July 2, 2014 (72nd Day)

This blog is going to be a short one because Edith did not keep notes of our activities for that day. We try to remember as much as we can after looking at pictures.

Leaving North Battleford, SK we continued on Yellowhead Highway E toward Regina, SK, the capitol of Saskatchewan. 

Along the highway we saw so many grain elevators!  Some so interesting, some not so...  We went to the back road to visit Kenaston and the Snowman.  The Snowman is a mascot for the local ice hockey club and is holding a hockey stick.  Nearby is a grain elevator. 

We arrived Regina, the capital city of Saskatchewan.  Unfortunately, the dome of the capital was being renovated.  The black dome reaches 56 meters (183.727 feet) up to the sky, can be seen from any point within the city. Across from the capitol is a beautiful Queen Elizabeth II Gardens, which was re-opened in 2012 after going through changes.

Walter Scott was the first Premier of Saskatchewan (1905-1916)

We did not stay long in Regina, just drove through the city quickly. We wanted to enter U.S. border before nightfall. 

Erwin's version: We finally arrived at Noonan's border gate.  There the problem started! Edith was driving at the time (that's not the problem, sorry) When we handed over our passports and driver's licenses, the agent looked them up on the computer along with our license plate letters. Edith noticed a big red Warning sign that appeared on the computer screen and told me that we're gonna have problems! They asked us if we had a 2005 Ford truck? We did, but it was stolen in 2009 and never recovered! He checked on the computer again, and asked to see our registration for the camper van. I told them it is in the back and could I go get it? I didn't want them to think I was going for a weapon without first letting them know what I was doing. He looked it over and asked why the state of Florida would give us the same tag that was stolen? He said he would have to inspect our vehicle. (I think he just wanted to see what it looked like inside the camper van). He came in and just looked around asking what was in the cabinets, bathroom, refrigerator, etc. Then he said "very nice" and left the camper van. He made copies of the registration. I asked if we would have problems again when we re-entered Canada later and then the US on the east coast? He said "Probably!" The whole process took about 20 minutes but felt a lot longer!

Once we left the border gate and entered the state of North Dakota (ND) we heaved a sigh of relief.  The sun was setting and we pulled over, so Edith can go out and take pictures.  When it was all done we continued driving until Fallston, ND and spent the night there.

G'night!