49th Parallel Rumor

You mean until covid 2.0 shows up. How we got this one strongly suggests there will be more. I'd hope (but it is probably an empty hope) that there would be lessons learned and planning going into how not to have this sort of border fiasco next time around.

I expect by July or sooner Canadians will open border to those who can show proof of vaccination. Their tourism industry is critical to it. With first vaccine numbers now eclipsing that of the US and vaccine hesitancy far less, by July they will surpass the US with fully vaccinated percentages. CDC guidance, concurred by Canada, is that once vaccinated you can't spread it.

Latest news is that all BC residents eligible will be 2nd vaccinated by August. That will fast track border openings

Canadian border

We are in Blaine, WA and the local newspaper, "The Northern Light" (Community Newspaper of Blaine and Birch Bay), is stating the border will reopen 22 June.

However, Canadians can freely come to the USA but going back they have to quarantine.

To me it does not seem fair to the Canadians.
I think the reopening should either be unilateral with no restrictions or the USA should wait to open the border until this can happen.

We have been having our boat serviced in Sidney since Oct 2020 they go back and forth all the time as licensed captains. From what I hear the border is not opening any time soon. I feel bad for all parties. Last report said not until canadians were at 75%. The good news, they are much smarter than their southern neighbors so hopefully they will get there- quickly!

A problem is, how do you prove you've been vaccinated if that is the border requirement? For reasons mainly having to do with stupidity, there is no governmental entity in the US willing to do that. You get a little hand written cardboard card, I could print a thousand of them at home, surely that won't be sufficient.

Maybe they could just scan the Bill Gates chip that gets implanted with the vaccine?

No foreign yachts or cruise ships in Canada until 2022

I've spent a half dozen or more summers cruising in the Canadian Maritimes and posted the following on the Cruising Atlantic Canada group earlier this year. I've seen no indication of a change to the report below that Canada will be closed to foreign yachts and cruise ships until February 2022.


As of May 25, 2021, in Canada a total of 1,660,830 people or 4.4 per cent of the population had been fully vaccinated. It seems to me that doesn't bode well for Canada lifting the restrictions in the near future.



Milt Baker, Nordhavn 47 Bluewater


No foreign yachts or cruise ships in Canada until 2022

Milt Baker N4732 Bluewater



The following report from Forbes is more than a month old but it represents the Canadian government's position on foreign pleasure boats and cruise ships in Canada. In essence, no foreign yachts or cruise ships until 2022.

Milt Baker, N4732 Bluewater



Canadian government position on foreign pleasure boats in Canada.
Government Of Canada Bans Pleasure Crafts And Cruise Vessels For
One Year

Sandra MacGregor Forbes Contributor

Government of Canada announced today, February 4, 2021, that it will continue to maintain the ban on pleasure crafts and cruise ships. The temporary ban for cruise ships was originally scheduled to end on Feb. 28, 2021. Today, Canada’s Minister of Transport, Omar Alghabra, announced two new Interim Orders, which prohibit pleasure craft in Canadian Arctic waters and cruise vessels in all Canadian waters until February 28, 2022.
In a press release the government stated that “The Government of Canada continues to monitor the evolving COVID-19 pandemic and the impact it is having on the marine and tourism sectors. Keeping Canadians and transportation workers safe and healthy are top priorities for Transport Canada.”
According to the press release these measures mean that:

• Adventure-seeking pleasure craft are still prohibited from entering Arctic waters.
• Passenger vessels carrying more than 12 people are still prohibited from entering Arctic coastal waters, including Nunatsiavut, Nunavik, and the Labrador Coast.
• Cruise vessels carrying more than 100 people are still prohibited from operating in Canadian waters.

Pleasure craft used by local Arctic residents will not be affected by these measures. These restrictions do not apply to craft used by local communities for essential transportation, subsistence fishing, harvesting and hunting in Canada’s Arctic waters.

Government of Canada announces one-year ban for pleasure craft and cruise vessels






The government said that these prohibitions will allow public health authorities to continue focusing on the pressing issues, including the vaccine rollout and new COVID-19 variants. The release went on to state that “To limit the spread of COVID-19, the Government of Canada continues to advise Canadian citizens and permanent residents to avoid all travel on cruise ships outside Canada until further notice…Cruise vessels in Canadian waters pose a risk to our health care systems. The Government of Canada will continue to evaluate the situation and make changes as necessary to ensure the health and safety of all Canadians. Should the COVID-19 pandemic sufficiently improve to allow the resumption of these activities, the Minister of Transport has the ability to rescind the Interim Orders.”
The prohibition is not intended for essential passenger vessels, such as ferries and water taxis. There is also no national ban for smaller cruise ships certified to carry 100 or fewer people, though these vessels must follow provincial, territorial, local and regional health authority protocols.
Those who do not comply with the pleasure craft prohibition could be subject to penalties of $5,000 per day for individuals and $25,000 per day for groups or corporations. Those who don’t comply with the passenger vessel prohibition could be subject to a fine of up to $1 million or to imprisonment for a term of up to 18 months, or to both.
“As Canadians continue to do their part to reduce the spread of COVID-19, our government continues to work hard to ensure Canada’s transportation system remains safe. Temporary prohibitions to cruise vessels and pleasure craft are essential to continue to protect the most vulnerable among our communities and avoid overwhelming our health care systems. This is the right and responsible thing to do,” said Omar Alghabra, Minister of Transport.

Bluewater, you are correct, what you quoted. Our artic waters are not on the 49th, there is a bit of latitude before you get to the 60th.
The rest remains speculation.
The boating community here on the west coast at least come in self contained vessels needing only to go ashore to shop or dine, that going ashore may have rules, whereas land crossings involve more interaction therefore no isolation and may continue to be restricted.
Heck we let a renegade from the Columbia river pass through, that should open it for many.

There seems to be a large percentage of gang members in Vancouver, Canada, getting shot but not the vaccine kind! But the somewhat good news is once shot they can't spread the virus.

DDW said:

A problem is, how do you prove you've been vaccinated if that is the border requirement? For reasons mainly having to do with stupidity, there is no governmental entity in the US willing to do that. You get a little hand written cardboard card, I could print a thousand of them at home, surely that won't be sufficient.

Maybe they could just scan the Bill Gates chip that gets implanted with the vaccine?

Click to expand...

There have been international vaccination cards for decades already. I had a few myself..yellow fever, and a few others were required for certain countries.

Billr2019 said:

We are in Blaine, WA and the local newspaper, "The Northern Light" (Community Newspaper of Blaine and Birch Bay), is stating the border will reopen 22 June.

However, Canadians can freely come to the USA but going back they have to quarantine.

To me it does not seem fair to the Canadians.
I think the reopening should either be unilateral with no restrictions or the USA should wait to open the border until this can happen.

Click to expand...

I am always nervous about these interpretations. Does this really mean that the US is opening the border for fully vaccinated Canadians and the Canadian border remains closed? I have yet to receive any credible information other than discussions are happening.

I don't any final answer. At this point it is anybody's guess.

Billr2019 said:

We are in Blaine, WA and the local newspaper, "The Northern Light" (Community Newspaper of Blaine and Birch Bay), is stating the border will reopen 22 June.

However, Canadians can freely come to the USA but going back they have to quarantine.

To me it does not seem fair to the Canadians.
I think the reopening should either be unilateral with no restrictions or the USA should wait to open the border until this can happen.

Click to expand...

tiltrider1 said:

I am always nervous about these interpretations. Does this really mean that the US is opening the border for fully vaccinated Canadians and the Canadian border remains closed? I have yet to receive any credible information other than discussions are happening.

Click to expand...

Local news said DC is thinking about opening southbound to force Canada to negotiate. The only response I have seen is coming North by plane you no longer need to quarantine in a hotel.
So, Canadians may be able to go south and return home, but the Americans cannot until we get 75% vaccinated.

Soo-Valley said:

Local news said DC is thinking about opening southbound to force Canada to negotiate. The only response I have seen is coming North by plane you no longer need to quarantine in a hotel.
So, Canadians may be able to go south and return home, but the Americans cannot until we get 75% vaccinated.

Click to expand...

Do you have a source for this? All I have heard is that some "experts" are in favour of abandoning that particular restriction. Nothing official has been said, whatsoever, AFAIK

As usual Canadian policies are mess: contradictory, arbitrary, inconsistent, hypocritical, etc. Recently some female political hack, a government minister, got caught breaking the rules of her own department, but of course she never got fired for it since she was high on the 'itersectionality' scale. That's very important in ever so 'woke' Canada.

Greetings,
Mr. JW. Are you suggesting the previous Canadian government was less "...contradictory, arbitrary, inconsistent, hypocritical, etc."? If so....

koliver said:

Do you have a source for this? All I have heard is that some "experts" are in favour of abandoning that particular restriction. Nothing official has been said, whatsoever, AFAIK

Click to expand...

I heard him say it, but cannot find the video, it was on Global this week. It was since the panel recommendation. It could have been while he was being translated.
Trudeau plans to attend the G7 in two weeks in the UK in person. Removing the three day quarantine would make sense to have his entourage return without quarantine.
This link is the closest to repeating it.

Soo-Valley said:

I heard him say it, but cannot find the video, it was on Global this week. It was since the panel recommendation. It could have been while he was being translated.
Trudeau plans to attend the G7 in two weeks in the UK in person. Removing the three day quarantine would make sense to have his entourage return without quarantine.
This link is the closest to repeating it.

Click to expand...

Steve:

Thanks
Now we just need to be patient. Again

JWellington said:

There have been international vaccination cards for decades already. I had a few myself..yellow fever, and a few others were required for certain countries.

Click to expand...

Of course this is easy to do. But the US Feds have unequivocally stated they are not going to do it. Because of "privacy and personal freedom" concerns. This is quite the cop out. Provide the means, make it optional, anyone with sufficient "privacy and personal freedom" concerns needn't apply. If Canada won't let them in as a result, that is a "personal" problem, and not one for the rest of us.

As I understand it, to cruise on a cruise ship from a US port, the ship needs 100% crew and 95% passengers vaccinated.This requirement comes from the USA CDC

I am assuming the vax card provided is good enough.

My guess is they are thinking if people falsify cards, close quarters travel has always been risky, if you have been vaccinated you should have a legit card but don't really have to worry, if most passengers are vaccinated, they might have a few cases buy not an outbreak, and if you fabricated your card because you aren't vaccinated....well you get what you get.

I think that's Florida's view on not even requiring cards anywhere/anytime...and maybe the rest of the world may sit back and see how well it does or doesn't work.

The EU is debating having a "Yellow Card" and who knows what will happen.

Ireland is now letting people from the US in without time spent in a hotel. One does have to have a negative test a few days after arrival.

Later,
Dan

RT Firefly said:

Greetings,
Mr. JW. Are you suggesting the previous Canadian government was less "...contradictory, arbitrary, inconsistent, hypocritical, etc."? If so....

Click to expand...

No, when I wrote "as usual", I meant to suggest that previous ones were similar. That's what......as usual....means..

I saw this in a Canadian news header this morning.

“New York Democrat, 2 Trudeau Liberals push to reopen U.S.-Canada border”

Update

It is being widely reported that remarks by Trudeau in the last day or so indicate that border restrictions will be softened before the end of June. Proof of vaccination will be required and possibly a Covid test on arrival. The latter depends on the vaccination rate in Canada. If it holds at current levels (likely) no test will be required as they will have achieved 75% of the entire population having had at least one dose which provides 85 -89% efficacy according to multiple studies.
Sadly, the US is unlikely to reach 60% in the same timeframe.

Some parts of the US are already there, in fact well past that. Some parts will never get there because they are populated by vax deniers. Education level seems to be the best predictor of which is which. The US is at the point that anyone that wants a shot can get a shot. Around here you can walk into any drug store and get one straight away.

The opening of the border will require a degree of confidence in the safety of citizens already on their home side of that border, from invasion of the virus across that border. With some areas of both countries not close to a "Safe" level of vaccinations, it will be a while yet.

koliver said:

The opening of the border will require a degree of confidence in the safety of citizens already on their home side of that border,

Click to expand...

Got this in my email this morning:

AlaskaProf said:

Got this in my email this morning:

Click to expand...

It specifically says "for Canadians"...

Northern Spy said:

It specifically says "for Canadians"...

Click to expand...

Noted. Still an interesting development. No?

AlaskaProf said:

Noted. Still an interesting development. No?

Click to expand...

I participated in a focus group sponsored by the BC Tourist Board for the timing and materials of this campaign some weeks back. The goal is specifically to get British Columbians (lower mainlanders) travelling around the province (and spending some money) to keep the hard hit tourist places afloat. It must be working. The ferries are packed with overloads and waits.