canada first time

This was back in 2004. Been going up there steady. Only been to immigration one other time. They found out I had not been through it since 2004 and it was 2010.

 

They are no less picky than the states. Just depends on the agent you're dealing with. No different.

 

Just don't bring your gun and everything will be fine. I go to Canada a lot with no problems. Where are you crossing over? The funny thing is that they say that they have no sense of humor, but heck they crack jokes with me when I am being serious! The last time I was in Canada and leaving, the border patrol agent told me to give him $10.75 which covers the price of their beer lol. I pay using my debit or credit card, don't need cash.

 

I only said that the immigration officer had no sense of humor. I have no real problems with either side. You run into bad ones on both sides, I will say the US is far worse.

 

Yeah I wasn't just commenting on your post. During my CDL school and at orientation they all made it very clear to not try to crack jokes with border patrol. Which I totally understand since it is annoying when at a truck stop and truckers holding up lines to try and tell predictable jokes.

 

I had one port I would comment to the agents, "You know, the usual, grenades, horseshoes and nuclear bombs....."

My cousin about had a heart attack the one time he went through with me.

The back story to that is that I was on border security with the US Army after 9/11. I was crossing a specific POE about 3-5 times a week to go up to Canada fishing. Alot of times it was just a cursory wave through when there was no one with me in the truck. They recognized me.


When I DID get stop and asked, I knew it was because someone visiting from their office was in the interview area.

 

Get all your ducks in a row (paperwork, mostly), know exactly where you're headed, how long you'll be in Canada, and who your broker is; act like a professional and answer every question truthfully. Every time I cross the border I have to remind myself that no matter how close the U.S. and Canada are culturally, politically, and most every other way, it's still a foreign country. In other words, don't cause trouble so you can come back whenever you like.

 

I'm not a trucker yet but I cross back and forth very often since I'm Canadian, residing in the US.

Be careful bringing in food. Pre-packaged items bought at the store is fine, but most meat, fruits, home made anything is not. I.E: You can bring a bag of chips, but not your left over mashed potatoes from last night's dinner. (Actually, that sounds groce...)

If you smoke, no more than 1 carton per person. Are truckers allowed to shop at the duty-free? If so, stop for cigarettes, $40.00 per carton.

Fuel up before crossing into Canada, and yes, roaming on your cell phone will take your pay check.

Food may be a tad more expensive, but it's much much much better, like real food, the way it used to be. Of course, I might be bias here, but nothing compares to French Canadian food, imo.

If you like chocolate bars, try an aero and also smarties. Mium yum, I'm homesick now. Oh! Bring back some maple syrup. It is totally differenty than US maple syrup, no comparison, and I live in upstate NY/ VT border.

Turning right on red is fairly new, and not allowed at most lights. A flashing green light means you can turn left. They don't use arrows (in QC that is).

Arrêt means Stop.

Oh! Don't have a heart attack when you see the speed limit posted at maximum 90 or 100. That's km. A fast easy way to translate km into miles is to multiply the first digit by 6. I.E: For 90km, take the 9 then x 6=56, so it's around 55mph. 5x6=30, so 50Km = 30mph, etc...


Don't forget to get CDN money. You'll get a better rate in Canada.


Unfortunately, border patrol has no sense of humour anymore. For me, it's the American side that gives me trouble. One time, I was in line coming through the US border. The lady patroller was making each car driver pop up their hood so that she could look for whatever in the engine compartment. When my turn came up, she signed w/ her hand to pop it up, so I reached behind me, grabbed the bottle of windshield washer, rolled down my window, handed it to her and said "Here, while you're at it, could you....." Well, I didn't get to finish my sentence. LOL, I ended up w/ a full search and going inside for the full interrogation.

The stories I could tell w/ all these years of crossing....

 

In your log book have start milage and end milage every day and licence plate number for both tractor and trailer.also a reset has to be 36 hrs to qualify.