Canada imposes severe restrictions on entry into the country

When the pandemic broke out, I, an avid cyclist from Virginia, could not enjoy the wonderful landscapes of Kamouraska, one of the most picturesque areas in Quebec.

The possibility has finally opened. On August 9, Canada reopened the border with the United States under certain conditions and I prepared my car and my bike. But I couldn’t go. It turns out I had postponed my COVID test and it was too late.

At the beginning of September I was able to update my documents, I headed north and in a short time I cycled through the bucolic villages, fields and rose gardens on the banks of the St. Lawrence River.

Today, Americans can once again enjoy Canada’s fall or winter landscapes. But they must keep in mind that for this they must meet certain requirements and must adapt to the severe surveillance that the authorities have launched against the virus. Canada has taken the pandemic seriously and is not suffering as much as many places in the United States.

To enter, you must be fully vaccinated, you must have tested negative for the virus no more than 72 hours before and you must have the documents in order and ready to be presented at the crossing point, or at the airport counter.

Additionally, you need to register with the Canadian government and get a code. And you should have a quarantine plan ready if needed, in case another positive test is done when you arrive in Canada.

Nothing like the Atlanta man the border guards were talking about as I walked through. The individual had arrived without being vaccinated, without having been tested and without registration … and without any possibility of crossing into Canada, being more than 16 hours by road from his home.

I crossed the Thousand Islands Bridge in Ontario and had nothing to wait for. Two guards inspected my evidence and vaccination records and sent me back to the border post, where again the documents, along with my US passport, were inspected. The guard asked me a few questions and let me pass with a smile.

In nearby Brockville, people wore masks, both indoors and outdoors, in the plaza, on the streets and in parking lots.

When I entered a cafe, a group of about ten people entered shortly after, all wearing masks but without physical distancing. Local workers immediately took them out and ordered them to reenter, from a distance.

This marked a stark contrast to what I saw in the United States, in business and on the road from Canada, where few people wore the mask and if they didn’t, no one would say anything to them. After my trip to Canada, St. Lawrence County in New York State had a 12 times higher rate of COVID cases than across the river on the Canadian side of the border.

And surveillance in Canada was further reinforced when I arrived in Quebec the next day. There they began to apply for the “vaccination passport,” something unprecedented in Canadian history.

Canadians over the age of 12 must have such a passport to enter restaurants, bars, theaters, outdoor events of more than 50 people and other public places. Foreigners do not have to show it – and they cannot obtain it – but they must present proof of vaccination and an identity document proving that they are not from Quebec. The vaccination certificate is not necessary to spend the night in a hotel in Quebec, but it is necessary to be in the lobby or in other common areas.

This is how I entered the restaurant l’Estaminet in Rivière-du-Loup with my friend Suzie Loiselle, a Quebec tourism official, who showed the certificate on her cell phone application.

“Adequately protected” (“Adequately protected”) was displayed on the screen. With that and my American vaccination card, we entered the restaurant.

The pandemic wreaked havoc in Quebec, as in Ontario, until Canada overcame its vaccine shortage and surpassed the United States and the rest of the world in immunization. Today, 70% of Canadians are fully immunized compared to 55% in the United States.

“These first three waves of contagion were hellish,” said Quebec Health Minister Christian Dubé, announcing the passport. “People want to get vaccinated and they want to have normal lives.”

For many Americans, a system that monitors the movement of every individual in public spaces is unacceptable.

In Quebec, says Loiselle, it is a success. “Most people want to access activities that were prohibited during the pandemic,” he said. Now they have freedom of movement and assembly again, thanks to the official app.

I stayed, as usual, at the Auberge sur Mer, in Notre-Dame-du-Portage, a village on the outskirts of Rivière-du-Loup, in a single room near the central reception and its restaurant. . Here, the river widens before reaching the sea and in the distance, on the other bank, you can see the mountains of Charlevoix. The view from the balcony of my room, and even from the entire coastline, is breathtaking.

The round trip by bike to Kamouraska, about 64 kilometers (40 miles) in total, follows shores and islets under a sky that is always hectic except in the calm morning. The sunsets are so beautiful that they attract visitors from all over Europe, as well as opportunities for kayaking, whale watching and rock climbing, biking, hiking, and local dining .

The local route is part of Route Verte 1, a bicycle path in Quebec that spans 5,300 kilometers (3,300 miles). The Route Verte was created to offer cyclists a path where they can lodge, store their bikes and eat healthy.

On this road and others that meander in the hills of Kamouraska, you can cycle in peace, and discover that voluntary solitude is much better than the isolation imposed by a pandemic.