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Bryan Wallis lives less than an hour away from a BC Ferries terminal, but when he needs to get his 33-foot RV from Vancouver Island to the B.C. interior, he staunchly refuses to use it.

Instead, the 64-year-old makes it a point of driving two hours south to Sidney, B.C., where he can catch a once-daily car ferry to Washington State — and from there swing back into Canadian territory.

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It’s a roundabout journey, to be sure: In addition to two border crossings, the route can add an extra 200 km to the trip. The traffic is lighter and the fuel is cheaper in the U.S., but above all, by eschewing BC Ferries for its American equivalent, the sea journey only costs $387.52, versus the $592.90 charged in B.C.

“Lay it out on a table in $20 bills, and then ask yourself; ‘this is what I’m throwing away,’” said Mr. Wallis, describing his unique method for making financial decisions. “You’ll go ‘holy crap,’ that’s a lot of money.’”