Oh Canada! A Most Eventful Border Crossing

We departed Pumpkin Patch in Hermon ME about 9:00AM on a cool dreary and rainy day.  Rain is forecast for the next 3-4 days with temps in the mid 40s.  The drive along ME was uneventful in spite of the wind and rain. Shortly before crossing the border into Canada, we topped off our fuel tank.  This is our last chance to buy diesel by the gallon (vs liters) and in US dollars.  It was also my last opportunity to use my discount fuel card.

Check out the "Feels Like" temperature 

We arrived at the Calais/St. Stephens border crossing where only one lane was open. We waited in the queue for about 15 minutes before we spoke to a border agent at the window.  We were a little nervous because most of caravan members had already crossed and most of them had been boarded for a thorough inspection.  Many, that had been boarded, had concealed carry permits, so we thought that might be a factor.  I was not carrying a firearm and own no registered firearms.  So maybe we would get a pass.  Au contraire!

The official asked all the usual questions, and we thought we were home free until she asked about alcoholic beverages.  Below are the limits for alcohol transported from the US into Canada.  Note that the limit applies to only one of the following categories, not the sum of all three.  

When the agent asked about alcoholic beverages I read from a written inventory Dorcas had previously prepared.  The agent's jaw dropped, and she asked if I knew what the allowable limit was.  I responded to the effect that I wasn't sure, but I suspected we were pushing it.  Not exactly the whole truth, but not exactly an outright lie either.  

Our spirits inventory

As you can see, we were OK with the wine and beer, individually, but way over on liquor. In my mind I tried to blame Dorcas, but I knew that was simply a delusion.  The agent handed us a slip of paper with our spirits inventory and directed us to pull off into lane 8 for an inspection where we would be advised of our options.  CRAP!!!  I'm guessing she thought we were high on drugs and trying to cross with drugs too, since we were so stupid as to cross with so much liquor.  Two agents came to our coach and asked us to open all the slide outs, unlock the storage bays, open the safe and unlock the car.  Then they directed us to wait in the lobby until they finished.  CRAP!!!  After about an hour they returned to the office and said we could leave.  What??? I had expected to at least have to pay a hefty duty on the excess alcohol, but I bit my tongue and didn't ask any questions.  My tongue is still bleeding.  The agents were very courteous and did a pretty good job of returning things in the coach to the way they had found them.  It could have been worse.  As we were leaving the customs lobby and returning to our coach we passed a van conversion being inspected.  I overheard an agent say "I found another case of beer."  I suspect they had not declared their haul of booze and beer and were fixin' to pay the price.

While we were still in the lobby another member of our caravan group arrived and they were inspected as well.  He was carrying a shotgun, which he had declared, and had prepared the proper paperwork for a long gun.  We left before his inspection was finished, but we learned later that his gun was denied entry, so he returned to Calais and placed it is storage.  According to him, the gun was legally allowed, and he had carried it through Canada to Alaska. But the agent said something about not being necessary in New Brunswick because the black bears are not dangerous like the brown bears are out west, and technically, he was not just passing through Canada like he did when he drove to Alaska.  It didn't make much sense to me.  I think I would have just left the gun at home.

Shortly after crossing the border, we saw thick black smoke ahead.  That's not good!  It turns out a flatbed truck was on fire.  The fire department was on the scene and spraying water, but I could not tell exactly why it was burning.  The southbound lanes were blocked.  Thankfully, our lanes were not affected

The rest of the trip to St. John NB was uneventful, except for the circuitous route through the narrow streets of downtown New Brunswick.  We checked in at Rockwood Park Campground, part of a somewhat large city park.  We set up on site #61, while dodging rain spells and puddles.  We were finished in time for happy hour and enjoyed some of our illegal, but well deserved, spirits. 

Our dreary camp at Rockwood park

Later that evening we enjoyed a complimentary dinner at Lily Lake Pavilion with other members of our caravan. Due to the favorable currency exchange rate, the caravan has not spent as many $$$ as they had budgeted. Consequently, our hosts paid for this meal and announced that a few more future meals will be covered as well.  Thanks Jamie and Beth!!!

On Saturday the caravan officially kicks off with activities in and around New Brunswick.  Stay tuned.  Don't touch that dial!

Maine!

We departed camp at Woodstock CT at a leisurely hour and continued north and east on I-84 into Massachusetts and onto the Massachusetts turnpike.  We had intended to take the outer loop, I-495, around Boston, but I was cut off trying to enter the ramp and was unable to take that exit.  We continued on the Mass Turnpike, as Dorcas screamed for me to take the next ramp and go back.  Dorcas was adamant that she didn't want to go into the heart of Boston. But there was no next ramp, so we had no choice but to continue, and then take 1-95 north out of Boston.  We had expected congestion and delays, but it was actually pretty smooth sailing.  The only downside was that there was an extra toll plaza or two.  I think the distance was about the same.

The Big Blunder

We safely escaped Boston and cut through a corner of New Hampshire for about 12 miles.  In Portsmouth NH we topped off with some relatively cheap  diesel.  At $2.98/gal it will likely be the cheapest fuel we will see for the next 6 weeks or more.  Shortly thereafter we crossed into Maine.

A quick stop at the Maine rest stop

We arrived in Freeport ME about 2:00 on Monday May 18.  Online research revealed free overnight RV parking in Freeport in a public lot on Depot Street only 2 blocks from the L.L. Bean campus.  We hoped it wasn't full and our good living paid off; there were only two other RVs in the lot  There were 4 lanes for RVs but within each lane it was nose-to-tail parking.  I could see right away it might be easy to get blocked in.  We picked a lane on the left edge of the lot and pulled up behind a Class B van conversion.  After a short while the van left, and we were able to pull up to the head of the lane, facilitating a clean getaway when it came time to leave.  The weather has been cool and wet since arriving in New England, so we bundled up and went shopping.

Our first stop was at the L.L. Bean outlet store where we shopped for a while.  We have most everything we need nowadays, but we found a few items that called to us.

With the numerous stores and warehouses around town operated by L.L. Bean, there were a lot of company delivery trucks and maintenance vehicles darting around town.

We spotted the Boot Mobile at the L.L. Bean headquarters campus.  We actually saw at least two different ones.   I think it was size 156EE.

The L.L. Bean campus is currently undergoing a massive renovation project, scheduled for completion in the fall of 2026.  A re-boot, if you will.  The L.L.Bean Flagship Re-Boot  The original flagship store was closed, but there were four satellite stores selling various wares.   The outerwear and apparel goods were being sold in a huge tent named Camp L.L. Bean.  See map below:

Parts of original flagship store and construction zone

Interior of the Hunting & Fishing Store

Rods galore

A tent sale, if you will

Boats galore

Cold, windy, wet weather is conducive to buying comfort clothing, so we dropped a few coins at the stores. We departed Freeport about 2:00 PM on Tuesday May 20 after parking for almost the full 24-hour limit..  

After a sprint of only 109 miles we arrived at Pumpkin Patch RV Resort, just south of Bangor ME, our home for the next 3 nights.  A number of our Newmar caravan members are gathering here too, preparing to cross the Canadian border.  I spent some time catching up on this journal while Dorcas got our paperwork in order and inventoried our alcoholic beverage stores.

Site #15 at Pumpkin Patch

I mostly hung out at camp, but while shopping in Bangor, Dorcas visited the Stephen King home.  King no longer lives here and the home now is the headquarters to The Stephen & Tabitha King Foundation. 

We will be at Pumpkin Patch for 3 nights then cross the border and meet our caravan in St. John NB.

Headed into New England

 Tue May 18 was a moderately long driving day.  We made 340 miles and spent the night at the Walmart Supercenter in Milford PA.  We called ahead and when we asked the associate if overnight parking was allowed she hesitated then said "yes and no"  ????  There is a remote parking lot at the far front edge of store next to the highway that is posted "No Overnight Parking", but she said the rule was not enforced, and that no one would bother us  OK. So that's what we did.  Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

The Other Side of the Rest Stop featuring Flo, Jamie, Mara and Alan

Are we there already???

We were running well ahead of schedule and had made a plan to camp at Chamberlain Lake Campground in Woodstock CT.  That would mean a very short driving day of 176 miles.  But the campground was cheap, had 50A service and, based on the description, was fairly scenic.  The only downside was that it was about 8 miles off the interstate.  When we called ahead the owner said check-in was at 3:00 and an early check-in would incur a $20 penalty.  CRAP!  We were on track to arrive at 11:00 AM.  That meant we could proceed to the campground and pay the $20, negating the cheap rate, or plan to keep going and make it a longer driving day and stay somewhere else, or stop somewhere before there and kill some time.  Ultimately, we decided to visit the Mark Twain House and Museum in Hartford CT, only about 30 minutes down the road.  We called to inquire about tickets and parking.  The guy there said there was no dedicated RV parking in their parking lot, but we were welcome to park in the general parking area if we wished.  We looked at Google maps and discovered the lot was not very big and finding seven adjacent spaces of right-angle parking to occupy might be a challenge.  But it was right on our way, easy access from I-84, and we could bail if we couldn't find parking there or on the street nearby.  We were feeling lucky, and when we arrived there was a gap just big enough for us.  

"Indeed, none but the Deity can tell what is good luck and what is bad before the returns are all in."  Letter SLC to Samuel Moffett, August 6 1904

Life is Good!  At least for today.

This little guy wanted to help me plan my route as he wandered over my MacBook

From Wikipedia:

"The Mark Twain House and Museum in Hartford, Connecticut, was the home of Samuel Langhorne Clemens (Mark Twain) and his family from 1874 to 1891. The Clemens family had it designed by Edward Tuckerman Potter and built in the American High Gothic style. Clemens biographer Justin Kaplan has called it "part steamboat, part medieval fortress and part cuckoo clock."

Clemens wrote many of his best-known works while living there, including The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, The Prince and the Pauper, Life on the Mississippi, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, A Tramp Abroad, and A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court.

Poor financial investments prompted the Clemens family to move to Europe in 1891. The Panic of 1893 further threatened their financial stability, and Clemens, his wife Olivia, and their middle daughter, Clara, spent the year 1895–96 traveling so that he could lecture and earn the money to pay off their debts. He recounted the trip in Following the Equator (1897). Their other two daughters, Susy and Jean, had stayed behind during this time, and Susy died at home on August 18, 1896, of spinal meningitis before the family could be reunited. They could not bring themselves to reside in the house after this tragedy and spent most of their remaining years living abroad. They sold the house in 1903."

"Architects cannot teach nature anything"  Memorable Midnight Experience, 1874

We took a guided tour of the house.  Our guide was dressed in costume and spoke in the manner of the time, 1903.  The premise of the tour was that the Twains were not going to return to the house and intended to sell it.  The guide posed as real life good friend and neighbor of Twain, the Minister Joseph Twichell, who is showing the furnishings to potential buyers for an upcoming auction.

Unfortunately photography is strictly forbidden inside the house.  I was tempted to cheat and take some clandestine shots, but Twichell was keeping a close eye open for scofflaws. I did however lift a few photos from the Mark Twain House and Museum website:

The Mahogany Room, the best guest suite

The library

The Billiards Room where Twain did his writing

The Drawing Room was the scene of formal entertaining

Entrance Hall and main staircase

The Clemens Bedroom, the private quarters of Clemens and his wife

The schoolroom‚ originally designed as Twain’s study‚ later became a play area and classroom for his daughters

Clara and Jean shared the nursery. Susy‚ as the oldest child‚ had her own room

We departed the parking lot, thankful that no one had blocked us in while we were parked, and headed back to the interstate.  We didn't expect the road from I-84 to Chamberlain Lake Campground to be great, but it was worse than expected.  It was 8 miles of twisty turns and steep grades.  A number of yellow caution signs warned us of S-shaped roads and 9% grades.  The road was narrow with no place to pull over to let others pass.  I'm sure we pissed off a lot of locals.  We arrived safely at our camp at Chamberlain Lake Campground in Woodstock CT in time for happy hour and well past the dreaded 3:00 check-in time.

Site #11 Chamberlain Lake Campground

We didn't build a fire, but we did have pretty nifty fire pit on our site.

Chamberlain Pond

The campsite was mostly empty, consisting primarily of long-term sites

This sign was on the restroom near our campsite.

I accept the challenge!

"May you always keep your youth"  Samuel Clemmons Speech September 1906