Living in a One Tobacco Town, and How I Stay Sane.

[Frog Snacks]

Hey guys Frog here, So I live in a very remote small town in Northern Ontario Canada. The only place in town that sells tobacco is the gas station and they only carry Captain Black gold(Sail Deluxe) which in my opinion is the blandest pipe tobacco on earth. I could live with Captain Black White, I don't mind it at all but they don't/won't stock it for me. So I have come up with a work around that works for me but there has to be a better way for us Canucks to get some flavour into our lives. Now here's what I do.

The gas station always carries some Backwoods Cigars which are pipe tobacco cigars, they carry Whiskey, Rum, and Port. So what I end up doing is buying a pouch of Cap and a pack of Backwoods(I usually get Port) and I tear up the cigars and mix 1 pack of Backwoods into my Captain black gold and toss it into a big jar and shake to mix. The cuts are different but they burn well together without any issues and it adds a significant amount of complimentary flavour to an otherwise extremely bland tobacco, I was actually suprised at first how much it improved my piping experience.

Years ago I was lucky and found a seller on Ebay that would sell "sealed collectable tobacco tins" and during those days I got to try all kinds of stuff from Macbarens, C&D, CAO and many other fine tobacco manufacturers, I came to realize that I really liked english and Balkan tobacco blends, I like that oiley leathery smokey flavour they have, I also fell in love with eileens dream, but then Ebay shut that down and I've been living a very bland life ever since.

Any Canadians around here know of any good online retailers? I found cigarchief and have an order on the way from them but their selection isn't the greatest and the good stuff is around 50$ a tin which is highway robbery in my books.

I'm just a simple man trying to add some flavour into my life, any help would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers
Frog

 

[cosmicfolklore]

What I hear is that you are being held captive in a remote foreign town. You cannot leave because of threats to you and/or people you love. And, they are making you smoke shitty cigar leaf and Captain Black.
Just post three periods if this is correct. And, two comas if you need law enforcement's help quickly.
Just hold tight, someone will get you out of that godforsaken place ASAP.
I'm so sorry this has happened to you, sounds terrible. You have my thoughts and prayers.

 

[Frog Snacks]

... Hahaha,

I would leave but the fishing is way too good.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

... Hahaha,

I would leave but the fishing is way too good.

I bet that there are towns with as good fishing as that place that allows you to have choices in pipe tobaccos. But... sounds like you are embracing the Stockholm syndrome, so...

 

[Egg Shen]

I can’t help you. But my Amazon driver cuts up Black n Milds and puts them in his pipe - they are an American gas station cigar, so you are not alone in this practice. Oddly, he is from Philadelphia so he has choices and this is what he chooses. (I did drop a couple samples of Boswell and Sutliff blends on him, hoping to change his evil ways).

I would just cross the border and get what I need and not declare it. Tell customs you were on a fishing trip.

 

[Frog Snacks]

The fishing here is literally world class, but honestly other then the tobacco situation it's pretty much heaven on earth up here. I'm a trout guy brook trout mostly and I catch to eat not to release and I'm blessed to be able to measure my brookies in Lb's not inches, I'm going out this weekend to start catching great lakes salmon running up the rivers and creeks on a fly I also have a really good job gold mining that would be hard to replace, I work 7 days on 7 days off so I only work half the year. I bought a house with a big garage15 years ago and paid it off in 2 years for under $20 000 in Canadian money so that's like 10 grand in USD. There's a lot of great stuff up here, just the tobacco situation is hell.

Cheers
Frog

 

[Frog Snacks]

@Egg Shen The border is a 7 hour drive away so that's an adventure in itself, I'd have to go fishing just to make it worth while, and I really hate travelling, I would rather drive 12 hours down a dirt road then 1 hour down a highway, asphalt bugs me for some reason, being on it hurts my soul, maybe its the Indian(Feather not Dot) in me.

 

[blackpowderpiper]

The fishing here is literally world class, but honestly other then the tobacco situation it's pretty much heaven on earth up here. I'm a trout guy brook trout mostly and I catch to eat not to release and I'm blessed to be able to measure my brookies in Lb's not inches, I'm going out this weekend to start catching great lakes salmon running up the rivers and creeks on a fly I also have a really good job gold mining that would be hard to replace, I work 7 days on 7 days off so I only work half the year. I bought a house with a big garage15 years ago and paid it off in 2 years for under $20 000 in Canadian money so that's like 10 grand in USD. There's a lot of great stuff up here, just the tobacco situation is hell.

Cheers
Frog

How about in exchange for taking me fishing for a week, I will smuggle you in from the states several pounds of fine pipe tobacco?

 

[Egg Shen]

@Egg Shen The border is a 7 hour drive away so that's an adventure in itself, I'd have to go fishing just to make it worth while, and I really hate travelling, I would rather drive 12 hours down a dirt road then 1 hour down a highway, asphalt bugs me for some reason, being on it hurts my soul, maybe its the Indian(Feather not Dot) in me.

That’s fair enough, we all have our own tolerances, but the fishing in the northwest USA is awesome, assuming you’re in western Canada. To be clear I was suggesting you actually do incorporate a real fishing trip. But I hear you on the 7 hour drive- not exactly convenient. As far as your fear of asphalt- there is not even a word for that phobia- you are new to science my friend

 

[Egg Shen]

How about in exchange for taking me fishing for a week, I will smuggle you in from the states several pounds of fine pipe tobacco?

I’ll second that offer

 

[blackpowderpiper]

What I hear is that you are being held captive in a remote foreign town. You cannot leave because of threats to you and/or people you love. And, they are making you smoke shitty cigar leaf and Captain Black.
Just post three periods if this is correct. And, two comas if you need law enforcement's help quickly.
Just hold tight, someone will get you out of that godforsaken place ASAP.
I'm so sorry this has happened to you, sounds terrible. You have my thoughts and prayers.

That actually elicited a chuckle. ... ,,

 

[Frog Snacks]

I would be down for that, except Native season for brookies just closed last sunday so it would have to be stocked brookies, stockers are put in small lakes and are big but not as much fun as the creeks, but they are big potential for up to 7 or 8 lbs but 3-4lbs on average. Spring is the best time though

 

[mso489]

You have to make friends with people who travel in their jobs, like delivery drivers who bring supplies to your town, or the nearby town. Pilots? Relatives of residents who visit? Meantime, I hope you can connect with online sources that can get you the goods legally.

Maybe you could be a fishing guide on your days off, if any, and ask outsiders to bring you blends.

 

[Frog Snacks]

That's actually some real good advice MSO489, I'll start talking to truckers and the like. Thanks.
Cheers
Frog

 

[cshubhra]

There is a Canadian guy in this forum who sells his excess tobacco every couple of months. Look into the buy sell threads. I think his handle starts with Ben

 

[blackpowderpiper]

There is a Canadian guy in this forum who sells his excess tobacco every couple of months. Look into the buy sell threads. I think his handle starts with Ben

@ben88 I believe.

 

[olkofri]

$50 per tin is the average price of pipe tobacco in Canada.

I sometimes buy bulk from my local tobacconist and it's ~$25 for an ounce.

 

[Frog Snacks]

$50 per tin is the average price of pipe tobacco in Canada.

I sometimes buy bulk from my local tobacconist and it's ~$25 for an ounce.

Really? I was thinking around 40 should be for the good stuff, Captain sells for like 25 here.

 

[olkofri]

Really? I was thinking around 40 should be for the good stuff, Captain sells for like 25 here.

Is that a reservation store?

Nope, the good stuff has always been pricey, and even the so-so stuff (Lane's). It's all the taxes on tobacco that inflates the price.

 

[Frog Snacks]

Is that a reservation store?

Nope, the good stuff has always been pricey, and even the so-so stuff (Lane's). It's all the taxes on tobacco that inflates the price.

Naw man it's an Esso gas station, everything else there is over priced(especially the gas), maybe I found the one good deal in the whole darn store haha. a pack of cheap cigarettes is like 18$, I had to grab a pack for a buddy a few weeks ago, I was dumbfounded, I quit when they breached the 10$ line, when I started on cigarettes they were only 3$