Canada
By Bob Waite
Ottawa – On August 9, 2021, Canada began allowing entry to American citizens and permanent residents currently residing in the United States who have been fully vaccinated for at least 14 days prior to entering the country.
The United States, on the other hand, has yet to reciprocate. Canadians continue to be barred from crossing the land border. This despite the fact that Canadian vaccination rates are significantly higher than those of their American counterparts.
So what gives?
In a word, politics.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the border opening not long before calling an election. There seems little doubt that he heeded calls from the tourist and hospitality industries to open things up before the summer slipped completely away.
Politics was also undoubtedly behind the American decision to keep the border shut tight – although it is impossible to get an official U.S. government spokesperson to… Continue reading
Today we feature the latest guest post from contributing writer Robert Waite, who, thanks to his travelogues from around the world over the course of the past year and a half or so, has helped balloon my own voluminous bucket list to Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade proportions.
You can now add Canada’s Jasper National Park to that list. Bob explains why:
By Robert Waite
Jasper, Alberta – I had wanted to visit Jasper National Park pretty much from the time I immigrated to Canada in 1986.
Jasper is the largest and most northerly of seven national and provincial parks in the Canadian Rockies that together form UNESCO’s Canada Rocky Mountain Park World Heritage Site.
Known for its magnificent vistas and abundant wildlife, Jasper had been featured endlessly in the travelogues and magazines of my youth, kindling my imagination.… Continue reading
When contributing writer Robert Waite told me he was heading from his Canadian home for a family camping vacation in New England, I asked him to consider doing a piece on his experience.
Normally (pre-COVID) crossing the U.S.-Canadian border by automobile has been a relatively simple procedure, albeit one that often required long waits at immigration due to the huge volumes of traffic.
But, as Bob reports, things have changed dramatically.
By Robert Waite
Champlain, NY – Unless you have dual citizenship, perform an essential service, or hold a current student visa, don’t expect to cross the world’s longest border any time soon.
Canada currently bars all non-essential travel to the United States until September 21 – and there is every expectation the ban will be extended at least another month.… Continue reading
Skating on the Rideau Canal — one of Ottawa’s most popular winter pastimes. Photo from Canadian National Capital Commission.
Contributing writer Robert Waite, having led us on an odyssey through his recent (but pre-COVID) travels around the globe — including Laos, Cambodia, Albania, Namibia, and Rwanda — now appropriately turns his attentions to his sheltering home base: Ottawa, Canada.
I have fond memories of my own visits to Ottawa, even attempting to skate a stretch of the iced-over Rideau Canal during the annual Winterlude festival. Demonstrating my nearly non-existent ice-skating skills, I persevered all the way to our destination — which must have been at least 100 yards away (the length of an American football field!). Not bad for 45 minutes, eh?
However, as a confirmed arachnophobe, I may have to pass on the National Gallery of Canada on my next visit. To find out why and much more,… Continue reading
The expedition ship MV Cascadia sailed the Haida Gwaii islands. Photo by Robert Waite.
In Part II of Robert Waite’s chronicle of his trip to remote Haida Gwaii — an archipelago off the west coast of Canada, in British Columbia — he takes us aboard the MV Cascadia, a small expedition vessel that holds a maximum of 24 passengers.
Along with comfortable accommodations and amenities, the Cascadia provided plenty of opportunities for visiting the islands, formerly known as the Queen Charlottes, where the biological diversity is the richest on earth and Haida tribal culture is making a comeback.
If you haven’t read Part I of this two-part series, I suggest you go there now and you’ll have the full context for reading about this extraordinary journey.
By Robert Waite
Once aboard the Cascadia, much of our seven-day voyage was determined by weather and tides.
Tides on the east… Continue reading
Haida Gwaii’s mist-covered islands are sheer magic. Photo by Robert Waite.
In this post, Part I of a two-part series, guest contributor and baby boomer Robert Waite chronicles his journey to little-visited Haida Gwaii, previously known as the Queen Charlotte islands, off the coast of British Columbia.
Part I offers an introduction to the tumultuous history and compelling culture of the islands, while part II will detail his voyage through them aboard the MV Cascadia, a small expedition ship that allows for shallow landings and coastal kayaking trips while balancing comfortable accommodations with environmental protection.
Getting to explore Haida Gwaii personally is a far cry from the distant views afforded from Alaska-bound cruise ships as they pass Haida Gwaii sailing along the Inside Passage, often in the dead of night. Like me, if you’ve made that trip, you may have wondered what you were missing on those islands. Now we… Continue reading
One of Prince Edward Island’s historic lighthouses. Photo from Pixabay.
One of my regrets from our years spent in upstate New York (before moving to Tucson) was not spending more time in the Canadian maritime provinces. Somehow we never made it to Prince Edward Island, for example, but one of these days…
In any event, this guest post from Josh Patoka reminds me of what we’ve missed — and, I hope, will inspire others to go where we have not (yet).
By Josh Patoka
Literary fans know Canada’s Prince Edward Island (PEI) best as the setting of Anne of Green Gables, but there are plenty of things for baby boomer travelers with other interests to see and do there.
The island combines rolling scenery, a relaxed pace of life, historic lighthouses, fresh seafood, and biking and hiking trails — along with Anne of Green Gables-related activities, of… Continue reading
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