Conference kaosws::canada

I only know about the Banff area, and I'm a bit sketchy about 'cottage'
accommodations; however, that won't stop me.

ACCOMMODATIONS:

	Tunnel Mountain Cabins on Tunnel Mountain

SIGHTSEEING:

	The town of Banff, pubs and all

	The Banff Hot Springs on Sulphur Mountain (the government operation
	is the best one, they have a large park, olympic pool, the original
	cave and hot springs, and a self-guided tour - A MUST)

	The Banff Springs Hotel

	The observation deck on Sulphur Mountain

	Drive up to the Sunshine Ski resort, either walk up to Sunshine
	Village or take the gondola, then hike around in an area that is
	unsurpassed in Alpine beauty and panorama.

	Drive from Banff to Lake Louise via the old highway, very scenic
	with lots of areas to picnic with a fantastic view and plenty of
	campgrounds (which will probably be full).

    depends on what you mean by roughing it?  to me this is driving the
    401 into Toronto.  i assume you mean some time under a tent, but
    are you carrying your tent and food by backpack?  
    
    anyway here are some fast notes (though my reference and maps are 
    many miles away).
    
	a nice and very beautiful day hike is up Eisenhower (aka Castle)
  	Mountain.  there is a fire observation house here and for good
    	reason as you get an excellent view of the valley.  this hike
    	is off the old highway.  it is a good climb, but worth it.
    
    	it will snow in the upper atitudes in jasper in late august.
     	so if you ae planning any pass or divide hikes, be prepare for
    	cold weather.  it will snow in the lower atitudes in september.
        
    	back to banff.  johnson canyon has cabins just off the old 
    	highway at the base of the falls.  the area makes for a great 
    	day hike up the canyon to the suplhur pots.  ... GO BEYOND THE
    	FALLS AND INTO THE VALLEY WHERE THE POTS ARE.  this makes for
    	a good day hike and an easy backpack.  i have seen moose in
       	this canyon, but be quiet, for they can hear very well.
        
    	take the old highway from banff to lake louise.  scenic
    
    	take the icefield bus trip and explore the base of the glacier.
     	explore the base first and then take the bus, and then you may
    	be amazed at the size of the glacier.
    
    	for day hikes, nothing beats lake louise except for the lake
    	louise when NOT jammed with people.  very late august to september
    	is my preferred time to hike here - less people.  you can spend
    	four good days here.
      
    	near lake louise is the valley of ten peaks, site of the old
    	ten dollar bill and more day hikes.  
    
    	the public and canadian government campgrounds are quite nice
    	at lake louise.  this is if roughing mean a public campground.
    
    	mt edith cavell has a short but spectacular hikes do to the
    	size of the mountain.  this is in north jasper.
    
    	i was disappointted with assiboine (sic) falls.  over developed.
    
    	on the drive north of lake louise there are excellent stop
    	points, near the saskatchewan river and several lakes.  you can 
    	make these spots into nice exploration trips if you stop and walk 
        
    do not worry about bears, JUST DO NOT STORE FOOD IN YOUR TENT. 
    NEVER, NEVER, LEAVE FOOD IN YOUR TENT.  if you follow this, you
    will find the most dangerous animal is the Gray (aka Canada) Jay.
    
    Dave
    
    oh yes ... there is an excellent book on hikes on the parks ..
    glacier-waterton, banff, jasper, yoho, forget the name, but it list
    each trail in the parks.
    
    if you want to see praire-desert, there is near milk river - writing
    on stone park - that has cactus and all.  only three hours south
    of calgary and a few to waterton.

    

    Could be interesting ... I don't know if a soc. sec. card is
    sufficient.  Best bet is to call the Canadian Consulate to see
    what the minimum requirement is.  Mind you last time I crossed
    the US Canadian border a few weeks ago ini each direction, nobody
    asked for any ID at all, even while driving a rented mini-van.
    
    Stuart

As far as coming back into the U.S. from Canada by land -- no documentation
is required for U.S. citizens.  Of course, if they have a reasonable doubt
you're a U.S. citizen, you'll have to find some creative way of proving it...

Canada officially requires proof of citizenship.  That would be a passport,
a birth certificate, or a voter registration card (something that doesn't
exist in Massachusetts and probably other states as well).

I've never been asked for any proof of citizenship arriving in Canada by
land.  They don't usually ask you anything other than what your citizenship
is, where you live, how long you'll be staying in Canada, and where your
first destination is.  They've never even asked me for my name.

Coming back it's usually the same thing.  Even one time after I was chased
by the U.S. border patrol for having inadvertently gone into Canada at an
unmarked entry and back out of Canada at an unguarded crossing, and then
parking across the street from U.S. customs to go report (the border patrol
showed up, lights flashing, said they had my whole excursion on video tape,
told me to get back into the car and have my wife drive into the customs
station or she'd be arrested for illegally discharging a passenger) -- even
after all that, watched by the immigration/customs agents, immigration didn't
even ask us for our names or for any identification!  Then we drove back to
the same parking space, got out of the car, and walked across the border to
Customs Canada.

/john

    
    I went to Niagara and Toronto last week. I was able to get a Voter's 
    Registration card from my town hall.(in Mass.) It cost me $5.00 for
    it. Call and ask your local town hall.
    
    Marcie

	When I was in the states, I had a one-entry work visa, this was
	stamped in my passport, so I could NOT return to the US if I
	visited Canada. - its the only way to tell whether the person can be 
	let back in - if they decide to push it. 

	(a birth certificate tells you where you were born, not what 
	citizenship you may have taken up later)

	I had a US social security card and number
	I had a US (Maryland) drivers licence
	I had US credit cards and bank
	I had a US car, registered in Maryland, to my name.

	None of these are proof that you are a US citizen or that you are 
	allowed back into the US.

	Heather

    If you're right quick about it, it's a trivial matter to go to your
    nearest passport office, fill in the necessary form, pay the fee and
    then have them enter your kids in your passport (their names, that is).
    
    Another item that has almost as much currency as a passport is a
    citizenship card.  Within North America, North Americans can freely
    travel with this card as the only proof of citizenship; and, it is
    considerably cheaper than a passport and there is no expiry date!
    
    Pat

>	None of these are proof that you are a US citizen or that you are 
>	allowed back into the US.

I repeat.  No documentation at all is required of U.S. citizens returning
to the U.S. from Canada via land.  That's the law.

/john

    That may be so in theory John, but how do you prove to an immigration
    officer that you are in fact a US citizen, particularly if s/he chooses
    not to believe you ?  It essentially means that you have to spend an
    awful lot of time at the border in a guilty until proven innocent type
    situation trying to prove that you are who you say you are and that you
    are in fact an US citizen ... otherwise I could arrive at the US
    border, without documentation, say I was a mUS citizen and they would
    have to let me in.
    
    Stuart

    In theory what Canada requires is proof that you are a US citizen to
    allow you across the border without passport.
    
    In practice this varies from no documents at all to the third degree,
    like most Customs and Immigration authorities around the world.
    
    Stuart