." She asked for the blog address and for the keys to our car so it could be inspected. We were told to sit and wait. After a short time, we called back to the desk and she finished the paperwork to allow us to stay in Canada for six months. As we were leaving Audre asked her "did you look at the blog?" She responded: "yes, it's amazing, you've been everywhere." That was the first time that our blog has been helpful to us in validating the truthfulness of the story of our traveling lifestyle!

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