Unforeseen Chain Of Events | Pt. 8

There Is No Such Thing As Coincidence

The journey had begun, and we enjoyed our road trip from the very first moment. Heading for the west-coast area, we had the opportunity to stop at friends of Jens – except for a few occasions where we spent the night somewhere else. Since he had already crossed this part of Canada on his bicycle, he seemed to know a couple of guys in every town along the road.

He could connect to people that well because of his passion for skateboarding. All his friends who welcomed us to their places treated us with love and hospitality. It seems like skateboarders still maintain a codex of brotherhood among their kind in Canada.

More Troubleshooting

Jens was either found on his skateboard or under our vehicle fixing some issue in all these different towns like Salmo or Rossland. Even though he put a lot of effort into preparing the camper for the long ride, many new problems popped up quickly. First, we had issues with our batteries because of a regulator which we had to be replaced.

Then Jens noticed that the differential of the rear truck was “sweating,” which means that oil was leaking from it. It took Jens two days to repair that issue. On our next part over some steep mountain pass, the fuel pump showed some insufficiencies, which ended with another stop at Lordco, a shop chain for car replacement parts. Lordco delivered a brand new fuel pump for less than 50 Canadian dollars. That was surprisingly pretty affordable.

When we arrived in Osoyoos close to the US border, our ’78 Ford 250 finally worked as it should, apart from some squeaking noises from the bearings in the right front wheel. Nothing to worry thou. Jens would fix that along the way to Oregon. So it was time to cross the border to get over to the US.

The Border Fail

Two days ago, we tried to enter the States. I tried because we did not manage to get over it. As two Germans in a weird-looking camper with Canadian car plates, we expected to be on a special watch list. Of course, they picked our car for close inspection, and they found something they did not like. They detected Jens’ weed grinder with tiny bits of green plant parts in it.

I guess we had been too naïve to think that even though cannabis is more or less legal on both sides of the border, it might not be a problem to have a device like this on board. It is a problem, and they made a big issue. Since Jens claimed the grinder as his possession, he is no longer welcome in the US.

After almost 4 hours in this cold ass waiting room, we were sent back to Canada. Before that, customs took Jens’s fingerprints, and he had been interviewed. The Canadians searched our camper for another two hours – just in case the Americans missed something. That was not the most delightful time of our trip so far. Without being too disappointed, we accepted this radical change in our plans. Since Jens had already traveled the west coast of the US, he was more eager to see Mexico and Central America in general.

So we decided that Jens would remain in Canada for another month while I drive the camper through the US on my own. When I arrive at the southern border of the US, he will take a direct flight to Tijuana, where we should meet up again.

Positive Attitude

We met another young German fellow on the same evening of our rejection. I guess he was a bit irritated that we did not show any signs of disappointment. We considered this unforeseen chain of events a challenge and not a misfortune from the first moment. It is a process, and only, in the end, we might be able to judge whether this rejection was good or bad. No question – It is a drastic intervention in our plans, but you got to go with the flow whatever comes along. Being flexible is very important, and maintaining a positive attitude is crucial.

Leap Of Faith

This trip on my own through the US is a particular challenge since I am more of a computer geek without too much ambition for physical troubleshooting. For Jens, this is also a leap of faith. He put so much time and effort into our mobile home, which he needs to remain in my hands for over a month. We don’t know what this all is good for, but we will certainly figure it out.

For the last two days, Jens repacked the wheel bearings so they won’t make any weird noises anymore. He did the best of his abilities to hand me over a vehicle that would manage to do the job to take me to Mexico without any trouble. Today we will split off, and hopefully, my next travel blog entry will be sent from US soil.