We Are Home!

 

There is usually a bright side to even a negative if you look hard enough. Even though we cut our adventure short a couple of days, this did allow us to cross back into the U.S. before August 1^st, the date that the new CDC dog regulations took effect. And let me tell you, are we glad we did! There is so much confusion associated with these regulations. I still do not know all the details, just the horror stories we have heard, and this was even before they were enacted! 

Apparently, dogs have to have a microchip implanted in them before they can cross the border. Not a big deal as both of ours do. But wait, it has to be a 15-digit ISO compliant microchip. Dakota has a 15-digit microchip, Zoey does not, so she would have to have a new chip implanted. But wait, there is more. One person talked about having to get their dog a new chip, but also a new rabies shot tied to that chip. Total vet bill; over $600. The problem is that a dog cannot cross the border within 28 days of receiving a new rabies shot so they are stuck in Canada for a few more weeks. 

Another person talked about having to have a USDA approved veterinarian fill out the CDC form so she took her Canadian dog to the US to have the dog examined and form filled out just so they can cross again later in the year. 

Neither of these make any sense to me but these are the tales that are being told. I am sure there are more horror stories to follow. Suffice to say, we are glad we crossed before the 1^st! I wrote that a couple of days ago and understand since then they have relaxed/clarified a couple of these regulations since then, but those of you crossing the border, you best know the new rules before attempting to cross. 

The roads were a mess up there this week. The fires are continuing in the area making for very smoky conditions. So far, the fires are not impacting any travel on the Alcan itself, but it is closed again at KM 624 due to flooding on the Peace River which washed the road away. We were through this way just a few days earlier, so once again it is a blessing we were a few days early. The detour for this section is to turn around and take the Cassier, which would add at least another day to your travels. 

Then there was the South Klondike, which was impacted by a landslide totally closing the road and trapping people in Skagway. The only way to get out of that area was the ferry to Haines. We were nowhere near this area so it did not impact us. I understand it is now open to one lane of traffic.

And I am sure many of you have heard of the Jasper fire which has multiple roads closed and has devastated the Jasper/Golden area with many significant structures destroyed. 

 Our fish made it home safe and sound. The route they took was a little weird. 2 Day FedEx Shipping took it from Homer Alaska to Tennessee, where it sat for 17 hours, then to Sioux Falls, SD, then to Rapid City and eventually to their respective delivery addresses. One box to Kevin's house, one box to Neighbor Jim's house who took it and put it in our freezer upon delivery.  Both of them said that they filets arrived ice cold with several of them still frozen. We would have preferred that none of them thawed along the way, but we just were not willing to pay $800 to have them shipped! Jim has been so helpful on this trip, between checking on the house, fixing fence and putting the fish in the freezer. He is now insisting that I have business cards printed for him with the titles of Property Manager, Caretaker and On-Site Security/Defense Expert. I know, I have said it before, but we have such great neighbors!

Our last night in Canada found us in Leduc, and you know what that meant? We got to see Dave and Leslie again! A lot has changed for them since we last saw them on our way up in May. They have sold their house, closed on it and are now living in their RV at a campground in Leduc while they look for a new house. Leslie was nice enough to book a site right across from them.

 After arriving and setting up we headed to Rig Hand Distillery where we had lunch and bought a bottle of Brum. It is a rum made from sugar beets rather than molasses and has quite a distinct flavor. Then it was back to the camper where we cooked up a couple of our salmon filets for supper. 

We spent the rest of the evening in the coolness of their 5th wheel. Dave and Leslie insisted that the girls joined us. Dakota just laid on the floor while Zoey terrorized one of Dave good socks. Here is Dave trying to gently extract said sock from the jaws of death. It was not until Dave distracted her with a ball that she finally released the sock.  

The next morning all 4 of us headed to Cora's restaurant for breakfast before heading south. After a 452-mile drive, we landed in Havre, Montana for the night. The border crossing in Wild Horse was a breeze and funny. I will have to say, the officer was kind of an odd duck, but very nice. As he was going over our passports, he looked at Zoey and said, "Those dogs sure are popular right now, I just don't get it, with their pointy ears, pug nose and bulging eyes, I think they are hideous". Barb covered Zoey's ears so she would not hear him. He just laughed, gave us back out passports and welcomed us home. 

Our last day on the road was a long one, just over 600 miles, but we were not going to stop with the finish line in sight. And before we knew it, we were welcomed with this sight.

How's Barb feeling you ask? Better, but still not great. Hopefully now that she is home she can relax and get better. Knowing her though, there will not be much relaxing.

 Several of you have asked who won the 2024 Great Summer Adventure Fishing Wars. Drum roll please…… I did! Well, at least that is my story. I won the Rainbow trout category, the Grayling category and the Salmon category. Barb won the Dolly Varden category and the Lake Trout category with that monster laker. She is claiming that she should be the winner as she caught the only fish that would be considered a trophy and the largest Cod which really wasn’t even a target category. I told her, I write the blog, so I am the winner!

 In total we traveled 8,510 miles, averaged 10.8 mpg so about 788 gallons of fuel, and were gone 66 days. We spent $623 on campgrounds, $239 of which were the last 5 nights $239 where we needed hook up for the AC. Another $90 was our 2 nights in Seward where we visited the McCormick's. In all those miles, we only visited 4 states (SD, WY, MT and AK) and 3 provinces (AB, BC and YK). I cannot say this is entirely accurate, but by last count, we visited at least 16 breweries, 6 distilleries and one winery. We try to collect coasters from each one, Barb is going to make a plaque or incorporate them into a table at some point.

So, that is it, we are home! I think Zoey is happiest to be home as she has so much more room to zoom around. Upstairs, downstairs, bouncing off the couches. Sorry Harry, it was so fast I could not get a video! The next few days will be a mix of relaxing and unpacking as it is really HOT! Then it will be time to tackle that list we put together on our way home.