Tour of Duty 27th May 2015 to 27th June 2015
Part II: 1st June to 10th June

Monday I caught a taxi after a long wait to Cornwall, Ontario and I caught a train for Montreal.

Via Rail #62 Cornwall, ON to Montreal, QC
Scheduled Departure 13h10, actual 13h14
Scheduled arrival 14h23, actual 14h31

The train took me to downtown Montreal. En route an attendant came through with a service cart offering snacks and drinks for sale. There was no checking baggage at Cornwall so I had to lug my gear onto the train and off again at Montreal. Then I hired a taxi to the shipper to get the truck.

Trip: Anjou, QC (Montreal) to Baltimore, MD 556 paid miles
Make: 2010 International
Model: Vacuum Truck
Transmission: Standard straight 10-speed
Route: Quebec 40 to Quebec 25 to Quebec 20 to Quebec 15 to Interstate 87 to Interstate 287 to New Jersey 17 to Interstate 95 to Interstate 295 back to Interstate 95
Maximum elevation: unknown
Highest diesel USA: $3.099/gallon at Gulf Round Lake, NY
Lowest diesel USA: $2.959/gallon at Pilot Mahwah, NJ
Border Crossing: Lacolle, QC/Champlain, NY

I got the truck and got rolling. There was traffic in the Montreal area. I stopped at a truckstop in Napierville, QC where I waited for a fax which never came. There was an issue with electronic cleareance for the truck to enter the USA due to a cock-up either by the shipper or the broker. I had evening rations in Napierville then I got word to proceed to Lacolle, QC and get a room there so I did and spent the night in Lacolle, QC.

Tuesday I waited until well into the afternoon before getting clearance to enter the USA. There was fog, mist and drizzle but no worse than light rain. After a queue I finally entered the USA but was directed inside. I was surprised I was not charged the usual re-entry fee but the agent did some computer work then I was cleared to proceed. I stopped to eat at truckstop in Champlain, NY then had evening rations at another truckstop in Round Lake, NY. I spent the night in Plattsburgh, NY.

Wednesday I continued into New Jersey, Delaware and finally Maryland. Due to a mechanical issue I discovered on the New Jersey Turnpike regarding an arm I had to stop more frequently than usual for safety checks. I did not make it to the port before the cutoff that day so I got a room and spent the night in Baltimore, MD.

Thursday there was a little rain shower in Baltimore as I made ready to head to the port. I entered the port, stopped at US Customs to get the bond cancelled then went to where I had to go to drop the truck. I checked in and was told where to park. The checker soon came and I moved the truck to where I was directed and the dock receipt was signed and I was taken to the gate where I waited for taxi. Taxi came after long wait and I headed to BWI. Upon arrival at BWI the company booked me on a flight to CLT.

I checked in and checked my bags which weighed 48.0 and 41.5lbs. I opted out and was patted down but there was no additional screening of my carry-ons.

Southwest #147 BWI-CLT B-737-300 Boarding Pass A7
Seat 5F Cruising altitude 36,000 feet Estimated flying time 1:01, actual 0:57
Depart: Gate A9 Scheduled 17h40, actual 20h03 Taxi/hold: 25 minutes
Arrive: Gate A6 Scheduled 19h00, actual 21h32 Taxi: 6 minutes
Reclaim checked bags 21-24 minutes after arrival

The plane was late coming from MCI. I walked over to Concourse C and got a couple of sandwiches at Potbelly's. Then I walked back to my original gate, A3 to eat then found out there was a gate change so I walked to A9.

We boarded via jetway and it was raining outside. It was announced it was 62F and light rain at CLT. The plane was full. Pushback was 2h23min late followed by takeoff. We were into the clouds within 36 seconds. Seatbelt sign went off at 0:23. I got pretzels at 0:25 and a can of soda at 0:28. I felt descent begin at 0:31. Seatbelt sign went on and descent was announced at 0:37 and I started seeing breaks in the clouds. we landed and arrived at gate 2h32min late and we deplaned via jetway. I got my bags and phoned some hotels and spent night in Charlotte, NC.

Friday afternoon I headed to the shipper. I got the truck and it took some time to figure some things out as this was a street sweeper with dual controls and I had to open the back to store my big bags.

Trip: Charlotte, NC to Rigurd, QC 959 paid miles
Make: 2016 Freightliner
Model: Street Sweeper
Transmission: Automatic
Route: Interstate 85 to Interstate 77 to Interstate 81 to Interstate 78 to Interstate 287 to Interstate 87 to Quebec 15 to Quebec 30 to Quebec 40
Maximum elevation: unknown but parts of Interstate 77 and Interstate 81 in southwest Virginia were well over 2,000 feet
Highest diesel USA: $3.399/gallon at Pilot Newburgh, NY
Lowest diesel USA: $2.799/gallon at Pilot Raphine, VA
Diesel price Canada: $1.299CAD/litre at Flying J Napierville, QC
Border Crossing: Champlain, NY/Lacolle, QC

It was a bit warm and muggy in Charlotte when I got started. I stopped at a nearby Bojangles to eat and ended up meeting the person I talked to on the phone to get assistance on how to open and close the back of the truck. After I finished eating I proceeded. I went into downtown Charlotte to look around and take pictures as the street sweeper was smaller and I could go some places I wouldn't think of going in some of the trucks I drive. I saw Tryon Street was closed due to some sort of event but I found a side street to park and took some pictures of Charlotte before getting back on the Interstate. Traffic moved well at first but came to a screeching halt in Mooresville due to an accident and lane blockage. I saw a nice sunset over a lake while delayed and finally made it past the wreck and traffic moved well again. The weigh scale was opened in Mt. Airy but I got the bypass lane and proceeded into Virginia. I shut down and spent night in Dublin, VA.

Thursday I continued north on Interstate 81 through Virginia, West Virginia and Maryland. There was a brief but heavy rain shower near Natural Bridge, VA. I stopped to take on fuel then eat in Raphine, VA. I had evening rations at Sheetz in Martinsburg, WV. I ended up spending the night in Chambersburg, PA.

Sunday morning I got up too late to attend church but was able to make it to Sunday School at Orthodox Presbyterian Church which met at the hotel I was at in Chambersburg, PA. This church had church then Sunday School, the reverse of what I usually see. The topic was baptism and though I disagree with infant baptism I was glad to hear some of the reasons why this church believes in infant baptism. Then I proceeded and took on fuel in Myerstown, PA before continuing to Catasaqua, PA where I attended evening service of Free Presbyterian Church of the Lehigh Valley. After that I continued into New Jersey and ended up spending the night in Suffern, NY.

Monday I was awakened by thunder and went back to sleep but it was clearing up by the time I was ready to start my run up the New York Thruway. I got into more rain around Albany, NY and it was mostly rain up to Plattsburgh, NY. I had some difficulty getting a room but spent the night in Plattsburgh, NY.

Tuesday I got a call from dispatch telling me not to cross the border as some paperwork was not in order. I replied I would be asking to be paid downtime. I did relocate to another hotel and did laundry and ate at Friendly's. There was rain at times and I spent the night in Plattsburgh, NY.

Wednesday I got the word to cross the border and had to stop at US Customs to get the title. There was a queue to enter Canada then I had to see the broker before getting cleared by Customs. Once clear I proceeded up Quebec 15 to Quebec 30 where I paid a small toll when crossing the St-Lawrence River. Then I took Quebec 40 west and Rigurd was just a few kilometres from the Ontario border. I delivered the truck and got a taxi to YUL. Upon arriving at YUL I contacted dispatch and was told to get a room as the flight was the following morning. It started raining as I arrived at hotel and I ordered a pizza to be delivered for evening rations. There was a thunderstorm outside as I spent the night in Ville St-Laurent, QC (Montreal).