Amid the howling winds of the Sweet Grass Hills lies Border Road, an 8.5-mile ribbon of manicured gravel stretching between the United States and Canada.
The shared road is on the Montana side, but Alberta maintains it. North of the road lives Ross Ford. On the south, it’s Roger Horgus.
Both are in their 60s but remember childhood days bounding back and forth across the invisible demarcation line to play.
It was a generational thing. In 1990, National Geographic magazine profiled the two families as exemplars of amity along the world’s longest undefended border.
No more.
In the age of President Donald Trump, with American concerns of cross-border drug traffickers and illegal newcomers, the road is set to be closed to Canadians starting this summer.
When that happens, the only member of Ford’s family free to cross the road will be his black-and-white border collie, Geordie.
“It’s unfortunate,” Ford, 64, said in an interview on his farm just east of Coutts, Alta. “We’ve enjoyed free access to the road for I guess about 80 years, way before I was born.
“We’ve always been very close to our neighbors.
“Of course, they live in Montana and that won’t change — but we have this new barrier.”
Horgus, 68, sits drinking coffee at the kitchen table on his farm near Sweet Grass, Mont., and nods in the direction of his nearby neighbor, whom he has known for, well, forever.
“When we grew up, I wouldn’t be surprised if some weeks every day we’d run across and play. Ride bicycles, ride horses, go-karts,” Horgus said.
“(The road closure is) ridiculous. I hate to see it because the Canadians have taken such good care of us and the road, with grading and all of that.”
Horgus said U.S. border patrol officials have told residents there has been an increase in illegal traffic, but he’s seen no evidence.
A silver marker on a hill overlooking Ford’s farm indicates the exact location of the border. Recognizing the Treaty of 1908, it reads Canada on the north side of the marker and the United States on the south.
On a recent spring day, two U.S. border patrol officers pulled over in their vehicles on Border Road to have a chat.
Ford said patrols are usual. But in times past, U.S. officers would wave people through if a driver was heading across to chat with a neighbour.
Soon, the one road now will be two.
Ford said a virtually identical parallel gravel road will be laid down not far away, on the Canadian side.
“The roads will basically parallel each other for the full length of the road. So we’ll have our road, and they’ll have their road.
“And the border will be in the ditch,” he said with a laugh.
“We were informed by Homeland Security that they were making sure that this and other areas of U.S. soil at the border were going to be enforced,” Dreeshen said in an interview.
“We obviously went through the process to make sure we were able to expedite this (road), working with the County of Warner to make sure local access for Albertans (was available) on the Canadian side of the border.”
Dreeshen said $8 million has been allocated. Work is to begin in April and hopefully be completed by summer.
He understands the frustration many area residents may feel, he said.
“Regardless of the line on the map, you’ll have farmers on both sides of the border, you’ll have family friends on both sides of the border.
“I think obviously that will continue.”
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