River Road Ramblings

We crossed the border into Canada at 1:30 pm today on Hwy 59 out of MN. At the border we were asked to show our "id." We showed passports.

"What gifts are you bringing in?"
"Twelve 8 oz bottles of WI maple syrup and 4 lbs of WI cheese to take to Seattle."

"How long are you staying?"

"About a week--camping out in a tent."
"Any Liquor or Tobacco?"

"No"

"Do you know anyone in Canada?"

"Yes, my old girlfriend from college, Annie, lives in Winnipeg."

Looking at my wife, the border guard said "Hope you are not going to go visit her, are you?"

"She said she will be out of town whatever week it is I come through."

"Well, that's good! Enjoy yourselves!"

And so we drove on into Canada for about two hours until we found Stephen Field State Park near Roland--south and a little west of Winnipeg.

Our cell phones don't work anymore--tracfones appear to not work at all away from the border.

The farmers were harvesting canola--swathing it to let it dry and then combining it. Lots of wheat and oats being combined too. Not much corn; soybeans look like they had too much water early on. The Canadian dollar and American dollar are about equal right now. At the grocery, everyone brought their own reusable bags to put their groceries in. The two lane road speed limit is 100 maximum kilometers per hour. Gas is about 98 cents Canadian per liter-- or about $4 per gallon.