The Border of Canada
I went over the border
to sort some disorder
Of what I'm not sure
Some old myth of normal
Some arbitrary line
To divide and confine
Our wild natures course
Time to find our true north
FUN FACT:
Where the Gulf of Maine meets the Bay of Fundy on the US-Canadian border, is Machias Seal Island. This 20-acre island is the last piece of land whose sovereignty is disputed between the United States and Canada!
I originally schemed to create a daily blog for each leg of my Canadian Journey, highlighting the epic travels with my profound insights. It would include magnificent photos and videos, deep poetic musings of the landscapes and cultures, and all accentuated by original music that emphasized the vibrancy of the environment. It was going to be enthralling, with readers being completely swept up in awe and uncontrollable emotion.
Well for those of you who know when I actually left for the journey knows that idea completely failed… I’m already sitting comfortably at home having finished the trip. I’m a little embarrassed for those I told to “keep an eye out”.
Still, it is nice now having this bit of separation to look back and reflect. Reliving some of those moments that went by so fast. Reading my then insights, contrasting them with my now appreciation for each experience. It’s actually a profound comparison. So hopefully these post-Canada posts are still welcomed to read as they are still to share.
Roadtripping is tough stuff! Especially when you have no idea what you are doing and plan very poorly. I bought a contractor van to travel and sleep in, which didn’t come with any structural mods or installs of any kind. Just a rusty metal box-on-frame. Something you can casually drop a foot through the flooring.
I also decided to bring my cat, Steezy, along for the ride. He’s never adapted well to wearing a harness and generally doesn’t enjoy car rides. He really hasn’t been out of the apartment for any extended period of time. But he’s the homie and is always down for some new shenanigans.
I packed everything I absolutely did not need, and lots of it. Skipping on the bare essentials and natural survival-ware. I spent the first day having to move a bunch of stuff to find something, only to move it all back again and promptly losing whatever it was again in the process. I must have made 4 Walmart trips on the ride up for basic necessities. I brought a camelback and a portable jug, but zero actual water.
The first day and night was mostly bumping my head or tripping over something, and endlessly thrashing about in frustration. Steezy had the uncanny ability to be exactly in the way of whatever I was trying to do at any given time. Not much was structurally secure in the van and had the legitimate potential of becoming a life-threatening projectile.
But ripping through deep backwoods Maine at 11pm was a vibe. Seeing these lights appear out of nowhere like a UFO landing, realizing it was the border crossing. We were met with a “bonjour” and a million confused questions about where I was going in a cargo van with a cat in the middle of the night, in the middle of the nowhere. They let us in through 🤷.
We stayed at an RV park that may have been where they filmed Trailer Park Boys. But it was majestically dark, the stars were twinkling brilliantly in the night sky. A crisp chill filled the air from the undeveloped shoreline. It was deathly quiet, except for one lone loon call off in the distance. We had made it to the Great White North! Our journey had begun.
