Traveling to Alaska with a firearm....or not.

[montanabill]

I have been crossing into canada since 1969 and they have never been handgun friendly at all. I never had a problem traveling and camping in cnd altho one deer did try to kill me by liard hot springs and one time some first nations guys offered me $100 for any booze I had while traveling across some dry country on the laird highway to yellowknife.
If you want to travel north then just do it . If it is too scary for you without a gun then stay home.....Single women on motorcycles travel thru africa and central and south america and by and large they have few if any problems.
Just take lots of money for gas and beer, both cost more than the states altho in the last month our gas here in montana has gone up 40 cents. Better take that trip while you still can.

 

[zoomzoom]

If they asked for your passport, how did they know you have one of those too?

I always use my passport for international travel.

 

[zoomzoom]

I planned on spending my old age traveling. It's gotten to the point where I just say "F-that" and stay home.
I'm supposed to be on a cruise right now (FL to Cozumel to Bahamas). I decided to stay home and gave my ticket to my son. Whole family is "cruising" right now. Not me.

Back on thread - I love the Canadian people. I've been to your Country at least 100-200 times. Nowadays, your government is so F'ed, I'll never be back.

 

[Caribou]

Has Canada had all these restrictions for a long time, or are they relatively new?

I carried rifles and handguns through Canada in the 50’s and 60’s, always with reporting them. Then border guards turned me around once in 1968 because I was just visiting Vancouver, B.C. for a couple days. They said that when I returned to Alaska, as an Alaska resident, I would be allowed to take my pistol. When it changed I’m not sure. It most assuredly has changed.

Don’t even think about a firearm in Canada. I have made many trips from Alaska to Alaska through Canada. A few years ago I pulled over on my exit to discuss this matter with a border guard. I was told to forget the hand gun. Certain long guns would be allowed if I had a reason, like hunting in Canada. I would basically have to register each firearm in Canada before entering. Passing through Canada was not a good reason. Once I went through the several month process to get the proper permit, the border agent could void my permit at his discretion. I bought another gun for when I visited family.

Forget the ferry idea. There is one ferry a year that goes from Bellingham to Kodiak/Whittier. Unless you want to spend nine months in Alaska to catch the once a year southbound ferry it is not a practical answer. There is a ferry most weeks from Bellingham to S.E. Alaska. It drops you off in Haines. You drive 44 miles to the border for about a five hour drive through Canada. If you are moving to or from Alaska, to change residency, you might be able to carry firearms but I wouldn’t want the paperwork.

After the covid crap started I had to get a negative covid test before entering Canada. I had to show government ID with an address at my destination. I had to get my drivers license renewed while taking care of Mom. The only ID I had on me showing my home address was my CCP. That generated a few other questions.

Sorry, I just saw this thread.

 

[Caribou]

I have been crossing into canada since 1969 and they have never been handgun friendly at all. I never had a problem traveling and camping in cnd altho one deer did try to kill me by liard hot springs and one time some first nations guys offered me $100 for any booze I had while traveling across some dry country on the laird highway to yellowknife.
If you want to travel north then just do it . If it is too scary for you without a gun then stay home.....Single women on motorcycles travel thru africa and central and south america and by and large they have few if any problems.
Just take lots of money for gas and beer, both cost more than the states altho in the last month our gas here in montana has gone up 40 cents. Better take that trip while you still can.

On the subject of money, bring Canadian cash, you will be treated better. U.S. cash labels you as a tourist and you are then a target, not for violence but for higher prices. Canadians are friendly people, so are Alaskans, but tourist is a dirty word. So many tourists are trying to pack light and leave as much at home as possible. When it comes to their brain, they say, “I won’t be needing it on this trip.” It happens often enough that getting labeled a tourist gets you grouped with the undesirables.

I found it easier to get into Canada without a passport than to get back into the States. All I have today is my passport card, and that works well for Canada.

 

[ClemKadiddlehopper]

I don't get the tourist thing. No one cares if you are a tourist and the prices are only higher if someone pretends they can't handle the exchange rate. For that reason, getting Canuck cash is helpful. Visa charges extra for foreign currency exchange when you use the card. Prices are rounded up or down to the nearest nickle if using cash. We ditched the pennies.

You will need lots of mula. BC is the most expensive province in Canada and it gets more expensive all the way to Alaska. The cheapest gas (87 oct) in the northern interior is currently close to $5.00 US/gal. On April 1st we get hit with another rise in the carbon tax. Onwards and upwards.

You will enjoy the trip through Jasper. I think you will pass within spitting distance of Tirediron depending on where you cross the border. I also think you will be passing by the area where I drive the school bus. It's near the turn off to Alaska.

 

[Aerindel]

This was years ago....but absolutely found the people running the gas stations along the Alcan hostile. Very much a 'Deliverance' vibe to those places. I always made sure to stop for the night off the road, as far away from the little towns and stations alone the road as I could.

 

[Tirediron]

This was years ago....but absolutely found the people running the gas stations along the Alcan hostile. Very much a 'Deliverance' vibe to those places. I always made sure to stop for the night off the road, as far away from the little towns and stations alone the road as I could.

That is kind of interesting, and I guess it depends on what part of the Alcan, I found the people on the BC part of it to be pretty easy to get along with, that was back in the mid 80s I can't even imagine the fuel prices though, it was more than double in the middle. on the way up we topped up at ever stop, coming back we had notes on the price and went longer between top ups,

 

[ClemKadiddlehopper]

Everything is a little town or station. We sure live in different worlds. I have never experienced the one you did.

 

[Caribou]

Everything is a little town or station. We sure live in different worlds. I have never experienced the one you did.

My experience is that if I pay with Canadian currency I get more smiles and the clerk is likely to start a conversation. Nobody is rude but if the card or U.S. currency appear the clerk tends to maintain a neutral expression.

 

[Aerindel]

That is kind of interesting, and I guess it depends on what part of the Alcan, I found the people on the BC part of it to be pretty easy to get along with, that was back in the mid 80s I can't even imagine the fuel prices though, it was more than double in the middle. on the way up we topped up at ever stop, coming back we had notes on the price and went longer between top ups,

Well, this is what I always call, 'the real' Alcan, the stretch between for Nelson and Whitehorse. The rest could be most highways in MT....but that stretch is the real middle of nowhere.

I am talking about the gas stations where you pull up, wander around trying to find the door, finally find on, knock on it, and step into someones living room....which is infact the 'store' and they go outside and ask you how many liters you want because the gas is just in a 250 gallon drum and gravity flows into your tank with no meter and the whole time the owner is just staring at you like he is wondering WTF you are doing here.

I dunno. Maybe its just canadians. Being from the US, I find most people in other countries really rude. Once I got up to Alaska I had a job where I had to deal with Canadian truckers all the time and I seemed to never figure out how to talk with them. They always made me feel like what I said was wrong somehow...even if I was just giving them a scale weight. Probably just a cultural difference, but I always breathed a big sigh of relief on my Alcan runs when I got out of Canada.

And oh boy....do guys EVER follow your speed limits? Is there an unspoken rule that the posted speed limit is actually the real speed limit divided by 2?

 

[Cabin Fever]

Well, this is what I always call, 'the real' Alcan, the stretch between for Nelson and Whitehorse. The rest could be most highways in MT....but that stretch is the real middle of nowhere.

I am talking about the gas stations where you pull up, wander around trying to find the door, finally find on, knock on it, and step into someones living room....which is infact the 'store' and they go outside and ask you how many liters you want because the gas is just in a 250 gallon drum and gravity flows into your tank with no meter and the whole time the owner is just staring at you like he is wondering WTHeck you are doing here.

I dunno. Maybe its just canadians. Being from the US, I find most people in other countries really rude. Once I got up to Alaska I had a job where I had to deal with Canadian truckers all the time and I seemed to never figure out how to talk with them. They always made me feel like what I said was wrong somehow...even if I was just giving them a scale weight. Probably just a cultural difference, but I always breathed a big sigh of relief on my Alcan runs when I got out of Canada.

And oh boy....do guys EVER follow your speed limits? Is there an unspoken rule that the posted speed limit is actually the real speed limit divided by 2?

I have heard that log truck drivers on the Alcan sometimes hug the center line (or go over) when they see an RV coming from the other direction.