Digbydog

We will be driving from Bellingham, WA into British Columbia on the morning of July 3rd. We can cross the border early in the morning to beat the traffic, and I know to take the truck crossing. We are heading on to Horseshoe Bay, and we need to figure out which ferry to take from there to Vancouver Island. I am not sure how long it will take us to get to Horseshoe Bay given the border tie-ups. How long we should expect to wait at the border on such a busy weekend? How early do we need to try to get across? Thanks!!

Gardyloo

The border shouldn't be much of a problem in the "early" morning; in general things start clogging up northbound (going into Canada) around late morning, but even then it's seldom that big a deal. There's usually be more southbound traffic as Canadians head south to shop.

Once you cross the border I'd guesstimate Horseshoe Bay will take around an hour. However you might consider crossing at Lynden (WA)/Aldergrove (BC) a little east of Bellingham - use WA SR 529 and BC 13. That way you can get on the Trans-Canada Hwy (a freeway) east of Vancouver and bypass the city to the north, which will get you to Horseshoe Bay quite a lot quicker than if you have to use surface streets to cross Vancouver.

That said, you might also consider taking one of the Tsawwassen ferries, which depart south of Vancouver (off the BC 99 freeway - I-5 in the US) and which go to Swartz Bay near Victoria, or to Nanaimo north of Victoria, which is where the Horseshoe Bay ferries go. This would require a lot less driving, and if you're going to Victoria, the crossing to Swartz Bay is extremely scenic.

Details for all of these at www.bcferries.com

Orcas

Good luck. You'll need it. The longest wait we ever had at the border was on a fourth of July weekend. We waited 4 1/2 hours at Sumas. The Peace Arch wait was 5 hrs, but the time we saved, we spent getting to Sumas.

So, we have Canada Day, national holiday, Thursday, July 1. Lots of people will take Friday off. And in the US, we have July 4 on Sunday, with the national holiday being on Monday, July 5. With any luck Saturday will be the lightest day of a horrendous weekend at the border.

Go early. Go very early. And make your ferry reservations well in advance. I'd go to Tsawwassen because it is closer to the border and has more ferries, plus a very nice terminal with good shops and gelato.

Consider the train or bus?

Orcas

Just thought of a bright spot. They increased the border capacity due to the Olympics, so that should speed things up if it is fully staffed, which one hopes it would be on July 4 wkend.

Don't have a gun in your car if you are going through the truck crossing or you might shoot someone cheating by coming off the in-town ramp right down to the border crossing, or someone cutting in from the NEXUS lanes....The truck crossing is very frustrating in a back-up due to the number of ways one can circumvent the lines...and you'll be sitting in a line getting pissed off as you watch...take it from one who's been there, done that. (and that was only a one hour wait during the Olympics - drove us nuts to see all the cars cutting in front of us)

Digbydog

Thanks for the great suggestion of Tswawasen! Orcas--you are scaring me to death! Any idea how early we should try to cross given the holiday weekend? We fly into Seattle on July 2 and will still be on east coast time the next morning. So it shouldn't be a problem to get up early. Also, it the truck crossing not a good idea? We won't have a gun in the car, but my husband might have a stroke if he sees lots of people going ahead of us.

Dukey

I assume it is absolutely out of the question to cross the night before?

Gardyloo

The truck crossing might be quicker than the Peace Arch, might not. At the risk of repetition, if you're staying in Bellingham, and are on east coast time, I really don't foresee much of a problem at the border on an early Saturday morning, even on a holiday weekend. Seattle is two hours south of the border, so the leading edge of any traffic from there isn't likely to appear before 9 or 10 AM at the earliest. In my experience the northbound traffic at Blaine is seldom as congested as the traffic waiting to enter the US; if you had a wait of over 20 min. at 9 AM or earlier I'd be real surprised.

Depending on which boat you take from Tsawwassen, the queue for the ferry is likely to be much longer, as folks from Vancouver head down to the dock.

Digbydog

Thanks Gardyloo! Dukey--we could cross the night before, but I figured crossing early Saturday morning would be better than Friday evening.

NWWanderer

In my experience, the wait for the truck crossing heading *into* Canada is often longer than at the main Peace Arch crossing (based on posted wait times), so I wouldn't automatically head for the truck crossing. Check the reader boards on the highway (or online if you have internet access) to see the relative waits.

I also don't think the wait will be too long if you are at the border before 9 AM.

happytrailstoyou

How deep is the ocean?
How high is the sky?

Orcas

I agree with the optimists re the advantages of an early start. Just stay on east coast one more day. I'd say get there before 8 am and you will not have a problem. As gardyloo said, the traffic is coming from Seattle, and we hit the border around 9, if we leave at 7.

Also, they did expand the border crossing, so that's good.

You'll love the Tsawwassen ferry terminal. You can have breakfast there, if you want - different places to eat.

Digbydog

Thanks so much to everyone for your help!