When ultrarunner Kim Bessler left her truck at the Signal Mountain parking lot on the morning of August 9, she was crossing her fingers for what the majority hikers, runners and backcountry campers hope for before setting off on Jasper’s famous Skyline Trail: good weather, dry trails and a nice breeze to keep the bugs at bay.

Bessler had good reason to be optimistic: the forecast was for clear skies and the recent heat wave had dried up most of the Skyline’s soggy spots.

Unlike most trail users, however, Bessler had another niggling concern in the back of her mind as she scampered along at 2,500 metres-elevation: her truck. More specifically, her Colorado license plate, and what kind of scrutiny—or worse—it would attract.

“I’ve seen these people going through to Alaska and getting ticketed,” Bessler said. “I’ve heard of people’s vehicles getting vandalized.”

Bessler is an American. She’s originally from New York, but spent her formative years in Colorado. Since August 2018, however, she’s been an international student at the University of British Columbia. Canada has become her adopted home. However, because of the prohibitive expense of importing her beloved Toyota 4Runner into the country, she’s still running with her U.S. plates. That was fine, until the COVID pandemic was declared and the border closed. All of a sudden, her Colorado plates were a badge of shame.

“It’s anxiety-inducing when you have someone driving behind you,” she said. “You swear they’re judging you.”

Bessler wasn’t just being paranoid. In Banff, Americans have been ticketed as much as $1,200 for being in Canada for optional or discretionary purposes. Here in Jasper, Sgt. Rick Bidaisee said nine calls for service have been registered to local RCMP regarding the prevalence of U.S. residents being in Jasper National Park. No tickets have been handed out.

“The limited calls for service did not warrant the use of any contravention options,” Bidaisee told The Jasper Local.

Bessler isn’t worried about being approached by a cop. As an international student, her being in Canada is completely legal. She’s more concerned about so-called vigilante justice.

“If you see my vehicle and I’m not with it, by all means, call the cops if it makes you that uncomfortable. Leave a note. But don’t vandalize, don’t go to Facebook and perpetuate fear, anxiety and divisiveness.”

There are several legitimate reasons an American might be in Canada right now. Temporary workers, permanent resident visa holders, accredited officials and international students can all be exempt from current COVID-19 travel restrictions. Bessler, who four years ago visited Jasper National Park while on a road trip from Denver, made it a goal to come back when she had more time to explore, climb, run and hike. So when she got accepted into UBC and began working on her masters thesis—developing a biodegradable plastic—she knew it would only be a matter of time until she would get back to the Rockies. 

But then COVID hit and she was forced to stay put in her North Vancouver basement suite. The lack of contact with people, the constant rain and the longing to get out in the hills had Bessler in a funk. Her dad finally suggested she get back to the Rockies she fell in love with in 2016, but Bessler was nervous about driving through communities and corridors where people were hostile to U.S. “trespassers.”

“I get it, I wouldn’t want Americans coming over the border and running rampant either,” she said.

To mitigate the potential friction with people who she might come into contact with, Bessler called ahead. She phoned the Jasper RCMP to ask what their protocols were when faced with a U.S.-registered vehicle. She also put a query out to locals through the Jasper Trails Facebook page on whether or not she’d find it difficult to visit. The responses she received convinced her to make the trip.

“I’d say 90 per cent of people were sympathetic,” she said.

So she came to Jasper. But before she got onto the Skyline Trail (and the Berg Lake Trail, and the Lake O’Hara circuit, for that matter) she prepared proof of her legal status. She photocopied her student visa, her passport, insurance papers and B.C. apartment’s lease. She wrote out a detailed note, to be left on her dash whenever she was away from her vehicle,  explaining her situation for anyone who was suspicious.

If it seems like overkill, to Bessler, it’s simply covering her bases.

“I don’t like what’s going on in America either,” she shrugged. “But just because you see American plates doesn’t mean the person snuck in.

“We’re all human. This pandemic is affecting us all in one way or another.”

Bob Covey// bob@thejasperlocal.com