Border Monument in St. Regis Mohawk Reservation, New York

The international border between the US and Canada, generally following the 45^th Parallel here, passes through the territory of a third nation - that of the Akwesasne Mohawk tribe, where the boundary has a reduced significance at the local level. There are several roads that cross the international border on the Reservation, but at no point is this fact acknowledged with signage. Passage over the line is unrestricted, and there are no ports of entry. The community of St. Regis, the most built up part of the Reservation, is on a peninsula, surrounded by water, and connected by land only through the USA. This is one reason why the lax conditions of the international boundary can occur here: all of the St. Regis Mohawk Reservation is separated from continental Canada by the St. Lawrence River. In the community of St. Regis, the international boundary is visible only as the change in pavement. The Boundary Commission installed monuments along the line here a long time ago, though they are not aggressively maintained. Many have been turned into fence posts and lost in the bushes. Others have been removed. East of here the boundary is mostly over land. West from here the boundary line heads out across the water, invisibly splitting a recreational boat dock, then joining the main channel of the St. Lawrence River. The International Boundary, already fading on the reservation, dissolves in the water, becoming a liquid line again, following rivers and lakes for the next 1,300 miles, before striking land again in Minnesota.