Crossing the Border - Fargo, ND - Jul 21, 2007 - Fargo, North Dakota, United States

We crossed the border into the United States today about 9:30am, after leaving the campgrounds in Winnipeg about 8:00am. Unlike the Douglas border crossing south of Vancouver, B.C., where 3 hour waits are not uncommon, we only had to wait 5 minutes to get past the kisok but were asked to pull over for an inspection of the RV - we knew that was a given.

Mo & Molly were busted for trying to smuggle their Jerky Treats across the border!! The customs agent took the Jerky stuff and asked about dog food too. I just told them we didn't have any other than what was in the bowl. Luckily, he didn't check the compartment underneath as there was a whole 20lb. bag of 'illegal kibbles'!

Anyway, because of the rules and regulations, the customs agent took all of my homemade, frozen hamburger patties, all 12 of them! I'll bet they have a great barbeque tonight! He also took apples, nectarines and pepperoni. He was kind enough to not take eggs, milk, cheese, bacon, ham or any canned goods - although he looked at and inspected every item in the fridge, freezer and cupboards. He even inspected the wooden landing blocks and levellers I made and said that if he saw any 'bugs' on them, he would have to confiscate them. I told him that if there were any 'bugs' on the wood, then they were 'american' bugs so leave them alone - he did! In total, the whole process only took about 15 minute and we were out of there!

We stopped in Grand Forks for lunch - guess where? At a mall, of course! I had lunch and a 90 minute siesta in the 5th wheel while Paulette hit Target and the usual assortment of shops. Really hot in Grand Forks - over 30C with a hot wind.

We arrived at the Fargo KOA at 2:30pm(seems like that's our usual schedule now) and within 30 minutes, we were setup and I was driving Paulette back to the West Acres shopping mall - Fargo's biggest. I went back to the campground for a few hours and checked it out - it's a very nice clean place with an outdoor swimming pool and nice, easy access pull-thru sites. The campground was already pretty much full - the busiest we've seen so far. About 5:00pm, Mo, Molly and me went back and picked Paulette up at the mall - she was happy as she had found a few bargains.

Very, very hot here in Fargo - mid 30's Celsius. Plus, there is a strong 'hot' wind that has been blowing all the way through the Dakotas and it makes the campsite seem a bit like a furnace. We put the a/c on in the 5'er to cool things down a bit so it's quite nice now. We're sitting outside relaxing right now and it's actually quite comfortable. The wind has cooled just a bit so it provided a nice relief from the heat.

Tommorrow, it's off to Minneapolis and the Mall of America for a 2 day stop! This mall is supposed to be one of largest, if not the largest, malls in the world - a very good reason for me to stay at the campsite and catch up on some reading. We'll be staying at the Minneapois Southwest KOA for 2 days before heading off to Sioux City on our way to Mt. Rushmore.