Here's a quick update, for what it's worth.
My usual Fall expedition down the Alcan to Oregon was cut short at the Alaska/Yukon border. Even with a very recent negative Covid test result and my friendliest "good morning smile", we were abruptly turned away as non-essential. It was essential to us though. My thoughts were that I ran into the rudest boarder agent alive but a friend of mine did the same trip yesterday and had a friendly agent, but was refused entry also!
I called the Canadian Travel Authority today and was informed that there is no definition of "essential travel" and the entry authority is 100% that of the agent at the border. No pre-screening, etc. She advised that even a death in the family/funeral would almost always be non-essential.
It's their country and I don't have any gripe with Canada enacting safety measures in this day and time. We all have to be careful.
I do wish Canada could come up with some way of pre-screening, it would have saved me 860 miles of driving, for nothing.
My usual Fall expedition down the Alcan to Oregon was cut short at the Alaska/Yukon border. Even with a very recent negative Covid test result and my friendliest "good morning smile", we were abruptly turned away as non-essential. It was essential to us though. My thoughts were that I ran into the rudest boarder agent alive but a friend of mine did the same trip yesterday and had a friendly agent, but was refused entry also!
I called the Canadian Travel Authority today and was informed that there is no definition of "essential travel" and the entry authority is 100% that of the agent at the border. No pre-screening, etc. She advised that even a death in the family/funeral would almost always be non-essential.
It's their country and I don't have any gripe with Canada enacting safety measures in this day and time. We all have to be careful.
I do wish Canada could come up with some way of pre-screening, it would have saved me 860 miles of driving, for nothing.
