I was expecting the Vermont/Quebec town, where the border runs right through town. Splitting the town library which has entrances on each side of the border.
@@ScrawneyRonnie and down the middle of the road so houses on on side are canada and the other is USA. you can't just cross the street to see you neighbor.
Fun Fact: Canada JUST established a border with Denmark when they settled a long running dispute over a tiny island (that we now share) somewhere in the north.
The dispute was called the whiskey war. The island which is basically a desolate rock. It woukd occasionally be visited the the armed forces of each side. They would put up the flag of their country, take down the others flag, leave a bottle of alcohol and a note saying welcome to their country.
Hi from Denmark.Thank you for sharing your quite entertaining videos! I absolutely share your joy of your country sharing a border with Canada. Quite recently I realized that my country also have that privilege. Apparently there has for quite some time been an ongoing dispute between Canada and Denmark about a tiny island named Hans between Greenland and Canada. Was it Canadian or Danish? For quite a while our two countries took turns in the inspection of the territory. Soldiers were sent to the island and they raised their flag. The Canadian soldiers raised the Canadian flag and left a bottle of whiskey, and the Danish soldiers raised the Danish flag instead and left a bottle of Danish snaps. This obviously must have been a very friendly way of solving border problems. But this year the island was divided legally between the two countries.... which of course has stopped the whiskey and snaps arrangement!
@@egerlachcaYes. Nabours on the basis of decency .. and humor! But I wonder what happened to all those flags which were taken down. JUST MAYBE. and quite unofficially of course.. they returned each one washed and ironed together with the bottle of snaps or whiskey!?! Humour with respect! Both is to be welcomed in foreign policy matters. But we will never know .. and I can easily live with that.
As a Canadian, I would have voted to cede the territory to our good friends in Denmark, just to have a closer connection and 'portal' to the mother country so close by. :) Our nations have been close friends since WW2, and are always welcome in Canada! Come on over and get some whiskey and Poutine
Besides a land border with Denmark, which others have mentioned, Canada also shares a maritime border with France. How many Americans are aware of the French archipelago of Saint Pierre et Miquelon situated just off the coast of Newfoundland ?
I’ll give you that one cause it’s in our territorial waters but by that note we share a maritime border with half of Africa all of west costal Europe Britain Iceland lol not to mention the east costal Asian countries every oceanic country. Maritime porters not recognize as true borders hence why the world never cares when you fight over a small island lolol
@@khorihorton5207 There is such a thing as territorial seas. They extend 12 miles beyond a country's land and are considered part of the country. Saint-Pierre et Miquelon is 19 kilometers (12 miles) from Point May, Newfoundland, which places it right at the tip of Canadian territorial waters and places Newfoundland right at the tip of France's territorial waters. That is why Canada and France have a maritime border which was formally defined in 1972. The Americas and Europe and Africa are separated by thousands of miles of international waters, so we have no maritime borders with them. Not even with Iceland.
So many of us, Canadians, live along the border that we are very aware of it. Family, shopping, etc. When I was a kid, I could stand on a bridge between Calais, Maine, and St. Stephen, New Brunswick, with one foot in each country. I won an "international running race" just because the course was set around the two bridges that joined those towns. Thanks so much for recognizing your quiet neighbours! (Not neighbors 😉)
You should do a video where you react to the Whiskey War! The Whiskey War is a non-combative dispute between Denmark and Canada over Hans Island and it is HILARIOUS. It really tells you a lot about Canadian mindsets / mentalities!
Tyler. You should be a teacher. Curious. Intelligent. Well spoken. To answer your question; I suggest most Canadians (not necessarily immigrant Canadians) are aware of our border. I was grown and educated in Canada in the 7'0s. I have never heard of it being called "The No Touching Zone". To me that is a clever device to explain to non-Canadians what it is physically. Keep up the good work! And yes. You can see it from space.
I was in a bar in Canada in the mid 1970s out west and the US/CDN border line was marked on the bar floor. At 1am the bars would close on the Canadian side so we moved 10 feet to another table on the US side as the bar was open until 7am.The bar counters were littered with old silver dollars embedded in the counter tops and thousands of dollar bills tied to strings hanging over the dance floor that locals and tourists had signed their names on them, and up to Alaska by ship in the late 1960s was unreal.....1947 to 1986 was the best years to be alive.
We tend to know the border well because so many of us live near it: something like 85 percent of Canadians live within a hundred miles of the US border. The old joke is that Canadians huddle at their southern border for warmth. Also, until it got more difficult after 9/11 and then the pandemic, Canadians crossed the border often to buy cheaper gas and bulk food (milk and cheese, etc.). Not even kidding. That was a thing and still sometimes is. Sadly, the border has gotten a lot more stressful in recent years. Not always, of course, but you really need to have your ducks in a row when you cross and make sure you answer all the questions properly or they can literally ruin your day (or worse).
I grew up 30miles south of Vancouver in a town called Tsawwassen. ( A native term meaning 'land facing the sea') We were right up against Point Roberts (USA) and we would ride our bikes to Pt Roberts all the time. My friend Gary and a border monument in his backyard. One side said Canada and the other side said the United States. We literally grew up in both countries.
Back in the 50's and 60's it was a simple process to cross the border either way. You were only asked what your citizenship was. Once when crossing into the US the border guard asked if we were all Canadians, My parents both answered yes but my younger brother stuck his head out the back window and declared, "I'm a Russian!" The guard laughed and waved us through.
Sadly, the U.S. has built a fence at Abbotsford B.C., it's to keep people from illegally entering the States. More people are coming into Canada than vice/versa. It's sad because friends and family meet at the Border, now there's a fence. It baffles me and saddens me that our friend and neighbour wants to fence us off. Sad.
@@Justin-dr5uw My B.A. is in History. Seems you don't know YOUR history. We have had the longest undefended border in the world, now we don't. Why, because you Americans are paranoid. We've never started a war with you (though you can't say the same, but hey, we won that war). It's sad that your paranoia puts a fence between us, you know, your most staunch ally? How can you not be sad about that? Now, YOU go learn your history about our shared borders. If tRump comes back, maybe we should just shut the Peace Gate (you can look that up, I'm sure you don't know about it). Perhaps you should go study some more about Canada before you open your yap.
Baffles us and saddens us because it never was like this before we could come and go freely and there’s been no real reason other than 9/11 to change that But in reality it wasn’t an American or Canadian that crossed the border with ease it was a foreign national not sure why we weren’t screening foreigners a little bit more stringently than we were on either side of the border. but to grow up never worrying about what going to the border look like and then to have the last 20 years look like this well it doesn’t boggle my mind it does saddens me too I know why it’s like that now even if it was more of a reaction so that the general public could feel like they had someone to blame but I can guarantee you this Americans and Canadians alike hate the experience they have at the borders all the time now. There is not that many Canadians trying to illegally enter the states but the amount of Americans that do is like 5x as high And I can basically guarantee you unless you’re right out of Maine border crossing you’re not gonna have too many Canadian boarder and customs agents showing up to swarm you and arrest you for being an illegal alien not like it would happen to us on the American side of the border and what did it really achieve? What are they securing the borders from? History really doesn’t play a part in this due to the fact that came to the United States relationship for so long was so unique and so abnormal the only real comparison in the world would be the EU I’m at the European Union give it another decade and our border will be like the United States and Mexico border which is sad because there’s no actual reason for it it’s all good just reelect Trump one more time and you guys will have a fence along both borders lololol
@@Justin-dr5uw. The border between Canada and the US has been friendly for many years but I agree the fence is now needed to keep Americans from illegally entering to escape the political unrest down there.
@@dennispalmer6007 Something about your comment is rubbing me the wrong way. Possibly something to do with being a 5th generation Canadian descended from a self-emancipated formerly enslaved man… Could also have to do with the notion of Canada turning its back on people-especially neighbours in need-setting off a sense of cognitive dissonance…
As a Canadian, I am aware of some of the oddities with our shared border. I went to the University of Windsor, and to get the the US we would have to drive north. I had classmates that were from Sarnia and would do that all the time, as it was much quicker to drive through the US to get home. I now live in Victoria, right at the bottom of Vancouver Island and can see Port Angeles from the south part of town. There are also many smaller islands around Vancouver Island, and you can see on a map that the border weaves around them.
I sailed my boat to Victoria once from Seattle, stopping over night at Port Townsend. I lived on my boat in the inner harbor for 4 or 5 days and then sailed to Pender Island in the Canadian Gulf Islands. I returned via the San Juan Islands and cleared U.S. customs at Friday Harbor. I love Victoria, all Canada for that matter.
@@andreaislandgirl720 I had hoped to retire in Canada preferably Victoria, but circumstances prevented it. I am still stuck in Seattle with its share of big city problems, even the big cities in Canada, Van. anyway, are a little better than big cities here. I have walked and bicycled all over Victoria, a walk to Oak Bay and back from downtown, was nothing but a stroll for me. It would be the perfect place for me and Eberhard (my dachshund).
@@barneyd47 Calais ME and St Stephen NB still do. The border is open 24/7 and they still get cleared (very quickly) when crossing. Some churches even share ministers. It was a major issue through the border shut down during the pandemic. Like many border communities there are many families that are also split by the border.
I grew up in a park that has a lake that goes south into the States and there is a boat that tours down the lake; was always neat to see the "no touching zone" as you go by.
There 3 treaties that define the U.S. - Canadian border. First is the Treaty of Paris of 1783, where Great Britain recognized the independence of the U.S. following the Revolutionary War. The second is the treaty of 1818 to define the border between British territory (Canada) and the newly purchased territories the U.S. had acquired from France in 1803 (Louisiana Purchase). Third is the Oregon Treaty of 1845 that split the Oregon County between the U.S. and British territory (Canada) at the 49th parallel. I'm an American, and quite well-aware of these treaties and the long border between our countries. The most unique thing about the U.S. Canada border is that it is the longest undefended border in the world.
Fun fact: It's the longest UNDEFENDED border also. Back in the pre-911 days, you could cross the border with just a driver's licence. Out on the west coast, zero avenue divides British Columbia from Washington state. Post 911, the road has multiple motion sensors and cameras and you need a passport to cross at controlled ports (points?) of entry and you have tell the guard where you are going.
The Haskell Free Library and Opera House was deliberately built on the border. Part of it is in Derby Line, Vermont, and part of it is in Stanstead, Quebec. You can enter from one country and exit on the other side in the other country. It's really quite cool.
I am a Canadian and I knew we had the longest uncontested border but I had no idea we had a visual 'no touching' zone visible from space ... that made me laugh ... THANKS!!!!!
As I live in Manitoba, I can tell you that the border crossing into Northwest Angle, Minnesota is interesting. It's along a narrow gravel road, and it is just a small wooden shack the size of an outhouse with a phone that auto-dials US customs, you self-declare when crossing :)
I appreciate your interest about the border. Unfortunately, in the past, our borders were much more friendly. We use to be able to visit each other's countries with just a driver's license. Unfortunately, the US got very excited after "911". There was an immediate concern that "terrorists" came from Canada (totally untrue). Now both countries need to show passports or Nexus cards to visit It use to be a friendlier border and a lot faster. It's too bad, considering there has been no benefit to either country Cheers
I am a Canadian who lives close to the American border with Minnesota. I enjoy fishing. When I go fishing to certain lakes, there are a fair number of people from the USA. I always enjoy speaking with them and discussing our similarities and differences. The two countries that are the best friends in the world.
11:39 To us Vancouverites, Pt Roberts was THE place to get gas, as it served American pricing to mostly Canadians who happened to be lucky enough to live around it. However, when COVID shut down the borders, Pt Roberts suffered MASSIVELY. I remember there was a agreement between USA and Canada to help support Pt Roberts and keep it operational and "above water" so to speak, but it was nothing equivilent to the business they'd normally had gotten day to day from regular operation. Pt Roberts was given special circumstance to have the border pseudo-reopened to allow Canadians to stimulate the areas local economy. No one I've ever talked about Pt Roberts with has anything bad to say about it, and Vancouverites couldn't wait to come back ASAP. 13:06 Look up "War of the Pig". In fact, Over-Simplified just did a whole video what conflicts emerged thanks to the border disagreement nonsense, and the war that _almost_ sparked between US and Canada over the shooting of a pig 15:00 I live in a bordertown in BC, and I regularly for fun drive along "0 Ave" which is a LOOOOONG stretch of road that I could throw a rock from one side to the other and that rock becomes American property that I can no longer retrieve without a border agent patrol truck initiating chase 😂 I've caught a bunch of Pokemon (Go) at those stone border markers. It's really really cool to be honest.
Point Roberts is a popular destination for Canadians. With the exchange rate it's often cheaper to buy gas and groceries there. As you can imagine they really suffered during COVID when the border was closed. If you find yourself out this way, it's worth a stop to drop some cash and say hello. They're great folks.
@@brucekatkin5310 Exchange rate has fluctuated over the years. However the gas has always been cheaper as the US collects far less tax on gas. Also a lot of products like cheese are way cheaper.
I'm learning a lot about my own country. Thanks for doing these videos! Re: Point Roberts - CoVid almost killed the community as the US/Canada border was closed for over a year.
Grew up a few feet from border in DerbyLine, VT - border was vaguely a thing. Only vaguely. But, weird - went through houses, one aunt/uncle's kitchen in Canada, rest in US. Things like that. Not to mention Haskell Library/Opera House.
Yeah. The border closure during the pandemic got really interesting in Derby Line and Stanstead with people being accused of smuggling people across the border and the like.
It’s between Greenland and Canada and Extremely cool historical story and a clear picture of what Canada does militarily when disputing with friends militarily lol
Greenland is part of the Kingdom of Denmark with a certain amount of autonomy. Not all that different from Northern Ireland, Wales, and Scotland in the United Kingdom.
Hey Tyler. In addition to watching the UA-cam clip of Tom Brokaw's and his complimentary view of Canada, there was a coffee table oversize book from the 1970's called Between Friends showing the border delineation and other interactions about the countries and their common border. It might be a good reference for this border show. John Thomas
Growing up in Manitoba, the trip from Winnipeg to Grand Forks every summer was part of my childhood. Occasionally we went the extra bit to Fargo for a change. But when D.T. was elected there was a huge surge of refugees / immigrants crossing around the Manitoba/North Dakota border area in the no touch zones. Was on the news quite a bit after a family froze to death in a field.
Thanks Tyler, for your reactions. Best way to learn about Canada is to come visit. Stay awhile, or stay a long while! You will feel welcomed and maybe discover that we’re very similar as well as being unique…. or uniquely familiar.
49th Parallel (as the map shows) really only functions as the border across most of the west. In Ontario the border follows the centre lines of four of the five Great Lakes and the rivers connecting them, and then the centre line of the St.Lawrence River toward the Atlantic.Because of that, southern Ontario, which contains a huge chunk of Canada's population, is far to the south of where the border is out west. Winter still happens there...but so, very definitely, does hot, humid summer!
The border in a part of the Vancouver suburb of Surrey (bordering Washington State, of course), on what's called 0 Avenue, is hilarious....it's basically just a field (about the size of a typical schoolyard, with kids sometimes playing in it lol).
The way you use youtube to gain new knowledge while polishing your tech skills/presentation skills is exactly how schools should be allowing students to learn in the 21st century. Teachers should be guides, letting students do the driving. I wish I could have learned this way when I was growing up. Keep up the great videos. I have watched quite a few "react to" videos from various you-tubers but I like yours the most because your commentary isn't lame! Keep up the great work!
6 years ago I was working for the Alberta government, and was in the cut line between Alberta and Montana. Up in the mountains you can see down one side of the valley and the line just keeps going as far as the eye can see.
Vermont declared itself a fully independent republic on 15th January 1777. It was actually negotiating with the British to became a part of British North America (Canada) when the Revolutionary War came to an end. Realising it would be sharing a border on three sides with the new United States it decided, for pragmatic reasons, to become America rather than Canadian.
"Entrepreneurs" from BC used to regularly sneak across the 20 foot wide no touching zone with duffel bags full of their home grown product to eagerly awaiting American customers. The US Border agents tried to keep as close an eye on the proceedings as they could and would regularly intercept and incarcerate these merchants of you-know-what. The 49th parallel part of the border, across the Great Plains and Rocky Mountains, was surveyed in the 1870s when the West was truly still wild. US army Major Marcus Reno and a detachment of the US 7th Cavalry served as protection for the border survey crews. Reno was also at the Battle of the Little Bighorn with Lt. Colonel George Custer when the 7th Cavalry almost got wiped out on June 25-26, 1876! The border surveyors were in the middle of a buffalo stampede/migration in the summer of 1874, just south of the Cypress Hills, when a gaggle of Sioux warriors and hunters chasing the herd north emerged from the giant resultant dust cloud. Both sides gave each other an equally astonished stare for a moment or two before moving on in their individual pursuits! Ha, ha, ha! 😲👌
@@trudycolborne2371 From what I understand neither side had a clue the other was even in the neighbourhood. So their meeting did indeed catch them both by surprise. If the Sioux had a lively campfire chat going that night, I think we can rest assured the surveyors and their army protectors did too! With the latter no doubt not getting a lot of sleep and guards posted and told _not_ to fall asleep! My great grandfather worked helping to move caravans of supplies from Fort Garry to Fort Edmonton and all the NWMP forts in between in 1876. They apparently did not get any good night's rest during these journeys for they had to stay up in shifts to guard against being raided in the middle of the night by the Plains tribes. It was a three month trip there and back. They had to shelter at Fort Pitt one time when the local tribes were preyed upon by a whisky trader who got them angry.
There were a couple guys interviewed for tv during covid . They would get together for coffee every morning, each on their own side of the border . It was just a low wire fence and they brought lawn chairs and sat on each side
Once again you teach this Canadian something new 😂 I think I've been sheltered 😳 I learn something new every time I watch your videos 😂 Thanks for the video Tyler :)
as a Canadian - I actually wasn’t fully aware of this! (Mostly because where I live the border is straight through the St. Lawrence river, so there aren’t any trees to cut through, lol)
Yeah, same here! Canadians who live in Quebec and Ontario aren't really aware of this cleared border in the Forest. We're used to having the Saint-Lawrence River or the Great Lakes to tell us where our country ends.
I am a Canuck and I am aware of these border anomalies. Even some islands in the St. Lawrence River (tourist magnets like Boldt Castle) require the crossing of the border (and passports Folks). P.S> Like these videos of yours
The only complications were during covid when the border was closed and the reopening at different times. I remember hearing about one of these areas that was without mail because the mail truck could not cross the border. That's when I became more aware of these border issues...
Grew up in Ottawa and very aware of this lol I'm surprised you didn't hear about Point Roberts early on in the pandemic. It was all over the news that the residents were stuck on the peninsula because the borders were closed.
I've lived in a tiny village on the border in British Colombia (Grand Forks). From the balcony of cabin we could see the no touching zone and American houses in the hills on the other side. In the winter, the no touching zone is a white stripe in the brown hills with patches of evergreen trees. I don't think Canadians know about it either.
Hi Tyler! I'm glad you took the initiative to learn about Canada! So you asked if Canadians know about these weird border facts... I personally knew but only learned about this couple years ago, by watching videos here, as you are. I don't know for sure, but my guess is the average Canadian doesn't know much about this, unless he/she live near the area where these weird border situations are. That's my guess :)
The Point Roberts situation *DID* become a problem a couple of years ago when COVID struck - and the two countries closed their borders to each other. The residents of Point Roberts were essentially trapped.
Totally random, but the no touching zone just reminded me of old family road trips and I used to extend my finger near, but NOT on my siblings and say, "I'm not touching you, I'm not touching you..." they didn't like it, but I was amused. 🤣😂🤣
As a Canadian, I know little bits of this story. We call the border " The 49th Parallel". So I knew that much. And about the weird little geographic anomalies. That was really great! Thanks!
A big issue with a lot of those towns that have to cross a border to get to the rest of Canada, is when you need to get your car towed. I used to work in roadside assistance, and learned that there are only a few tow truck companies that have the license to cross the US/Canada border. If they aren’t available, you have to get, for example, a US tow truck to bring you to the border, then have a Canadian tow truck pick you up and bring you to the next border, the another US tow truck to pick you up from there and bring you to a repair shop. HUGE headache. Luckily those calls weren’t common, lol.
Yes it is absolutely true because I've seen it when I was in the Rockies. We took a ferry to the American side of goats town and it's very visible. I too was amazed when I saw it.
If you head up to the US, Canadian border and look left or right as you're crossing, you'll see the gap. It's really easy to see when you're crossing in the west, where there's lots of trees.
I am french Canadian - Quebecois - I like a lot your videos . you are a cool guy with a great soul presence and opening 😊 I like to watch the American side of views about Us 😂😂
The comments of how easy Canadians and Americans share the border area shows how closely we are connected as nations like siblings we don't always agree on the same things, but we get along great.
Indeed, both Canada and Denmark now have a border with a second nation. Before both only bordered with one country, Canada with the USA and Denmark with Germany. And our two flags have the same two colours!
I'm Canadian and I did not know about this! I do know about a town in the province of Quebec that's split in half by their Main Street and the North addresses are in Canada and the South addresses are in the USA. I don't remember the name of the town but basically, the residents can go back and forth as they wish the shop on the other side of the Street, even though it's in a different country!
I live near Point Roberts in a Canadian city called Richmond. Many businesses in Point Roberts strictly cater to Canadians with services like mailboxes and cheaper gas with prices listed in litres. There's a huge cliff where bald eagles nest so many photographers visit the area. I've biked across the border there for day trips as well as for doing passport paperwork. As for the residents of Point Roberts, it's mostly retirement age since there's a lack of opportunity in both job and education. Furthermore, it is used for witness protection in the US since people must cross the border twice from the rest of America to get in.
I saw a couple recommendations already, but I'll add my voice to the praise of Oversimplified's video on The Pig War that discusses border disputes in the channel between Vancouver Island and Washington State. Also, Tom Scott did a video on a town where the border runs right through the town - one side of the street is Canada, the other is the USA.
Yes we Canadians are aware of this border. Hats off to you for wanting to learn more about our country. Canada and USA not only have the longest border we also have the friendliest border because no other country in the world is as closely allied then USA and Canada a fact that is often overlooked.
I live in Seattle and have never had any trouble crossing the border into Canada (although it used to be simpler) but, coming back from Vancouver B.C. once an assinine American customs official refused to believe that I was an American citizen and I had to get off the bus and sit on a bench all night. After a couple of hours one of them gave me a styrofoam cup of lukewarm coffee. In the morning an immigration official rapidly okayed my citizenship after asking specific questions and the put me on the next bus (another 2 hours wait)!
Slightly off topic but I would say of interest, the British Virgin Islands comprise around 60 tropical Caribbean islands, ranging in size from the largest, Tortola, being 20 km (12 mi) long and 5 km (3 mi) wide, to tiny uninhabited islets, altogether about 150 square kilometres (58 square miles) in extent. They are located in the Virgin Islands archipelago, a few miles east of the US Virgin Islands, and about 95 km (59 mi) from the Puerto Rican mainland. The US Virgin Islands are 40-50 miles east of Puerto Rico; and about 1106 miles southeast Miami, Florida. The Virgin Islands are divided between the United States and the United Kingdom; so you have the United States Virgin Islands (USVI) and the British Virgin Islands (BVI). Motor vehicles are driven on the left-hand side of the road in both the British and the U.S. Virgin Islands, although the steering wheels on most cars are located on the left side (as is the norm for drive-on-the-right localities). In the Spanish Virgin Islands, vehicles are driven on the right-hand side of the road.
Canada and the USA have such a chill and long standing relationship that gives us both peace of mind and security. We vacouverites go to point Robert’s to get cheap gas (apparently, this town has the most expensive gas in America because of this).
You might be interested to see what happened to Point Roberts when the Canadian/USA border closed down on March 20, 2020 for 2 years during the PANDEMIC (the only time in history that the border was closed) - Food, Medical, Schools etc.
There is a politician I Port Roberts that suggested that they should join Canada... some of them said no. But many Canadians from Vancouver own property there.
I too was going to say that the Covid boarder closure effected all the areas like Point Roberts and worth a real second look. We also need to remember was only in this century that we have needed passports to cross... That was a negative change and I think unnecessary. Far less cross boarder travel fir which shopping the cost
I loved it that you didn't know.there's few places you can get across if you needed access. People come across all the time. Looks just like the pictures I seen it in Manitoba. Boarded gaurds on both sides patrole the area.
I lived in a small town in British Columbia on the boarder of Washington and my kids drove me crazy with literally stepping with one foot in British Columbia and one foot in Washington , but it did seem funny to have foot in Canada and one in the th U S A but being a boarder town it’s not that unusual so there’s that!😊
There are 14 road border crossings into Ontario from the United States. Get up-to-date information about border crossings locations and wait times. Travellers can also cross into Ontario over water-based borders via one of four passenger ferries or by private vessel.
The coolest border crossing is in North Cascades National park. You can only easily enter the US from Canada by car. It has some of the best camping. It is on Ross Lake and the lake is really only high enough to navigate from the US in July and August. It is an uncontrolled border crossing. Sadly it is hard to get to right now because of the flood of November 2021
Being a Canadian in Manitoba I know about the little piece of US land in the Northwest Angle. During winter the lake is frozen and my husband was snowmobiling with friends and yes in the snow there was a sign indicating border. When they hit a restaurant in the US side they stopped and on the wall was a sign saying all Canadians needed to call border patrol. Well they sat down and order and who walks in the border patrol. They threatened to take their snowmobiles. Instead they were all fined huge fines which fortunately we we were able to negotiate down.
I live below the 49th Parallel & the city up island on Vancouver Island is Ladysmith & there is a sign saying it’s the 49th parallel😁 of course our whole island is Canadian🇨🇦 We used to watch our Canada Day fireworks on July 1st & then we could watch the US July 4th fireworks from Port Angeles across from us & they could do the same. Our fireworks are now done in our inner harbour, but for most of the years it was out between us & Washington State😁🇨🇦🇺🇸❤️
Ontario has one of the most interesting borders as way up North from Toronto lies Michigan. I also wish that video had shown the Great Lakes borders, the Niagara River's border and all of the many necessary, essential bridges which connect our travel and commerce. Otherwise, I did learn some new things I hadn't known. Greetings from Toronto. I very much enjoy your videos.
Tyler…. Takes look at the Niagara river…. If you can see a video of it moving, you will see that it flows in2 separate directions in parts.. I used to swim in it as a teenager, we would get out in the middle of it and go one way, then come back across the middle to go the other way…. There are three United States to Canada border crossings in the Niagara Falls area, all within 28 miles (45 kilometers) of Buffalo, New York. The Lewiston-Queenston Bridge crossings are among the busiest of all Canadian border crossings... however, there is another one in Fort Erie Ontario, which some of us consider Niagara region as well
There are many places Canada where the USA is either connected directly or separated by a very narrow body of water. The Manitoulin Chain of Islands, in the St. Mary's River is a good example. From Sailor's Encampment on St. Joseph Island, even I could hit a baseball into the US across the up bound shipping channel. Ships heading to the Soo Locks up stream and in Canada. Ships heading downstream from the Soo Locks are in US Territorial Waters. This, by the way, was part of our Grade 7 Geography curriculum way back in the 60s and 70s. Every Canadian student learned about the Border.
@12:20 they are talking about Point Roberts, the little town cut off from the rest of the USA by British Columbia. We Canadians in the area use that regularly, to get cheap gas, eggs, milk etc. Because the border crossing is so underutilized, it's very fast to cross. There are also a bunch of mail drop services there, for companies that will not ship to Canada. We set up a mailbox in Point Roberts, and jump across to collect our shipments when they arrive. Handy!
As a fairly well educated Canadian (I have my Master's in History), I have to admit that I didn't know the half of all of this until I watched this very CGP Grey video a couple of years ago myself. It's fascinating though, isn't it? Also you're totally right - CGP Grey makes awesome content. Then again so do you so keep it up good sir! I'm loving your exploration of my home country. :)
Look up 0 (Zero) Avenue. It is a 29 km road in Surrey BC, that runs right along the border. If you pull over to the shoulder and stop your car going eastbound, you are literally 4 feet from the border. You can reach over and touch the border markers. There is a place called Smugglers Inn Bed and Breakfast, in Blaine Washington, who's yard butts right up to the border. You can walk out their back yard, and into Canada.
12:21 Re: Point Roberts. I’m a Canadian from Vancouver; and about 10 years ago, I was shopping in a Canadian store near the border and ended up on a little side road; accidentally crossed into the States and ended up at the Border gate - just one guy in a little hut ! He pointed out that I was in the states and not Canada. Apparently there was a sign but I didn’t see it. En route home I went to look for the sign and it was about 12” x 18” and in really fine printing. It looked more like a point of interest sign that was all beaten up and dirty than a proclamation forbidding entry! I mean they could have printed no entry in big red block letters! It seemed funny at the time and the border guard had the American cowboy accent like you hear in Western cowboy movies and called me “maaam”. I could have gone to jail he said “but I’m not going to detain you maaam just be awares for next time. “
We live on Zero ave in South Langley,in most places there is open fields and in some places only a single strand of an old barbwire fence ,all is good here .
There's a road called 0 Avenue in the suburbs of Vancouver that serves as the border. Basically the side of the road is the border. There's some markers but no fence. If you hit a patch of ice you could literally slide into another country.
I have lived on the border most of my life if i look out my front window i can See the US. Much of the eastern Border was divided by rivers and lakes as well as by treaty. This is the case where i live where the border runs down the middle of a river and across part of some lakes. farther West treaty put the southern border at the 49th parallel. The border between Yukon and Alaska follow geographic locations, usually rivers, as well. Oh by the way the northwest angle drawing is wrong the border does not include all of lake of the woods it is drawn about a hundred miles too far North. and yup they did slice off a bit called Point Roberts.Poor guys got really isolated during the Covid lockdown.
I was expecting the Vermont/Quebec town, where the border runs right through town. Splitting the town library which has entrances on each side of the border.
stanstead. i think it runs through a small theatre
@@ScrawneyRonnie and down the middle of the road so houses on on side are canada and the other is USA. you can't just cross the street to see you neighbor.
@@franklintheman8310 you can't stop on this road aswell... if you drive tru.. just drive.. unleas you live there..
Fun Fact: Canada JUST established a border with Denmark when they settled a long running dispute over a tiny island (that we now share) somewhere in the north.
ahh yes the whiskey war 1978 - 2022,
44 years of intense flag raising & whisky consumption
The dispute was called the whiskey war. The island which is basically a desolate rock. It woukd occasionally be visited the the armed forces of each side. They would put up the flag of their country, take down the others flag, leave a bottle of alcohol and a note saying welcome to their country.
Hans Island. And I am sad. I enjoyed the Whisky War...
Yes and ending the most Canadian "war" ever
I'm very happy Canada has a new land neighbour. Possibly the shortest unprotected land border in the world.
Hi from Denmark.Thank you for sharing your quite entertaining videos! I absolutely share your joy of your country sharing a border with Canada. Quite recently I realized that my country also have that privilege. Apparently there has for quite some time been an ongoing dispute between Canada and Denmark about a tiny island named Hans between Greenland and Canada. Was it Canadian or Danish? For quite a while our two countries took turns in the inspection of the territory. Soldiers were sent to the island and they raised their flag. The Canadian soldiers raised the Canadian flag and left a bottle of whiskey, and the Danish soldiers raised the Danish flag instead and left a bottle of Danish snaps. This obviously must have been a very friendly way of solving border problems. But this year the island was divided legally between the two countries.... which of course has stopped the whiskey and snaps arrangement!
We and Denmark now share the shortest undefended border in the world.
I was so happy to learn that our countries resolved that dispute by splitting the island and having a border. Love having another neighbour!
@@chrisvickers7928 Congratulation! You have two rarities in this world: Both the longest and the shortest undefended border.
@@egerlachcaYes. Nabours on the basis of decency .. and humor! But I wonder what happened to all those flags which were taken down. JUST MAYBE. and quite unofficially of course.. they returned each one washed and ironed together with the bottle of snaps or whiskey!?! Humour with respect! Both is to be welcomed in foreign policy matters. But we will never know .. and I can easily live with that.
As a Canadian, I would have voted to cede the territory to our good friends in Denmark, just to have a closer connection and 'portal' to the mother country so close by. :) Our nations have been close friends since WW2, and are always welcome in Canada! Come on over and get some whiskey and Poutine
Besides a land border with Denmark, which others have mentioned, Canada also shares a maritime border with France. How many Americans are aware of the French archipelago of Saint Pierre et Miquelon situated just off the coast of Newfoundland ?
I’ll give you that one cause it’s in our territorial waters but by that note we share a maritime border with half of Africa all of west costal Europe Britain Iceland lol not to mention the east costal Asian countries every oceanic country. Maritime porters not recognize as true borders hence why the world never cares when you fight over a small island lolol
@@khorihorton5207 There is such a thing as territorial seas. They extend 12 miles beyond a country's land and are considered part of the country. Saint-Pierre et Miquelon is 19 kilometers (12 miles) from Point May, Newfoundland, which places it right at the tip of Canadian territorial waters and places Newfoundland right at the tip of France's territorial waters. That is why Canada and France have a maritime border which was formally defined in 1972. The Americas and Europe and Africa are separated by thousands of miles of international waters, so we have no maritime borders with them. Not even with Iceland.
Thanks for mentioning it. I didn't know about it until now.
Even as a Canadian in BC I wasn't fully aware of that, pretty interesting
There's also the memorial in France that has 1km square land owned by Canada so we really have a land border with them, though idk if that counts
I as a Canadian actually didn't know about the no touch zone. It really is incredible! Great show!
So many of us, Canadians, live along the border that we are very aware of it. Family, shopping, etc. When I was a kid, I could stand on a bridge between Calais, Maine, and St. Stephen, New Brunswick, with one foot in each country. I won an "international running race" just because the course was set around the two bridges that joined those towns. Thanks so much for recognizing your quiet neighbours! (Not neighbors 😉)
Almost everyone (I think more than 80%) in Canada is within a couple of hours of a border crossing.
You should do a video where you react to the Whiskey War! The Whiskey War is a non-combative dispute between Denmark and Canada over Hans Island and it is HILARIOUS. It really tells you a lot about Canadian mindsets / mentalities!
Actually, there is already a video. recently made by two Americans living in Denmark. The You Tube channel is called Robe Trotting.
Tyler. You should be a teacher. Curious. Intelligent. Well spoken. To answer your question; I suggest most Canadians (not necessarily immigrant Canadians) are aware of our border. I was grown and educated in Canada in the 7'0s. I have never heard of it being called "The No Touching Zone". To me that is a clever device to explain to non-Canadians what it is physically. Keep up the good work! And yes. You can see it from space.
My mum was a teacher and she never mentioned it to me.
I was in a bar in Canada in the mid 1970s out west and the US/CDN border line was marked on the bar floor. At 1am the bars would close on the Canadian side so we moved 10 feet to another table on the US side as the bar was open until 7am.The bar counters were littered with old silver dollars embedded in the counter tops and thousands of dollar bills tied to strings hanging over the dance floor that locals and tourists had signed their names on them, and up to Alaska by ship in the late 1960s was unreal.....1947 to 1986 was the best years to be alive.
@T A probably real old school mountain men not todays yuppie types.
OMG that is absolutely brilliant !
There is a bar that straddled Massina NY and Canada that we would go to where there's a line down the middle of the building.
We tend to know the border well because so many of us live near it: something like 85 percent of Canadians live within a hundred miles of the US border. The old joke is that Canadians huddle at their southern border for warmth. Also, until it got more difficult after 9/11 and then the pandemic, Canadians crossed the border often to buy cheaper gas and bulk food (milk and cheese, etc.). Not even kidding. That was a thing and still sometimes is. Sadly, the border has gotten a lot more stressful in recent years. Not always, of course, but you really need to have your ducks in a row when you cross and make sure you answer all the questions properly or they can literally ruin your day (or worse).
I grew up 30miles south of Vancouver in a town called Tsawwassen. ( A native term meaning 'land facing the sea') We were right up against Point Roberts (USA) and we would ride our bikes to Pt Roberts all the time. My friend Gary and a border monument in his backyard. One side said Canada and the other side said the United States. We literally grew up in both countries.
Where the ferry leaves for the Island! Love that area.
Lived 10 years on Vancouver island and I miss Tsawwassen! Your town is so cool
@@MamaStyles Yes, was an awesome place to grow up.
As a Canadian I knew some of this, but it’s kind of amazing to see - I didn’t know about the ‘no touching zone’! Lol
Back in the 50's and 60's it was a simple process to cross the border either way. You were only asked what your citizenship was. Once when crossing into the US the border guard asked if we were all Canadians, My parents both answered yes but my younger brother stuck his head out the back window and declared, "I'm a Russian!" The guard laughed and waved us through.
This was the case until Homeland Security in the US was formed after 9/11.
It was that simple until 9/11 then we needed passports to cross. I wish it was still that easy. I miss going to Detroit to see concerts.
Sadly, the U.S. has built a fence at Abbotsford B.C., it's to keep people from illegally entering the States. More people are coming into Canada than vice/versa. It's sad because friends and family meet at the Border, now there's a fence. It baffles me and saddens me that our friend and neighbour wants to fence us off. Sad.
it baffles you and saddens you that a country wants to secure their borders? Boy wait until you learn about history
@@Justin-dr5uw My B.A. is in History. Seems you don't know YOUR history. We have had the longest undefended border in the world, now we don't. Why, because you Americans are paranoid. We've never started a war with you (though you can't say the same, but hey, we won that war). It's sad that your paranoia puts a fence between us, you know, your most staunch ally? How can you not be sad about that? Now, YOU go learn your history about our shared borders. If tRump comes back, maybe we should just shut the Peace Gate (you can look that up, I'm sure you don't know about it). Perhaps you should go study some more about Canada before you open your yap.
Baffles us and saddens us because it never was like this before we could come and go freely and there’s been no real reason other than 9/11 to change that But in reality it wasn’t an American or Canadian that crossed the border with ease it was a foreign national not sure why we weren’t screening foreigners a little bit more stringently than we were on either side of the border. but to grow up never worrying about what going to the border look like and then to have the last 20 years look like this well it doesn’t boggle my mind it does saddens me too I know why it’s like that now even if it was more of a reaction so that the general public could feel like they had someone to blame but I can guarantee you this Americans and Canadians alike hate the experience they have at the borders all the time now. There is not that many Canadians trying to illegally enter the states but the amount of Americans that do is like 5x as high And I can basically guarantee you unless you’re right out of Maine border crossing you’re not gonna have too many Canadian boarder and customs agents showing up to swarm you and arrest you for being an illegal alien not like it would happen to us on the American side of the border and what did it really achieve? What are they securing the borders from? History really doesn’t play a part in this due to the fact that came to the United States relationship for so long was so unique and so abnormal the only real comparison in the world would be the EU I’m at the European Union give it another decade and our border will be like the United States and Mexico border which is sad because there’s no actual reason for it it’s all good just reelect Trump one more time and you guys will have a fence along both borders lololol
@@Justin-dr5uw. The border between Canada and the US has been friendly for many years but I agree the fence is now needed to keep Americans from illegally entering to escape the political unrest down there.
@@dennispalmer6007 Something about your comment is rubbing me the wrong way.
Possibly something to do with being a 5th generation Canadian descended from a self-emancipated formerly enslaved man…
Could also have to do with the notion of Canada turning its back on people-especially neighbours in need-setting off a sense of cognitive dissonance…
As a Canadian, I am aware of some of the oddities with our shared border. I went to the University of Windsor, and to get the the US we would have to drive north. I had classmates that were from Sarnia and would do that all the time, as it was much quicker to drive through the US to get home. I now live in Victoria, right at the bottom of Vancouver Island and can see Port Angeles from the south part of town. There are also many smaller islands around Vancouver Island, and you can see on a map that the border weaves around them.
I sailed my boat to Victoria once from Seattle, stopping over night at Port Townsend. I lived on my boat in the inner harbor for 4 or 5 days and then sailed to Pender Island in the Canadian Gulf Islands. I returned via the San Juan Islands and cleared U.S. customs at Friday Harbor. I love Victoria, all Canada for that matter.
@@tonygumbrell22 I moved out west from Toronto 13 years ago, and have loved every minute of it. No regrets on leaving big city life behind.
@@andreaislandgirl720 I had hoped to retire in Canada preferably Victoria, but circumstances prevented it. I am still stuck in Seattle with its share of big city problems, even the big cities in Canada, Van. anyway, are a little better than big cities here. I have walked and bicycled all over Victoria, a walk to Oak Bay and back from downtown, was nothing but a stroll for me. It would be the perfect place for me and Eberhard (my dachshund).
Sarnis Ontario and Port huron Michigan used to have a mutual support agreement in emergances up until 911
@@barneyd47 Calais ME and St Stephen NB still do. The border is open 24/7 and they still get cleared (very quickly) when crossing. Some churches even share ministers. It was a major issue through the border shut down during the pandemic. Like many border communities there are many families that are also split by the border.
I grew up in a park that has a lake that goes south into the States and there is a boat that tours down the lake; was always neat to see the "no touching zone" as you go by.
There 3 treaties that define the U.S. - Canadian border. First is the Treaty of Paris of 1783, where Great Britain recognized the independence of the U.S. following the Revolutionary War. The second is the treaty of 1818 to define the border between British territory (Canada) and the newly purchased territories the U.S. had acquired from France in 1803 (Louisiana Purchase). Third is the Oregon Treaty of 1845 that split the Oregon County between the U.S. and British territory (Canada) at the 49th parallel. I'm an American, and quite well-aware of these treaties and the long border between our countries. The most unique thing about the U.S. Canada border is that it is the longest undefended border in the world.
As a 33 year old Canadian, I had no idea of the No-Touching Zone
You are not alone, This Canadian had no idea they had cleared a border space.
I live in BC close to the boarder and crossed quite a few times, it's certainly a eye-catching sight for a kid to see
I love your channel. I’m Canadian and I like learning some stuff from watching you. I had no idea the border was like that. Very interesting.
Fun fact: It's the longest UNDEFENDED border also. Back in the pre-911 days, you could cross the border with just a driver's licence. Out on the west coast, zero avenue divides British Columbia from Washington state. Post 911, the road has multiple motion sensors and cameras and you need a passport to cross at controlled ports (points?) of entry and you have tell the guard where you are going.
There is a town in Quebec that shares its border with the U.S. The library and some houses are divided between the two as they sit on both borders.
That would be Stanstead.
The Haskell Free Library and Opera House was deliberately built on the border. Part of it is in Derby Line, Vermont, and part of it is in Stanstead, Quebec. You can enter from one country and exit on the other side in the other country. It's really quite cool.
I am a Canadian and I knew we had the longest uncontested border but I had no idea we had a visual 'no touching' zone visible from space ... that made me laugh ... THANKS!!!!!
As I live in Manitoba, I can tell you that the border crossing into Northwest Angle, Minnesota is interesting. It's along a narrow gravel road, and it is just a small wooden shack the size of an outhouse with a phone that auto-dials US customs, you self-declare when crossing :)
I appreciate your interest about the border. Unfortunately, in the past, our borders were much more friendly. We use to be able to visit each other's countries with just a driver's license. Unfortunately, the US got very excited after "911". There was an immediate concern that "terrorists" came from Canada (totally untrue). Now both countries need to show passports or Nexus cards to visit
It use to be a friendlier border and a lot faster. It's too bad, considering there has been no benefit to either country
Cheers
I have never been back since that chicken shit move
Funny how the Americans think we are terriorists lol
@@CupContender 👍
My dad had helped cut it years ago. He always loves showing us his picture in his national geographic book
I am a Canadian who lives close to the American border with Minnesota. I enjoy fishing. When I go fishing to certain lakes, there are a fair number of people from the USA. I always enjoy speaking with them and discussing our similarities and differences. The two countries that are the best friends in the world.
11:39 To us Vancouverites, Pt Roberts was THE place to get gas, as it served American pricing to mostly Canadians who happened to be lucky enough to live around it. However, when COVID shut down the borders, Pt Roberts suffered MASSIVELY. I remember there was a agreement between USA and Canada to help support Pt Roberts and keep it operational and "above water" so to speak, but it was nothing equivilent to the business they'd normally had gotten day to day from regular operation. Pt Roberts was given special circumstance to have the border pseudo-reopened to allow Canadians to stimulate the areas local economy. No one I've ever talked about Pt Roberts with has anything bad to say about it, and Vancouverites couldn't wait to come back ASAP.
13:06 Look up "War of the Pig". In fact, Over-Simplified just did a whole video what conflicts emerged thanks to the border disagreement nonsense, and the war that _almost_ sparked between US and Canada over the shooting of a pig
15:00 I live in a bordertown in BC, and I regularly for fun drive along "0 Ave" which is a LOOOOONG stretch of road that I could throw a rock from one side to the other and that rock becomes American property that I can no longer retrieve without a border agent patrol truck initiating chase 😂 I've caught a bunch of Pokemon (Go) at those stone border markers. It's really really cool to be honest.
Point Roberts is a popular destination for Canadians. With the exchange rate it's often cheaper to buy gas and groceries there. As you can imagine they really suffered during COVID when the border was closed. If you find yourself out this way, it's worth a stop to drop some cash and say hello. They're great folks.
Exchange rate is 35%. The gas and groceries would have to be at least 40% cheaper to realize any savings, including travel expenses.
@@brucekatkin5310
Exchange rate has fluctuated over the years. However the gas has always been cheaper as the US collects far less tax on gas. Also a lot of products like cheese are way cheaper.
I'm learning a lot about my own country. Thanks for doing these videos! Re: Point Roberts - CoVid almost killed the community as the US/Canada border was closed for over a year.
I am from quebec canada and I had no idea about this !!!! 25 years without knowing this incredible thing !!!
Grew up a few feet from border in DerbyLine, VT - border was vaguely a thing. Only vaguely. But, weird - went through houses, one aunt/uncle's kitchen in Canada, rest in US. Things like that. Not to mention Haskell Library/Opera House.
Yeah. The border closure during the pandemic got really interesting in Derby Line and Stanstead with people being accused of smuggling people across the border and the like.
It’s between Greenland and Canada and Extremely cool historical story and a clear picture of what Canada does militarily when disputing with friends militarily lol
Greenland is part of the Kingdom of Denmark with a certain amount of autonomy. Not all that different from Northern Ireland, Wales, and Scotland in the United Kingdom.
Hey Tyler. In addition to watching the UA-cam clip of Tom Brokaw's and his complimentary view of Canada, there was a coffee table oversize book from the 1970's called Between Friends showing the border delineation and other interactions about the countries and their common border. It might be a good reference for this border show. John Thomas
Growing up in Manitoba, the trip from Winnipeg to Grand Forks every summer was part of my childhood. Occasionally we went the extra bit to Fargo for a change.
But when D.T. was elected there was a huge surge of refugees / immigrants crossing around the Manitoba/North Dakota border area in the no touch zones. Was on the news quite a bit after a family froze to death in a field.
Yes very well known in Canada. Love these videos. I love seeing your reaction to what our country has to offer.
Thanks Tyler, for your reactions. Best way to learn about Canada is to come visit. Stay awhile, or stay a long while! You will feel welcomed and maybe discover that we’re very similar as well as being unique…. or uniquely familiar.
A similar issue as for point Roberts, though not caused by a straight border anomaly, is Hyder AK. The only landroute to civilazation is into Canada.
49th Parallel (as the map shows) really only functions as the border across most of the west. In Ontario the border follows the centre lines of four of the five Great Lakes and the rivers connecting them, and then the centre line of the St.Lawrence River toward the Atlantic.Because of that, southern Ontario, which contains a huge chunk of Canada's population, is far to the south of where the border is out west. Winter still happens there...but so, very definitely, does hot, humid summer!
The border in a part of the Vancouver suburb of Surrey (bordering Washington State, of course), on what's called 0 Avenue, is hilarious....it's basically just a field (about the size of a typical schoolyard, with kids sometimes playing in it lol).
0 Ave goes for many km/miles along the border. Sometimes it is just across the international ditch from an American road.
0 Ave is a lot longer than a schoolyard. I used to drive it all the time when I was posted at CFS Aldergrove.
The way you use youtube to gain new knowledge while polishing your tech skills/presentation skills is exactly how schools should be allowing students to learn in the 21st century. Teachers should be guides, letting students do the driving. I wish I could have learned this way when I was growing up. Keep up the great videos. I have watched quite a few "react to" videos from various you-tubers but I like yours the most because your commentary isn't lame! Keep up the great work!
6 years ago I was working for the Alberta government, and was in the cut line between Alberta and Montana. Up in the mountains you can see down one side of the valley and the line just keeps going as far as the eye can see.
Vermont declared itself a fully independent republic on 15th January 1777. It was actually negotiating with the British to became a part of British North America (Canada) when the Revolutionary War came to an end. Realising it would be sharing a border on three sides with the new United States it decided, for pragmatic reasons, to become America rather than Canadian.
"Entrepreneurs" from BC used to regularly sneak across the 20 foot wide no touching zone with duffel bags full of their home grown product to eagerly awaiting American customers. The US Border agents tried to keep as close an eye on the proceedings as they could and would regularly intercept and incarcerate these merchants of you-know-what.
The 49th parallel part of the border, across the Great Plains and Rocky Mountains, was surveyed in the 1870s when the West was truly still wild. US army Major Marcus Reno and a detachment of the US 7th Cavalry served as protection for the border survey crews. Reno was also at the Battle of the Little Bighorn with Lt. Colonel George Custer when the 7th Cavalry almost got wiped out on June 25-26, 1876!
The border surveyors were in the middle of a buffalo stampede/migration in the summer of 1874, just south of the Cypress Hills, when a gaggle of Sioux warriors and hunters chasing the herd north emerged from the giant resultant dust cloud. Both sides gave each other an equally astonished stare for a moment or two before moving on in their individual pursuits! Ha, ha, ha! 😲👌
20ft wide? Not everywhere. There's portions where it's just a small ditch.
@@hannabis80 It sounds like you've crossed the border yourself in the backwoods Jason!
I can imagine how crazy the border surveyor project must have seemed to the Sioux. I bet the campfire stories were lively that night.
@@trudycolborne2371 From what I understand neither side had a clue the other was even in the neighbourhood. So their meeting did indeed catch them both by surprise. If the Sioux had a lively campfire chat going that night, I think we can rest assured the surveyors and their army protectors did too! With the latter no doubt not getting a lot of sleep and guards posted and told _not_ to fall asleep!
My great grandfather worked helping to move caravans of supplies from Fort Garry to Fort Edmonton and all the NWMP forts in between in 1876. They apparently did not get any good night's rest during these journeys for they had to stay up in shifts to guard against being raided in the middle of the night by the Plains tribes. It was a three month trip there and back. They had to shelter at Fort Pitt one time when the local tribes were preyed upon by a whisky trader who got them angry.
There were a couple guys interviewed for tv during covid . They would get together for coffee every morning, each on their own side of the border . It was just a low wire fence and they brought lawn chairs and sat on each side
Once again you teach this Canadian something new 😂 I think I've been sheltered 😳 I learn something new every time I watch your videos 😂 Thanks for the video Tyler :)
as a Canadian - I actually wasn’t fully aware of this! (Mostly because where I live the border is straight through the St. Lawrence river, so there aren’t any trees to cut through, lol)
Yeah, same here! Canadians who live in Quebec and Ontario aren't really aware of this cleared border in the Forest. We're used to having the Saint-Lawrence River or the Great Lakes to tell us where our country ends.
Canada has 2 physical borders one with the USA and one with Denmark. We are only about 30km (20 miles) and a one hour ferry ride from France
Canada is only an hours ferry ride from France?! That can't be right surely?
@@shymike France has an island, Saint-Pierre and Miquelon that is off the coast of Newfoundland.
And New Brunswick is the only official bilingual province as Quebec considers themselves French speaking.
@@shymike Saint Pierre and Miquelon
It didn't take but a second to remember about Denmark in my mental map, but you had me going with France. Thanks for the laugh.
I am a Canuck and I am aware of these border anomalies. Even some islands in the St. Lawrence River (tourist magnets like Boldt Castle) require the crossing of the border (and passports Folks). P.S> Like these videos of yours
I am Canadian, and keep learning more and more from each of your videos! 👍💖
The only complications were during covid when the border was closed and the reopening at different times. I remember hearing about one of these areas that was without mail because the mail truck could not cross the border. That's when I became more aware of these border issues...
Grew up in Ottawa and very aware of this lol
I'm surprised you didn't hear about Point Roberts early on in the pandemic. It was all over the news that the residents were stuck on the peninsula because the borders were closed.
I've lived in a tiny village on the border in British Colombia (Grand Forks). From the balcony of cabin we could see the no touching zone and American houses in the hills on the other side. In the winter, the no touching zone is a white stripe in the brown hills with patches of evergreen trees.
I don't think Canadians know about it either.
You might know Ben and Shayna Jepsen? My daughter and her family who live in Grand Forks.
@@sarahmartin325 I only know the family of employers at the time, the Huxter family, (Terry and Elizabeth) who had the queen bee breeding farm.
Hi Tyler! I'm glad you took the initiative to learn about Canada! So you asked if Canadians know about these weird border facts... I personally knew but only learned about this couple years ago, by watching videos here, as you are. I don't know for sure, but my guess is the average Canadian doesn't know much about this, unless he/she live near the area where these weird border situations are. That's my guess :)
It was definitely included in our Provincial curriculum when I was in public school.
That Point Robert’s got screwed during Covid when cross border travel was stopped. It was a huge problem.
Really enjoy the reactions. Keep up the great show.
The Point Roberts situation *DID* become a problem a couple of years ago when COVID struck - and the two countries closed their borders to each other. The residents of Point Roberts were essentially trapped.
Totally random, but the no touching zone just reminded me of old family road trips and I used to extend my finger near, but NOT on my siblings and say, "I'm not touching you, I'm not touching you..." they didn't like it, but I was amused. 🤣😂🤣
Even though I'm canadian i didn't know this, thank for this video Tyler
As a Canadian, I know little bits of this story. We call the border " The 49th Parallel". So I knew that much. And about the weird little geographic anomalies. That was really great! Thanks!
A big issue with a lot of those towns that have to cross a border to get to the rest of Canada, is when you need to get your car towed. I used to work in roadside assistance, and learned that there are only a few tow truck companies that have the license to cross the US/Canada border. If they aren’t available, you have to get, for example, a US tow truck to bring you to the border, then have a Canadian tow truck pick you up and bring you to the next border, the another US tow truck to pick you up from there and bring you to a repair shop. HUGE headache. Luckily those calls weren’t common, lol.
Yes. It’s part of our history and geography lessons in school. I know very few Canadians who don’t know this.
Yes it is absolutely true because I've seen it when I was in the Rockies. We took a ferry to the American side of goats town and it's very visible. I too was amazed when I saw it.
If you head up to the US, Canadian border and look left or right as you're crossing, you'll see the gap. It's really easy to see when you're crossing in the west, where there's lots of trees.
I am french Canadian - Quebecois - I like a lot your videos . you are a cool guy with a great soul presence and opening 😊 I like to watch the American side of views about Us 😂😂
Wow, I’m Canadian and this blew my mind! I never knew any of this
Great choice of video Tyler! Watch all of Grey's stuff. You should definitly watch his "Politics of the animal kingdom" videos.
The comments of how easy Canadians and Americans share the border area shows how closely we are connected as nations like siblings we don't always agree on the same things, but we get along great.
I am Canadian and I wasn't aware of it until now. Thanks!
Indeed, both Canada and Denmark now have a border with a second nation. Before both only bordered with one country, Canada with the USA and Denmark with Germany. And our two flags have the same two colours!
I'm Canadian and I did not know about this! I do know about a town in the province of Quebec that's split in half by their Main Street and the North addresses are in Canada and the South addresses are in the USA. I don't remember the name of the town but basically, the residents can go back and forth as they wish the shop on the other side of the Street, even though it's in a different country!
The longest open border in the world. It runs mainly the 49th parallel. It is basically open, with out walls or military presence.
I live near Point Roberts in a Canadian city called Richmond. Many businesses in Point Roberts strictly cater to Canadians with services like mailboxes and cheaper gas with prices listed in litres. There's a huge cliff where bald eagles nest so many photographers visit the area. I've biked across the border there for day trips as well as for doing passport paperwork. As for the residents of Point Roberts, it's mostly retirement age since there's a lack of opportunity in both job and education. Furthermore, it is used for witness protection in the US since people must cross the border twice from the rest of America to get in.
I saw a couple recommendations already, but I'll add my voice to the praise of Oversimplified's video on The Pig War that discusses border disputes in the channel between Vancouver Island and Washington State.
Also, Tom Scott did a video on a town where the border runs right through the town - one side of the street is Canada, the other is the USA.
Yes we Canadians are aware of this border. Hats off to you for wanting to learn more about our country. Canada and USA not only have the longest border we also have the friendliest border because no other country in the world is as closely allied then USA and Canada a fact that is often overlooked.
Minnesotan here - recently in Thunder Bay. We have a Canada flag hanging on our wall.
I am from Costa Rica and knew about it. I had a book about US history and read it.
I live in Seattle and have never had any trouble crossing the border into Canada (although it used to be simpler) but, coming back from Vancouver B.C. once an assinine American customs official refused to believe that I was an American citizen and I had to get off the bus and sit on a bench all night. After a couple of hours one of them gave me a styrofoam cup of lukewarm coffee. In the morning an immigration official rapidly okayed my citizenship after asking specific questions and the put me on the next bus (another 2 hours wait)!
Slightly off topic but I would say of interest, the British Virgin Islands comprise around 60 tropical Caribbean islands, ranging in size from the largest, Tortola, being 20 km (12 mi) long and 5 km (3 mi) wide, to tiny uninhabited islets, altogether about 150 square kilometres (58 square miles) in extent. They are located in the Virgin Islands archipelago, a few miles east of the US Virgin Islands, and about 95 km (59 mi) from the Puerto Rican mainland. The US Virgin Islands are 40-50 miles east of Puerto Rico; and about 1106 miles southeast Miami, Florida.
The Virgin Islands are divided between the United States and the United Kingdom; so you have the United States Virgin Islands (USVI) and the British Virgin Islands (BVI).
Motor vehicles are driven on the left-hand side of the road in both the British and the U.S. Virgin Islands, although the steering wheels on most cars are located on the left side (as is the norm for drive-on-the-right localities). In the Spanish Virgin Islands, vehicles are driven on the right-hand side of the road.
Canada and the USA have such a chill and long standing relationship that gives us both peace of mind and security. We vacouverites go to point Robert’s to get cheap gas (apparently, this town has the most expensive gas in America because of this).
You might be interested to see what happened to Point Roberts when the Canadian/USA border closed down on March 20, 2020 for 2 years during the PANDEMIC (the only time in history that the border was closed) - Food, Medical, Schools etc.
Point Roberts had it very rough. A very slow ferry, boats and seaplanes kept them connected to the USA but very isolated existence
There is a politician I Port Roberts that suggested that they should join Canada... some of them said no. But many Canadians from Vancouver own property there.
I too was going to say that the Covid boarder closure effected all the areas like Point Roberts and worth a real second look. We also need to remember was only in this century that we have needed passports to cross... That was a negative change and I think unnecessary. Far less cross boarder travel fir which shopping the cost
Apparently the real estate prices there have massively dropped due to the increased complexity of crossing
I lived in Tsawwassen, BC - the peninsula that connects to Point Roberts, WA....it's very cool to have such an anomaly in your back door!
I loved it that you didn't know.there's few places you can get across if you needed access. People come across all the time. Looks just like the pictures I seen it in Manitoba. Boarded gaurds on both sides patrole the area.
I lived in a small town in British Columbia on the boarder of Washington and my kids drove me crazy with literally stepping with one foot in British Columbia and one foot in Washington , but it did seem funny to have foot in Canada and one in the th U S A but being a boarder town it’s not that unusual so there’s that!😊
There are 14 road border crossings into Ontario from the United States. Get up-to-date information about border crossings locations and wait times. Travellers can also cross into Ontario over water-based borders via one of four passenger ferries or by private vessel.
The coolest border crossing is in North Cascades National park. You can only easily enter the US from Canada by car. It has some of the best camping. It is on Ross Lake and the lake is really only high enough to navigate from the US in July and August. It is an uncontrolled border crossing. Sadly it is hard to get to right now because of the flood of November 2021
Being a Canadian in Manitoba I know about the little piece of US land in the Northwest Angle. During winter the lake is frozen and my husband was snowmobiling with friends and yes in the snow there was a sign indicating border. When they hit a restaurant in the US side they stopped and on the wall was a sign saying all Canadians needed to call border patrol. Well they sat down and order and who walks in the border patrol. They threatened to take their snowmobiles. Instead they were all fined huge fines which fortunately we we were able to negotiate down.
I live below the 49th Parallel & the city up island on Vancouver Island is Ladysmith & there is a sign saying it’s the 49th parallel😁 of course our whole island is Canadian🇨🇦 We used to watch our Canada Day fireworks on July 1st & then we could watch the US July 4th fireworks from Port Angeles across from us & they could do the same. Our fireworks are now done in our inner harbour, but for most of the years it was out between us & Washington State😁🇨🇦🇺🇸❤️
Ontario has one of the most interesting borders as way up North from Toronto lies Michigan. I also wish that video had shown the Great Lakes borders, the Niagara River's border and all of the many necessary, essential bridges which connect our travel and commerce. Otherwise, I did learn some new things I hadn't known. Greetings from Toronto. I very much enjoy your videos.
As a Canadian I didn't know about the Minnesota-Manitoba bump.
Tyler…. Takes look at the Niagara river…. If you can see a video of it moving, you will see that it flows in2 separate directions in parts.. I used to swim in it as a teenager, we would get out in the middle of it and go one way, then come back across the middle to go the other way…. There are three United States to Canada border crossings in the Niagara Falls area, all within 28 miles (45 kilometers) of Buffalo, New York. The Lewiston-Queenston Bridge crossings are among the busiest of all Canadian border crossings... however, there is another one in Fort Erie Ontario, which some of us consider Niagara region as well
yes satellite imaging is amazing it can see a 20 foot wide road it can also see your house and regular sized roads
There are many places Canada where the USA is either connected directly or separated by a very narrow body of water. The Manitoulin Chain of Islands, in the St. Mary's River is a good example. From Sailor's Encampment on St. Joseph Island, even I could hit a baseball into the US across the up bound shipping channel. Ships heading to the Soo Locks up stream and in Canada. Ships heading downstream from the Soo Locks are in US Territorial Waters.
This, by the way, was part of our Grade 7 Geography curriculum way back in the 60s and 70s. Every Canadian student learned about the Border.
@12:20 they are talking about Point Roberts, the little town cut off from the rest of the USA by British Columbia. We Canadians in the area use that regularly, to get cheap gas, eggs, milk etc. Because the border crossing is so underutilized, it's very fast to cross. There are also a bunch of mail drop services there, for companies that will not ship to Canada. We set up a mailbox in Point Roberts, and jump across to collect our shipments when they arrive. Handy!
As a fairly well educated Canadian (I have my Master's in History), I have to admit that I didn't know the half of all of this until I watched this very CGP Grey video a couple of years ago myself. It's fascinating though, isn't it? Also you're totally right - CGP Grey makes awesome content. Then again so do you so keep it up good sir! I'm loving your exploration of my home country. :)
Hi Tyler,
Went through all your videos in one take 👍, keep it up.
Look up 0 (Zero) Avenue. It is a 29 km road in Surrey BC, that runs right along the border. If you pull over to the shoulder and stop your car going eastbound, you are literally 4 feet from the border. You can reach over and touch the border markers. There is a place called Smugglers Inn Bed and Breakfast, in Blaine Washington, who's yard butts right up to the border. You can walk out their back yard, and into Canada.
12:21 Re: Point Roberts. I’m a Canadian from Vancouver; and about 10 years ago, I was shopping in a Canadian store near the border and ended up on a little side road; accidentally crossed into the States and ended up at the Border gate - just one guy in a little hut ! He pointed out that I was in the states and not Canada. Apparently there was a sign but I didn’t see it. En route home I went to look for the sign and it was about 12” x 18” and in really fine printing. It looked more like a point of interest sign that was all beaten up and dirty than a proclamation forbidding entry! I mean they could have printed no entry in big red block letters! It seemed funny at the time and the border guard had the American cowboy accent like you hear in Western cowboy movies and called me “maaam”. I could have gone to jail he said “but I’m not going to detain you maaam just be awares for next time. “
We live on Zero ave in South Langley,in most places there is open fields and in some places only a single strand of an old barbwire fence ,all is good here .
There's a road called 0 Avenue in the suburbs of Vancouver that serves as the border. Basically the side of the road is the border. There's some markers but no fence. If you hit a patch of ice you could literally slide into another country.
I have lived on the border most of my life if i look out my front window i can See the US. Much of the eastern Border was divided by rivers and lakes as well as by treaty. This is the case where i live where the border runs down the middle of a river and across part of some lakes. farther West treaty put the southern border at the 49th parallel. The border between Yukon and Alaska follow geographic locations, usually rivers, as well. Oh by the way the northwest angle drawing is wrong the border does not include all of lake of the woods it is drawn about a hundred miles too far North. and yup they did slice off a bit called Point Roberts.Poor guys got really isolated during the Covid lockdown.