Just saw this that says Canada will be opening the phone reporting at Prairie Portage and Cache Bay in June.

Phone sites go live in June

Awesome news! Let’s see how this plays out. Anyone doing this, please report back here with your experience.

Great news!

I wonder if there will be a rush on permits for PP now? They are pretty wide open for the Q right now.

Of course, I just booked a super expensive tow with Anderson's and paid a big down payment. :)

T

I have my golden ticket RABC - which is worth about 3 bucks now. I do wonder how much people will change their plans - and if the bwca permit cancellations for sought after entry points will go up any.

Thanks for posting this, Emma. I'm still holding my 2024 RABC and had already reserved an entry date/lake via Prairie Portage, but had been considering visiting the west side of the park again. Just changed my entry lake and feel like the early adoption of the phone reporting system for Prairie Portage entries will quickly add to Quetico's visitor count this summer.

TZ

My trip is May 29th-June 5th, so I'll be back out of the woods before the phone reporting system goes into place. My guess is Quetico use from the south will tick up marginally above previous levels, but I doubt it will be very noticeable. As always, getting in more than a few portages, you'll have lakes to yourself more often than not still.

timatkn: "I wonder if there will be a rush on permits for PP now? They are pretty wide open for the Q right now.

Of course, I just booked a super expensive tow with Anderson's and paid a big down payment. :)

T"

This is good news of course, but similar to timatkn, I made some relatively spendy reservations (float plane trip to King's Point) solely to take advantage of what I would have expected to be a relatively empty southern part of the park.

Doing a south to north traverse of Quetico will still be awesome, but might not have been the trip I would have picked if I knew CBSA was going to get a new remote border crossing system in place early...

We talked to our outfitter and also sent an email to Canpass. The outfitters take was that while the phone system will be up in June, you would still need a RABC. The outfitter assumed that the complete new system will be in place by September, replacing the RABC.

A different take from what I gleamed from the announcement but clarification on this point will be critical. One would think that they would have to have some sort of approval system on-line prior to activating the phone system. I could see that the phone could be used for check-in but not for approval. What would happen if a party of 4 has the tow to PP and three are approved by phone but one is turned back? The three could not finish the trip if they were configured in 2 canoes and the unapproved camper would have a long swim back to a lodge!

I am anxious to get clarification on when someone without a RABC can enter.

OklahomaPaddler01: "We talked to our outfitter and also sent an email to Canpass. The outfitters take was that while the phone system will be up in June, you would still need a RABC. The outfitter assumed that the complete new system will be in place by September, replacing the RABC.


A different take from what I gleamed from the announcement but clarification on this point will be critical. One would think that they would have to have some sort of approval system on-line prior to activating the phone system. I could see that the phone could be used for check-in but not for approval. What would happen if a party of 4 has the tow to PP and three are approved by phone but one is turned back? The three could not finish the trip if they were configured in 2 canoes and the unapproved camper would have a long swim back to a lodge!


I am anxious to get clarification on when someone without a RABC can enter."

That makes sense... It will be interesting to see what clarification is ultimately provided.

I’m going in today at PP. We stopped at Piragis yesterday and talked with Adam and Drew. They said they called Atikokan and the folks there had no info about this. Williams & Hall found out when I told them yesterday afternoon. We’re coming out on the 9th and plan to stop by the Ranger station and see what we can find out. I hope to be making a u-turn on the July trip entry point.

Maybe cburton will have some intel posted by that point? :)

Here is the email we received from CBSA. Sounds like you cannot enter remotely without a RABC until September 2026 (5th paragraph). The last paragraph does discuss the phone sites becoming available but does appear to contradict the clear statement in the 5th paragraph that a valid RABC is needed until Sept 2026

Text of email
The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) “Contact Us” is available for the public to ask general questions about the programs and services offered by the CBSA. For privacy and security reasons, the CBSA does not answer e-mails regarding personal or business customs cases, immigration-related situations, or third party requests. Information is provided in a general context only.

On September 25, 2024 the CBSA temporarily paused application processing for the Remote Area Border Crossing (RABC) program. On December 19, 2025 the CBSA has announced that the RABC program is being replaced with telephone reporting effective September 14, 2026. Applications are no longer being accepted.

New RABC applications received during the program application suspension period, September 25, 2024 to December 19, 2025, will not be processed.

In response to the suspension, the CBSA has extended the validity of all permits issued on or after September 1, 2023. Existing RABC permits remain valid until 11:59 p.m. on September 13, 2026.

If you do not have an existing valid RABC permit when traveling to Canada prior to September 14, 2026, you must enter at a port of entry. A directory of CBSA’s highway/land border port of entry with the current hours can be found on the CBSA website.

Existing permit holders can submit a request to have their permit re-issued during the permit extension period. To do so, they can contact the CBSA by email only at CBSA.RABCApplications-ApplicationsPRFE.ASFC@cbsa-asfc.gc.ca to request a copy of their permit.

After this date, all travelers entering Canada through remote areas of northern Ontario or from the Northwest Angle into southern Manitoba must report to the CBSA in person at a port of entry or a designated telephone reporting site.

Additional telephone reporting sites will be designated to facilitate reporting and traveler processing at the Canada?United States border in areas formerly covered by the RABC permit program. These will be available as soon as they are designated.

For more details on the program, please consult the CBSA RABC webpage.

Sunburn: "

timatkn: "I wonder if there will be a rush on permits for PP now? They are pretty wide open for the Q right now.


Of course, I just booked a super expensive tow with Anderson's and paid a big down payment. :)


T"

This is good news of course, but similar to timatkn, I made some relatively spendy reservations (float plane trip to King's Point) solely to take advantage of what I would have expected to be a relatively empty southern part of the park.


Doing a south to north traverse of Quetico will still be awesome, but might not have been the trip I would have picked if I knew CBSA was going to get a new remote border crossing system in place early..."

Ditto! But no regrets. Being from Canada, I always enter from the north and my trips are not long enough to make it below the halfway point of the park. So the prospect of light activity is what also incentivized us to do the Kings Point plane trip. Did a similar trip in 2001 to LLC but it's not the same. Just paddled the Maligne to Sturgeon. Not really the deep south. This year it will all be virgin territory untill we reach Chatterton Lake. Looking forward to Agnes and particularly Kawnipi.

Likewise, I'm sure many typically southern entry campers who ventured to Atikokan to begin their trips are retrospectively thankful they were induced to travel the delightful northern areas of the park for the first time.

On the upside, the phone system should restore the balance between north and south where there was an unwelcome uptick in volume on the north end.

portagedog09: "I’m going in today at PP. We stopped at Piragis yesterday and talked with Adam and Drew. They said they called Atikokan and the folks there had no info about this. Williams & Hall found out when I told them yesterday afternoon. We’re coming out on the 9th and plan to stop by the Ranger station and see what we can find out. I hope to be making a u-turn on the July trip entry point.

Maybe cburton will have some intel posted by that point? :)"

I hope you’re enjoying your trip already!

I’ll do my best to come back with some helpful information. In my experience, rangers at Prairie Portage have been hit or miss at providing extra information, but I’ll try my best!

Following this thread closely. My wife and I were planning on a southern entry this year with our old RABC. Will be very interesting to see how this plays out. Either way, great news for the future. But was looking forward to a quiet July visit haha.

Well, at least the email response Oklahoma posted is mostly, sort of, for the most part, generally muddy…

I have a Quetico PP Cache Bay entry permit for June 20th, and a tow up from the end of the Gunflint trail. I have no RABC permit, and have been waiting with baited breath and crossed fingers for news of the telephone reporting system going live before June 20th. My Outfitter seems to think this week's announcement means I'm good to go.

Looking for confirmation; anyone hear that the telephone reporting station means "paragraph 5" of Oklahoma's email is not relevant after June 8th?

I'll post any new news I get from my outfitter.

Thanks.

P.S. When does the Ranger station at Cache Bay open in the morning, typically?

mschwan: "I have a Quetico PP Cache Bay entry permit for June 20th, and a tow up from the end of the Gunflint trail. I have no RABC permit, and have been waiting with baited breath and crossed fingers for news of the telephone reporting system going live before June 20th. My Outfitter seems to think this week's announcement means I'm good to go.

Looking for confirmation; anyone hear that the telephone reporting station means "paragraph 5" of Oklahoa's email is not relevant after June 8th?
I'll post any new news Im get from my outfitter.

Thanks.

P.S. When does the Ranger station at Cache Bay open in the morning, typically?"

Cache Bay opens at 8:00 am. I'm passing through Prairie Portage at 8:00 am on Friday and I'll exit June 5th. I'll ask around about the telephone reporting system and report back on this thread.

Thanks, cburton103.

I haven’t heard anything more, as of yet.

A little more info on the new system

I'd take it with a grain of salt...but sounds like they may have a framework.

This part is intriguing:
"Canadian officials are still considering other telephone reporting sites and will announce them when they update the entire system later this year. They told us they continue to work with “local businesses and property owners, as well as Indigenous, municipal, provincial, and federal government entities, to identify and designate additional reporting sites.” Some site owners have shown interest in being included, and officials have begun the process to set this up."

Edit to add...will be interesting to see how well the underlying technology supports this. I use wifi calling every day, and have frequent dropped calls. That's with terrestrial fiber optic based internet. These sites will be wifi off of a satellite connection...just seems like a lot of potential for numerous dropped calls. Hope they are not planning on these calls being video calls.

I imagine everyone has seen this link with info on the phone reporting system at PP.

https://queticosuperior.org/paddlers-will-use-wi-fi-at-prairie-portage-and-cache-bay-to-telephone-their-entry-into-quetico/

I still wonder if there is a pre-approval step which hasn't been described yet. This link says that the individual will either be approved within 5 minutes on the phone or it will determined that more information is necessary. That raises the question as to what happens if the individual is not approved. Also, what additional information could a paddler provide if they were at PP with just their phone. It would still seem more logical that you were approved via some sort of on-line system and then report in at PP. I have never taken a cell phone into Quetico so I guess I need to rethink that choice.

I look forward to hearing the reports from those that have been through PP recently and had a chance to visit with the rangers.

I was under the impression that dedicated phones direct to CBSA would be installed at the point of entry. No inside scoop here though.

sns: " A little more info on the new system


I'd take it with a grain of salt...but sounds like they may have a framework.


This part is intriguing:
"Canadian officials are still considering other telephone reporting sites and will announce them when they update the entire system later this year. They told us they continue to work with “local businesses and property owners, as well as Indigenous, municipal, provincial, and federal government entities, to identify and designate additional reporting sites.” Some site owners have shown interest in being included, and officials have begun the process to set this up."

Edit to add...will be interesting to see how well the underlying technology supports this. I use wifi calling every day, and have frequent dropped calls. That's with terrestrial fiber optic based internet. These sites will be wifi off of a satellite connection...just seems like a lot of potential for numerous dropped calls. Hope they are not planning on these calls being video calls."

I feel like this is the first bit of positive news in a long time, so I’ll take it! Anxiously awaiting some specifics on how to phone in for a trip to the non-quetico side of Canadian sag when traveling via motorboat. Can’t access cache bay with a motorboat. Was hoping for something near government island at either Chippewa or Sagonto. I have an overnight motor permit for Sept 25 entry. Will be camping in the bwca and don’t need to clear customs just to fish the Canadian side, but would really like to be able to stop at chip for some bait and as of now would not be able to do that since my RABC will be invalid by that time.

Just got out of Quetico yesterday afternoon. I spoke to the Rangers (mainly Jason) at Prairie Portage when I entered on Friday, May 29th. At that point, he had heard nothing about how the new system replacing the RABC was supposed to work - he was about as confused as the rest of us, as he hadn’t been given any information beyond what we’ve all seen online.

Additionally, the internet has not been functional at PP since the fall when lightning struck the area and fried some of the electronics. It sounded like he expected that to be fixed this week while we were out on our trip.

I didn’t have time to check back in with him after our trip since we arrived just as our tow back to Moose Lake arrived. We did have the pleasure of watching a float plane prepare to land in Inlet Bay, presumably to restock the rangers or fix something.

Managing expectations with respect to government inertia.

CBSA is a federal department run out of Ottawa. Quetico is a provincial park run out of Toronto. Prairie Portage is a ranger outpost in the middle of nowhere. Expecting or anticipating a well-oiled functioning, integrated and coordinated set of gears in this machine is a fool's errand in my opinion.

The new system will be implemented when it's implemented and not a moment sooner. Attribute everything you hear until then as a tease. Depend on nothing. Eventually we'll all be pleasantly surprised. But until then, expect little.

As the concierge would announce over the PA in my office building after an investigated fire alarm in his thick Indian accent, "The alarm has been investigated and determined to be false; you may return to your duties."

I definitely agree. I just wanted to provide (previously) current information for those anxious about the system getting going. Doesn’t seem close despite the June 8th date circulating online.

Brings up an excellent point - system success at the moment of entry is dependent upon reliable power and communications.

What is the alternative if satellite or power is down the day you enter?

That article was only click bait until we hear from Canada.

"As of today (June 8th, 2026), Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) has advised that travellers entering Canada through a designated remote Quetico Provincial Park location (Prairie Portage and Cache Bay Ranger Stations) may be able to report their arrival by telephone instead of reporting in person at a port of entry.
Summer operating hours for Quetico’s designated remote locations are:
- Prairie Portage Ranger Station: 7:45 am-12:00 pm & 1:00 pm-4:15 pm. Entry station closes: September 20, 2026.
- Cache Bay Ranger Station: 8:00 am-12:00 pm & 1:00-4:30 pm. Entry station closes: September 13, 2026."

From the park's FB page.

As I read it the operative word is "may"...would prefer that to say "will".

That may suggests that Canada now grants permission... 'to report their arrival'. How perfectly gracious and generous.

i see this, not sure which site you read "may", this states are now open.

Attention Northwest Ontario paddlers ??: Two new ?? telephone reporting sites are now open at Quetico Provincial Park. Find location details in the CBSA Directory:
Cache Bay Ranger Station: https://do-rb.cbsa-asfc.cloud-nuage.canada.ca/?lang=en_CA...
Prairie Portage Ranger Station: https://do-rb.cbsa-asfc.cloud-nuage.canada.ca/?lang=en_CA...
Before you arrive, know your reporting requirements when entering Canada by boat: https://www.canada.ca/.../the-cbsa-reminds-private... See less


https://www.facebook.com/CanBorder/

Looks like one of the drawbacks to telephone reporting at Prairie Portage will be that it’s limited in terms of season. Only open until the second weekend in September, which seems like it will preclude fall trips into Quetico.

EmmaMorgan: "Looks like one of the drawbacks to telephone reporting at Prairie Portage will be that it’s limited in terms of season. Only open until the second weekend in September, which seems like it will preclude fall trips into Quetico. "

Very good point. Winter trips are also out, and this year Prairie and Cache both had a delayed opening of May 25.

Also: this will not be good news for those from the US who own a cabin or stay at a lodge in Canada on the east side of Saganaga. They would have to visit Cache Bay, and unless the rules are changed, those people would have to park the motorboat & paddle over 5 miles round-trip from Hook Island to the Ranger station to check in. Seems very unlikely that many would do so.

Edit to add: Emma's screenshot indicates that the ranger stations will open on the "May long weekend": that's Victoria Day. This year that was Monday May 18. But next year it will be May 24. And that's an issue because in 2027 that holiday weekend is a week behind the Ontario Fishing Opener.

The phone might be outside by the self-permitting box current location, the hours might just be for the ranger station, a person on the other end would likely still be working year round, just my guess. I dont think i really understand what a phone is in this case thou, is it a physical phone provided at the ranger station using the wifi from the ranger station to make an internet call? or are we using our mobile phone in a similar fashion. TBD i guess, someone must be heading to PP or Cache bay soon. There is a falls chain permit out for today, maybe its a forum member.

Sounds like a phone (theirs, not your cell) inside the Ranger Stations...for now, at least.

Just got off the water today and stopped by the PP ranger station. Briefly, the phone reporting system is operational. Per the rangers, two groups have used it successfully to enter Canada yesterday, a group of seven that took about fifteen minutes and a group of two that took five minutes. One caveat was the larger group needed to run back across the portage to get a canoe registration number.

The setup is a dedicated small table inside by the large window with three laminated pages of instructions and information plus a mobile device that will automatically call the Telephone Reporting Center when accessed. It’s connected to the Ranger Station Wi-Fi. Seems to be working!

I’ve already made my u-turn and changed my reservation to Carp for July!

Interesting, no idea why they would ask for canoe registration number, seems like something new.

campnfish: "Interesting, no idea why they would ask for canoe registration number, seems like something new."

Agree, though the US CBP ROAM app had always asked for the HIN...

Edit to add: Sounds like as theorized, this system is using the satellite internet at PP and CB.
This means that unless they now have some backup power system, it will be dependent on the hydro power at Prairie (I've been there when they had no power in the past) and generator power at Cache Bay...if they are without power, the system may go down.
And of course, we've all seen internet outages. Don't know if they use starlink or another provider, but regardless, there are a couple of potential failure points with this system.
Way better than nothing however!

Does anyone know how the registration number requirement would work for canoes from states (like Oklahoma) that do not register canoes? Would the serial number be acceptable?

Excuse the post, I have now learned that canoes have a Hull Information Number. I never knew that, I'll have to find that number on my canoes. I assume that is the number that has to be reported.

portagedog09: "Just got off the water today and stopped by the PP ranger station. Briefly, the phone reporting system is operational. Per the rangers, two groups have used it successfully to enter Canada yesterday, a group of seven that took about fifteen minutes and a group of two that took five minutes. One caveat was the larger group needed to run back across the portage to get a canoe registration number.

The setup is a dedicated small table inside by the large window with three laminated pages of instructions and information plus a mobile device that will automatically call the Telephone Reporting Center when accessed. It’s connected to the Ranger Station Wi-Fi. Seems to be working!

I’ve already made my u-turn and changed my reservation to Carp for July!"

How was the trip? It looked like you did some clearing on the Agnes to Dack portage by the time we came through on May 31 - much appreciated!

Hey cburton - you're welcome on the portage clearing. Being early in the season, it certainly wasn't the last time we broke the saw out! We had an excellent trip! The weather was great, fishing was decent if a bit slow and for the first week or so - NO BUGS! That was great on the bushwhack parts! We caught more lake trout than any other species - even pike - which was a first! We made it through all of the bushwhack goals with the exception of District where we came up a little bit short. We made it about 3/4 the way there without gear or boat and it was getting late in the afternoon, so we called it. Neither of us was disappointed - we'd already accomplished so much!

sns - We has a successful transit from Dack through to Turn Lake. I have some details for you, once I get reset and organized. I think it's a challenge you'd enjoy, should you choose to take it on.

campnfish: "Interesting, no idea why they would ask for canoe registration number, seems like something new."

So, you really need to read the CBSA "Memorandum D2-5-12: Telephone Reporting for General Aviation, Private Boats, and other Non-Commercial Passenger Conveyances " to make sense of the registration number requirement. Seach that or a link is listed in one of the other threads on this topic. That document is the basis for the new (to Quetico) process replacing the RABC. It was really designed for major waterways, like Lake Superior and NOT back country entry. I imagine it will be tweaked and massaged as they work out the process over the next year as it gets applied to the Q and what works/does not and what makes sense/does not - I hope.

The 'vessel' make/model/registration number is part of the required reporting information. In cases where there is no canoe registration, they will want the HIN - Hull Identification Number, as noted by OKPaddler. All the information is to be reported by the 'boatmaster' from the TRS site while the rest of the passengers remain on board 'the vessel' until cleared. Not gonna be very applicable with canoes.

Yes - WAY better than what we've been getting the past couple of years! As noted in the CBSA info that was put out - they will continue to develop the process and locations where you can report from and how.

portagedog09: "

campnfish: "Interesting, no idea why they would ask for canoe registration number, seems like something new."

So, you really need to read the CBSA "Memorandum D2-5-12:

The 'vessel' make/model/registration number is part of the required reporting information. In cases where there is no canoe registration, they will want the HIN - Hull Identification Number, as noted by OKPaddler. "

There is no requirement for a HIN, only a registration number. Customs asking for anything else are not following their requirement language.

>vessel license or registration number and name (if applicable)

Tom

I appreciate all the info in this thread. I am not clear what a HIN or a registration number is. My canoe has only a serial number. I live in Wisconsin where I am not required to register my canoe.

Can anyone say for sure if the serial number is what they accept? Or am I going to need to start registering my canoe with my state?

Or, it's early... and we'll figure this out in time. I am just a little surprised it's coming online with what looks like so many questions and gaps compared to the old system.

portagedog09: "Hey cburton - you're welcome on the portage clearing. Being early in the season, it certainly wasn't the last time we broke the saw out! We had an excellent trip! The weather was great, fishing was decent if a bit slow and for the first week or so - NO BUGS! That was great on the bushwhack parts! We caught more lake trout than any other species - even pike - which was a first! We made it through all of the bushwhack goals with the exception of District where we came up a little bit short. We made it about 3/4 the way there without gear or boat and it was getting late in the afternoon, so we called it. Neither of us was disappointed - we'd already accomplished so much!


sns - We has a successful transit from Dack through to Turn Lake. I have some details for you, once I get reset and organized. I think it's a challenge you'd enjoy, should you choose to take it on."

Portagedog your trips sound amazing. I volunteer for trail clearing duty if you want some grunt labor along.

HIN is the serial number from the manufacture. Serial numbers have specific rules as to their identification from the Coast Guard.

Registration is what we over here in Minnesota put on the hull as a sticker. Basically the license the state requires of us.

In my case, a homemade canoe, I don’t have a HIN. And if I lived in WI, I would not have a registration either. You won’t be denied entry if you have neither on a homemade boat.
Tom

apk: "Portagedog your trips sound amazing. I volunteer for trail clearing duty if you want some grunt labor along."

I'll keep that in mind for future planning apk!

portagedog09: "Hey cburton - you're welcome on the portage clearing. Being early in the season, it certainly wasn't the last time we broke the saw out! We had an excellent trip! The weather was great, fishing was decent if a bit slow and for the first week or so - NO BUGS! That was great on the bushwhack parts! We caught more lake trout than any other species - even pike - which was a first! We made it through all of the bushwhack goals with the exception of District where we came up a little bit short. We made it about 3/4 the way there without gear or boat and it was getting late in the afternoon, so we called it. Neither of us was disappointed - we'd already accomplished so much! "

Glad you enjoyed the trip and that you accomplished the vast majority of what you intended to!

Lake trout definitely came easiest for us on Agnes over other species as well. Walleye were tough to find on Agnes, but easier to find on Murdoch, Bird and Woodside.

It was pretty great to have a lower bug trip as well. I’m guessing that was partially due to the freeze on May 21 or so (can’t remember the exact date). We had a freeze on Mack Lake May 30 or so of our 2019 trip, and we didn’t see a mosquito until our last evening seven days later.

tumblehome: "

portagedog09: "

campnfish: "Interesting, no idea why they would ask for canoe registration number, seems like something new."

So, you really need to read the CBSA "Memorandum D2-5-12:

The 'vessel' make/model/registration number is part of the required reporting information. In cases where there is no canoe registration, they will want the HIN - Hull Identification Number, as noted by OKPaddler. "

There is no requirement for a HIN, only a registration number. Customs asking for anything else are not following their requirement language.

>vessel license or registration number and name (if applicable)

Tom"

To Tom's point - no requirement (currently stated) for a HIN. Following my own words - 'you really need to read the CBSA "Memorandum"'. I did not mean to mislead anyone and stand corrected. Here's the link - https://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/publications/dm-md/d2/d2-5-12-eng.pdf to that document. Everyone is responsible for verifying the information and providing the correct stuff to CBSA - just trying to help.

From the section - Telephone Reporting for Private Boats (Pleasure Craft):
42. The boat operator/master must provide the following information on behalf of all persons on board:
(a) vessel license or registration number and name (if applicable)
(b) name of the CBSA designated telephone reporting site
(c) full name, date of birth, citizenship, travel document, travel document number, and residency of all persons on board
(d) destination, purpose of trip, and length of stay in Canada for each passenger who is a non-resident of Canada
(e) length of absence for each passenger who is a returning resident of Canada
(f) goods being imported by all persons on board, including food, plants, animals and related products, firearms, firearm parts, ammunition, and weapons
(g) all currency and/or monetary instruments totalling CAN$10,000 or more
(h) all repairs or modifications made to goods (including the boat) while outside Canada (for returning residents of Canada only) and
(i) all cannabis or products containing cannabis being brought into Canada, whether imported by the traveller or remaining on the boat.

Here are the three documents as posted in the Ranger Station. Hope this helps.

I just got off the phone w/ my contact on the non-quetico Canadian side of Saganaga. If bringing a guest w/o RABC, their only way to access their homes right now when coming from the US is to cross the border at a land-based customs station and then come in from Northern Lights. Still such a mess for them up there. However, he did express some positivity that a solution was in the works. The Gunflint Trail organization recently had a meeting w/ the RCMP and they are very understanding of their situation. They are developing a couple different proposals for phone-in locations and the RCMP liaison is taking it straight to the office of a friendly MP in Ottawa. He did mention that the Canadian government had sold their portion of Government island, so that is unlikely to be the solution. I'll post here if/when I have any more concrete information to share.

I’ll add — my contact also said the RCMP confirmed the legality of fishing the Canadian side of border lakes via the “loop movement” rule. No customs reporting or RABC required as long as you don’t touch land, anchor, or come in contact with another vessel.

Two of our three have RABC permits and one doesn’t. We devised a way to purchase and use live bait on the Canadian side. Drop kiddo off on a nearby island just over the border; motor to the resort on the Canadian side and and buy bait. Place bait in a small, sealed bait cooler, attach to a marker buoy and leave it floating in Canadian water. Go back to island and retrieve the kid. Go back to Canadian side and retrieve bait. Catch walleyes on slip floats on Canadian side. Only buy what you can use in one day since bait can’t cross the border. We are technically then required to report our arrival back in the US each day via CBP Roam. Hilarious. The things we do watch a bobber go down!

Gopher... using live bait "on the Canadian side".... if you're in Quetico, that isn't allowed.

Jackfish: "Gopher... using live bait "on the Canadian side".... if you're in Quetico, that isn't allowed."

Nor can one be in Quetico without a permit. One needs a day use permit to do what Gopher… describes regardless of the CBSA rules associated with border lakes.

Correct, sorry for the confusion. With my references to resorts and motors I thought it was clear I was referring to the eastern side of Sag outside of quetico. I realize this is the quetico sub-forum so I should have made that more clear. This thread is the most robust source of info on the Canadian border crossing saga so I figured it was the most appropriate place to add this info.

Not all of the border lakes accessible by boat in Canada is Quetico. Maybe he’s referring to non-Q areas - defeating the purpose of the “Quetico” forum, but nonetheless…

Have people been able to use the phone check in at Prairie or elsewhere without any issues? I am headed up several times in the next two months, two of the trips with people without valid RABCs

Too fast on the keyboard

Paddle and Portage had a good discussion and talked about how the new phone-in system worked for them when they entered Quetico with it.

First hand experience using the new system for Cache Bay_

The three main things they mention is to have your passport (will need to give passport number), your canoe hull/registration number, and have a pen/pencil to write down your Customs confirmation number.

T

Thanks for the link. They discuss the requirement of a passport, but I assume an enhanced driver’s license would be sufficient ID as well?

ArrowheadPaddler: "Thanks for the link. They discuss the requirement of a passport, but I assume an enhanced driver’s license would be sufficient ID as well?"

On the Candian Website an enhanced Drivers license is listed as meeting the requirment. I have never tried it. I have one, but I've always had a passport and passport card as well. So no personal expereince...

T

July 7 wasn't the day to start reading this thread from the beginning. It worried me when I was reading from the beginning, knowing that I have a permit for PP in a couple weeks. Whew, they got it all sorted out. I guess we are supposed to report to a US Customs after our arrival back...they used to have a setup at the Forest Service office in Ely. Is this still the case? Most folks I know weren't always the best about checking back IN after every trip to Ontario with a RABC.

joewildlife: "July 7 wasn't the day to start reading this thread from the beginning. It worried me when I was reading from the beginning, knowing that I have a permit for PP in a couple weeks. Whew, they got it all sorted out. I guess we are supposed to report to a US Customs after our arrival back...they used to have a setup at the Forest Service office in Ely. Is this still the case? Most folks I know weren't always the best about checking back IN after every trip to Ontario with a RABC.
"

I just got back today. There is a US customs tablet in the Forest Service office in Ely. There isn’t an office with staff anymore. You can use the tablet there but hours are limited to when they are open. I believe some outfitters may also have a tablet.

I find it easier to use the CBP ROAM app on my phone. You can pre-enter all of the information for your group - names, US passport numbers, etc. When you arrive back in Ely, you can use the app to report your arrival. This morning it took just a couple minutes for CBP to approve my arrival.

My first trip on a RABC and returning to US outside of normal hours I had to go to the Duluth Customs/Border Patrol prior to crossing to get fingerprinted and questioned. They took it very seriously and I was scolded for cracking a joke. That paperwork allowed me to phone in the return during off-hours. Glad they have the app now.

I have always been worried about getting into trouble for not reporting back in. I get it - Ontario Parks doesn't really talk to Canadian Border Services much less care if you have(had) a RABC, and if I was a betting man I’m sure Ontario Parks doesn't report Cache Bay/Prairie Portage data to US Customs/ICE, but call me paranoid….

Better to take the 5 minutes and report back in - last time I did it while driving down Hwy 1.

joewildlife: "July 7 wasn't the day to start reading this thread from the beginning. It worried me when I was reading from the beginning, knowing that I have a permit for PP in a couple weeks. Whew, they got it all sorted out. I guess we are supposed to report to a US Customs after our arrival back...they used to have a setup at the Forest Service office in Ely. Is this still the case? Most folks I know weren't always the best about checking back IN after every trip to Ontario with a RABC.
"

Piragis has one of the tablets in the back corner inside of their boat house, or at least they did in January and probably still do.

Thank you for responding and suggesting the ROAM app, I got it up and running.
Entering from the S side for the first time in several years. Excited about it and glad all the border crossing stuff is figured out...except what do you do in the off season? Hopefully off season entry via PP isn't effectively banned after everybody's RABC expires....