liquid, you should have recieved your paperwork beforehand and signed it in front of them. It would have been way easier. You probably would have looked like you knew what you were doing then.

[8D]

DUI is a felony in Canada. Gross Misdemeanor in the US. Therefore in Canada' s eyes, you are a felon and therefore unable to posses a firearm in their country. You need to get this cleared up BEFORE you arrive at the border. I do believe that you can " buy" a waiver for $200.00 (cdn) You need to contact Immigration Canada and find out what they are going to require from you. Most of the time a printout of your criminal history is required with the waiver packet. You can obtain your history through your local county sheriff' s office. They will most likely charge a small amount to give this to you. If you click on the link that was provided above you should be able to find the phone #. Best of luck to you!

Here is the link to Immigration Canada:

http://www.cic.gc.ca/

Phone # for the Canadian consulate office in Detroit313) 567-2085

If you have a Canadian Embassy in your state you should call them. They can set you up with this stuff before you go on your trip.

BTW.................

Heads up to all you Canadian bound hunters, USDA currently is NOT allowing any wild meat to re-enter the states. As it sits right now the only thing you can bring back are racks and skulls. Maybe hides, not sure.[:@]

Cal hunter and Nub good advise, Mathews, no argument with you as your right on. I have crossed the border quite frequently on a regular basis over the past 6 years and let me tell you, ever since 9-11 I woundn' t try to smuggle a fart across without declareing it, especially comeing into the states. The Canadian entrance appears more laxed and its the usual questions they ask everyone entering Canada, which is firearms, alcohol, tobacco, how much money on your person and last month they wanted to know how much money I had in the bank,(?) and 50% of the time they will ask you if you ever been arrested (not to be confused with convicted), and Canada does look at a DUI as a felony and you will be denied entrance unless your fill out the proper paper work and pay a fee to the Queen. Customs on both sides say they don' t discriminate on a persons appearance, but thats Horse-pooh, I have noticed less problems on both sides if I am clean shaven and have a respectable haircut, but sometimes I get kinda lazy during the winter months and then they pull me in the inspection lane, I' m getting kinda use too it as I enter the states, I usually ask them, " inspection lane #1 or 2" ? These agents have no since of humor and keep your answer to their questions to yes or no, the less imformation you give them the better, and then they will ask you the same question again, but maybe reword it to see if your answers are consistent. When I cross the border on either side I have to bite my lip from saying some smarta$$ remark, just because this agent is bored/pe-od and treats you like a criminal first and then you got to prove yourself innocent, I know these agents have a job to do, but I have come across some real A$$holes that let the badge and gun go to there head and the women are the worst, especially on the U.S. side.
If you actually NEED to go to Canada, then start leaveing a paper trail now.
Sorry if I rambled on, but you asked and its only my 2 cents. Bobby

Let me try to put things into perspective for you 121553, There is no excuse for being treated rudely by an agent. However in my co workers defense.............. Ever since 9-11, our job became even MORE impossible. I have had more people than I can count say to me, " why are you asking me that?" or my personal favorite, " Do I look like a terrorist to you?" My response is always " YES!" How in the hell should I know what a terrorist looks like? And lets not just say any Middle eastern looking male. How about Timothy McViegh? Did he look like a terrorist? Appearances to me don' t mean squat. I once arrested a man 4 years ago, that was dressed to the 9' s and could have been a top exec to Bill Gates, He was #11 on the US Marshalls most wanted list. So, the way a person looks does not mean much to any of us. So there is no horse pooh!

Are you starting to see it from my stand point? We are in a position where for the protection of our great country that we can TRUST NO ONE! Let me go on, We work on average 3-4 sixteen hour shifts a week, So we are sleep deprived, hungry and miss our familys. 16 hours shifts are VERY hard on one' s emotional health. And then we get people who think that the less info they give us the better. Let me tell ya, That is a sure fire way to get pulled into secondary inspection! Because we are thinking " what is he hiding"

Some times it is not even what you say or how you say it. We are trained observers in human behaviour. The non verbals speak louder than what you say. Smart a$$ remarks to a Customs agent on either side of the border will only cause you more grief. I will bet that in your place of employment that you have also met some real a$$holes!?

I am not attacking you here brother I really am not. I look at you as a brother in the sport that we so dearly love. So the next time you meet an agent that is not so pleasant to deal with, you might ask that person when the last time they went hunting was

I just want you to be better informed into how I see " life on the border"
Be well

hey mathews they are letting bear meat come accross because it doesn' t fall in the catigory of ruminants... brought mine back a few weeks ago from quebec

You are correct, I just got that memo! Thanks!

Mathews, I have the upmost respect for customs performing there job to protect our national security, as long as its not a personal/justmental attitude, if an agent is having a case of the A$$, as you say who is overworked or may be missing their family, but you guys have to see it from the law abiding citizen that is trying to see a love one that is under going chemo/ect. across the border and then I got to play customs games by your rules, I am professional in my line of work and expect that professionalism that goes with the badge, I have lived in British Columbia for over 5 yrs as and and now in Montana and have crossed the border back and forth, since I live only 6 miles from the border, I am not new in dealing with agents on both sides and I can only tell of my own personal experiences dealing with customs, you can tell me how difficult you guys have it, but you guys have to cover your A$$ too, but what I am saying is there is a diplomatic way to greet visitors at the border other than say turn your engine off and show proof of citizenship, when you put people on the defense with these statemates , don' t you think its puts them in a position real quik to get defensive, even for someone who may be in the right.
I really dread going across the border and the reason being is dealing with agents, since 9-11 I have seen some newbies at the border a lot of them lacking in diplomacy, I wonder whom is on duty and if I am going to be detained, is it going to take a minute or is this agent going to have a case of the A$$ and and put me through the inspection lane chequeing my gas tank as he is grounding my truck, he has got all day and takes his time and then another agent questions me and removes my hat and is chequeking the brim inside my hat maybe looking for a joint,ect., I try to be as patient as possible, but as you say a persons body english will speak, It seems like I have absolutely NO rights at all when I cross customs and you you guys have a open ticket to have a case of A$$holism, and the sad part about it is I can' t do didley squat about it, just play your games.
No disrespect intented, I cross the border quite a bit and call it as I see it.

Been there and done it, Bobby

You have a few valid points here Bobby. However I think that for the most part we are going to be at odds on this one. We are on the defensive, you bet we have to be. Don' t you see that? What does a law abiding citizen look like? Can you tell just by looking at a person? As far as not having any rights at the border, you actually are correct. Congress has said that the 4th Amendment does not exist at the border. We have to have that kind of authority to do our job. Like I said before though, that does not excuse an agent to abuse it. You should come thru my line someday, I am the NICE one!!!!

Mathews I don' t doubt that your are one of the few guys at the border that treats people with respect, you have certainly done it here on this forum ever since I came on, I thank you guys for the hard work you do in protecting our borders, but I got to curse you in the same breath, its just that I get so humilated when an agent goes through my wallet and cheque book and questions me on whom I am writing cheques to, but now when I cross the border, I keep it simple, I carry no wallet, 1 credit card, Atm card, passport, ( and less than 10 thousand in cash,) the less paperwork,... the better.
I have seen how crossing the border has changed since 9-11, its tight now, now there is 3 agents at my vehicle, and sometimes even a lab, sniffing around my truck, one agent is asking me the routine questions, one is at the back of my truck, and there is another agent is at the passenger side, a few years ago, one agent would do all the questioning, but I guess times have changed and any person coming across could be a potential threat, but I get so tired of the lack of diplomacy exonarted by the U.S. side, it seems like the Canadian side doesn' t drill me near as hard as the U.S when I come back into the States. I know you guys have a job to do , but its when an agent, as I said earlier,... wants to mess with me and detain me for some time, he can easily do it with " Catch 22" , ( the fourth amendment). No,... I don' t ever get smart in the replies, even though I have a raw spot in my mouth from biteing my lip in holding back. Sometimes I have to be in Alberta, or B.C and back to the states, and I guess thats what causes suspicion, but I gotta say you guys are hard, but like I say, thanks for keeping us safe, but I do it under protest. Take care my friend, Bobby