What's up with certain border crossings?

I haven't been to Canada for a few years but I always got the x-ray treatment coming back in Lewiston up by Niagara falls but never anywhere else.

 

You know I cross daily. It’s random. They try and vacis as many as possible, it’s not you.

 

If your company ever had 1 driver, EVER piss them off; they will X-ray and harass you till either you're dead or they're dead. When I worked for Heyl, we had a driver screw up a bond at Eastport/Kingsgate going North into Canada. They LITERALLY trashed every Heyl truck for 5 years, until Heyl sued them for harassment (and won). So yea, feel bad for the Bison guys at Blaine, Sumas, Eastport, Coutts and Portal. One of their drivers usually screws up weekly, and they had a couple ABLs try to smuggle cocaine......

 

The Oroville, WA X-rayed the trailer and went into the sleeper for less than a minute every time I crossed there. The officer in the booth would tell me to take off my hat; no other POE would do that.

The Portal, ND POE will send you through the X-ray if there's someone there. None of the other crossings ever X-rayed the trailer that I can remember.

That's all after 100+ crossings. It's usually a piece of cake except for the wait at Blaine.

 

I think it really comes down what company you're with, what you're hauling, and what notes the CBP/CBSA have on file.

For me, its ALWAYS my home port of Sweetgrass MT X-Raying the crap out of everyone, and throwing a ton of attitude around. Going north there, the Canadians are just pissed off 24/7/365, and only ask me about purchases and repairs.

Eastport/Kingsgate north and south are just unhappy, no X-ray or searches. Blaine WA southbound X Ray-ed me once, because I stuttered answering a question; only happened once.

Emmerson, Sarnia, Portal, any port in Quebec; easy peasy!

 

Maybe it's just you.


Never had any real issues at Sweetgrass. Sure they're surly, but they're Americans... they're all like that. Most of the time they pretty much waved me through and didn't charge me when I didn't have a transponder. Only ever had one memorable "exchange" at Coutts. Quebec gal didn't like the way I had done my paperwork... which was EXACTLY the same as the dozens of times that she had processed me previously. So I told her.

Eastport I don't ever recall any problems. Didn't come through Kingsgate very often, but one time the broker sent the paperwork to Coutts instead. The guys shared their lunch with me while we waited.

Occasional crossings in SK and MB were also unremarkable.

Once tried to cross northbound at the Peace Arch. (don't ask...) Stopped and talked to the US CBP guys and we all decided I should turn around past American customs, but before the Canadian border. When I went through the southbound lane their system set off an alarm so they had to do a full vehicle search. They were extremely apologetic about it.

Worst experience was Sumas with a load of mushrooms. Idiot CBP agents were walking all over it and #####ing at me about how the trailer was loaded. I was *this close* to telling them to just shut up and do their jobs.

 

My worst experience was Sarnia about 20 years ago . I was pulling a convertible grain wagon . The ones with back doors I had a load of delinted cotton seed it is a light product so you load it right to the back doors and to the top.. The young officer wanted to inspect my load outside just past the booth. I told him he needed to climb the ladder to inspect it after I rolled the tarp for him . He was screaming at me that I better unlock the lock on the door so he could open it. I kept telling him he can’t open the door but could climb the ladder. A older officer came over as I was repeating to him the product is against the door. He told the young lad to climb ladder while he was chuckling . Needless to say the young guy apologized after realizing he would’ve been buried in cotton seed had I let him open door lol.

 

Yea, I had some doozies at Bison, due to Bison Customs.....certain agents never really forgot those events...even years later. Including the Peace Arch (don't ask) southbound....lol.

LTL, they don't like 8-9-30 PAPS/PARS lol, so that was always interesting,

Thankfully, the Reefer outfit I'm with now, has a great customs department and report with CBSA and CBP. The only time I get X-Rayed now, is crossing empty.