Oh Canada!

This afternoon we crossed the border into Canada.  We are parked at the Stoney Nakoda Resort and Casino in Kananaskis Alberta Canada, at the base of the Canadian Rockies.  But I digress ....

This morning we enjoyed another breakfast buffet at the Best Western Inn.  Fresh cooked waffles, eggs with salsa and jalapenos and link sausage.  YUM!  The hostess let us take some cinnamon buns and muffins for later.  The folks in northern Montana are very hospitable.

Check out time was 11:00, and we were in no hurry to leave.  We were only 35 miles from the border, and did not have a particularly long way to travel today.  However, more trouble!  The front slide out came in smoothly.  That is always a good sign because frequently the front slide motor will trip a resettable breaker.  Not a problem but a minor nuisance.  Apparently the electric motor that drives our front slide out is under-sized and trips the 10A breaker.  The breaker will automatically reset in a few seconds, and will not usually trip again during that cycle.  But when we tried to retract the rear slide nothing happened.  It's never a good sign when you are pulling out and the slide out does not come in.  I replaced the 10A resettable breaker with a conventional 10A fuse, and it blew immediately.  I tried a 15A fuse with the same result.  CRAP!  Was the rear slide motor bad, causing it to blow the fuses? I did not have another 10A breaker, so I moved a 20A breaker from another position and the rear slide retracted normally, and there was no smoke from the motor.  Apparently the 10A breaker had failed.  On the way out of town we stopped at NAPA and bought a replacement.  Upon installation, both slides extended and retracted normally.  Problem solved, hopefully.

We are not alone

We headed north on I-15 and, arrived at Canadian customs about 1/2 hour later.  Preparing to cross the border is always stressful, and Dorcas had prepared a cheat sheet with the answers to all the questions we expected to be asked.  There was only one car ahead of us, and we got to the agent's window pretty quickly.  The border agent asked the usual questions.  No problem.  When he asked if we had any alcohol I answered yes, and then he asked how much.  We always carry way more than the allowable limit without paying a duty.  When I started to read the from the cheat sheet, the agent interrupted me, and asked if we intended to give any away in Canada.  When I answered no (give away my liquor??? No way???) he returned our documents and sent us on our way.  We spent less than a minute (metric time) speaking to the agent.  It was a very smooth crossing.  Why do we always fret so?

Crossing the border

Alberta Welcome Center

We continued northward and made a grocery stop at the Walmart in Lethbridge, buying primarily fresh fruit and vegetables, items that the border agent usually asked about and can be prohibited.  We by-passed downtown Calgary, taking the back roads instead; not the best decision on our trip, and then turned west on Canada Highway 1 towards Banff.  Today is Victoria Day, a Canadian holiday.  That made today the end of a three day holiday weekend.  Traffic in our direction was very light, but eastbound traffic from Banff headed toward Calgary was backed up for miles and miles.  We drove 281 miles today and are now parked at Stoney Nakoda Resort and Casino in Kananaskis Alberta Canada.

Bug guts on the windshield and oncoming traffic from Banff

Camp Stoney Lakota Casino