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Nova Scotia? Route 66 to California? Where to go?

Favor of a reply from the Canadian members here ... are you hearing anything about Canada opening for tourism in LATE AUGUST or EARLY SEPTEMBER?

Specifically looking at New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia, possibly Quebec too
 
Our federal government doesn't give us any hint as to what's coming and when.
The borders are controlled through the CBSA.
The CBSA will not post anything about future openings until that info is released to the public.

 
On the news today there "may" be an update July 21. Super cryptic...but that is the way most things have been through this process.
Honestly I'm hoping for August 21, or a little later.

We will be losing our foster son in mid-August. Sometime in mid August I also have to get our foreign exchange student moved into her dorm at Notre Dame. After that point anything is fair game. So we will probably depart from N.W. Indiana (suburban Chicago) around August 20 and head up toward Maine. We tend to travel on 2 lane rural highways so it will take a week to get up to border in Maine. So September 1st is a realistic date to hit the border.

Being the optimistic guy that I am, i downloaded the maps for Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, Connecticut, Quebec, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia.
 
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Actually nothing new to report.

This news story makes it sound like travel is opening up, but the reality is that nothing new is actually happening. At least not until after July 21. And we don't know if they will loosen up at that point. Tourism is still locked down.

I submit, for your reading displeasure, an optimistic spin on nothing much:
 
I think what's happening at the national level is that more and more things are being added to the "essential travel" list, while non-essential/tourist travel is still restricted.
For example, I can recall when travel to visit a spouse was not permitted. Now it seems that travel to visit a spouse, or even a committed partner (meeting a specific definition) is maybe permitted.
So all you need to do now is marry someone in NS and you're all set!
 
Starting to focus less on looking at the New England states in US, focusing more on getting THROUGH the midwestern states and western N.E. to get up the Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine, plus crossing into Canada.

We are not, nor do we have a desire to do IRON BUTT riding. Figure on 4-5 days to get to New Hampshire/Maine, that includes fairly easy riding with tourism.
 
And now today the USA has extended travel restrictions to August 21. Which would be just about the time we would be hitting the border. I have to get our foreign exchange student back to Notre Dame, her move in window is August 15th/16th. We figured we would leave Chicagoland approximately August 18. That puts us at the US/Canadian border sometime around August 25th, give or take a day, assuming we stop in Maine for a bit of touristy stuff.

 
So this arrived in the mail today.

Going to take a good hard look and do some trip planning.

It looks doable. Got to coordinate the travel dates, but we are looking at late August, early September. Biggest hangup may be our foster son, he is supposed to be 'reunited' into his grandmother's care in mid-August, if that goes as scheduled then we could head out of town before late August.

There is now some question about the timeline of our foster son leaving our home, a possible delay that could scuttle plans for a nice trip. We have to be home by September 10, that is a hard date that cannot be changed, due to other obligations.

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Looking LESS LIKELY that we will cross the Canadian border, more likely we will do a tour of New England.

If we understand it, we are qualified to cross. We are both double vaccinated. But we need tests before we cross, at roughly $175 each. Then we need to wait for the results, so that is an extra night in a hotel plus meals while we wait for test results. Then we cross into Canada and need to both test again. Then we need a 14 day quarantine plan. Then we need to keep a log book of every person we had close contact with during our travels. When we get to Nova Scotia we have to check in with another agency . . .

Honestly I understand why Canada wants us to do that but we can travel around New England on great roads and not have to go through all the hassles. I don't blame Canada. I just don't want to waste roughly $1000 and perhaps an extra day or two when we have a hard deadline to be back home.
 
Well it would be nice to ride there, I hear the roads and views are amazing.

We are trying to navigate the whole entry procedure thing. It is confusing. Some areas apparently overlay additional rules on top of the Canadian rules? There is an agency in Nova Scotia we'd need to check in with?

And the Canadian rules are changing after August 9. So we need to understand which rules we need to follow. It is all up in the air at this point. We are now confused about the testing rules, it is possible those pre-entry/post-entry tests are unneeded starting Aug 10.
 
If you do end up going to New England and never been there, here are some great places my wife and I have ridden to


Adirondack Mts, New York (beautiful, scenic place to ride through)



Lake Placid, New York (1980 Olympic Venue... they have a 90 meter ski jump you can take the elevator to the top)



Scenic Ferry ride across Lake Champlain from Port Kent NY to Burlington VT



Smuggler’s Notch VT RT 108 (very cool winding pass between rocks)



Take a drive on Smugglers Notch Road near Stowe, VT - YouTube



Kancamagus Hwy New Hampshire Rt 112 (Very highly rated mc road)



Kancamagus Highway: Top Motorcycle Road in NH - YouTube



White Mountains New Hampshire (Beautiful scenic place to ride through)



Mt Washington Auto Road, New Hampshire (Highest Peak in Northeast..highest wind recorded at 238 mph at observatory on top you can ride to if weather cooperates if not there is a railway that you can ride up)



Motorcycle Ride up Mt. Washington in NH - YouTube



The Mount Washington Cog Railway (thecog.com)



Cog Railway To The Summit Of MOUNT WASHINGTON - YouTube



Bar Harbor Maine (Lobsta lol)

We took a whale watching boat ride out of here and actually saw whales lol


Acadia Natl Park (near Bar Harbor)


Cadillac Mountain (near Bar Harbor..cool mountin top with cool views)


Schoodic Scenic Byway (not far from Bar Harbor, great ride around a peninsula close to the ocean with a neat geyser like water phenomenon at one point and thru an old fishing village)
 
Looks like a long trip is OFF for us.

Our foster son has been 'returned' to his family. We knew it was coming and we have been working with his grandmother, who will be taking custody. We offered to do "day care" for him several days a week.

BUT, she was confused with our schedule. So now custody has been transferred to her but she was expecting day care when we were expecting to be gone. Obviously he is our top priority. Our plans changed. Not sure what they are yet, but we do know our plans don't include a 3+ week trip.
 
Today, I and my riding group entered New Brunswick, Canada from Maine. We went through the required steps and were allowed entry to Canada. Tomorrow we will be in Nova Scotia.
 
Today, I and my riding group entered New Brunswick, Canada from Maine. We went through the required steps and were allowed entry to Canada. Tomorrow we will be in Nova Scotia.
Awesome! I have my guide book if we get our lives here straighten out with the foster baby schedule. I know the rules seem to be changing, do you still have to Covid test after getting into Canada?

Do you still have to check in with the health department when you get to Nova Scotia? That was a rule when they initially opened, but it was not required in N.B.
 
Today, I and my riding group entered New Brunswick, Canada from Maine. We went through the required steps and were allowed entry to Canada. Tomorrow we will be in Nova Scotia.
Stop at any McDonalds in NS and get a McLobster……

…..long ride for a Ruckus!
 
Awesome! I have my guide book if we get our lives here straighten out with the foster baby schedule. I know the rules seem to be changing, do you still have to Covid test after getting into Canada?

Do you still have to check in with the health department when you get to Nova Scotia? That was a rule when they initially opened, but it was not required in N.B.
We had to show proof that we were fully vaccinated some time ago, and proof of a negative covid test done within 72 hours of entry into Canada. Then at the particular New Brunswick border we were also handed a covid self test kit that actually had to be performed live later in the day through a video link with a health agency. Purolator courier will then pick up the test kits from hotel. Then to enter Nova Scotia there is another on-line check in form that seems more like a formality. Yes, there are a lot of hoops we had to jump through, and probably more to come.

If you don't have a smart phone and good data connection, I don't see how any of this could be accomplished.
 
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