YIKES, indeed. (And they weren't even armed back then; that only happened a few years ago, and many older guards weren't happy about it. I think they now carry Beretta PX4 9mm.)

We're pretty friendly but athough we may not be a major world power our guards, like yours, have a country to protect and we do get some pretty dodgy characters wanting to get in. (Present online company excepted, of course!) And most of the guns used in crime up here are smuggled in from the US, so they have to be cautious. A cheeky guy and his daughter "visiting Montreal" could have a dozen guns stashed in the car.

In the dozen years that I've been driving to Bellingham to visit my gf (well, until last March, anyway), I've had very few problems crossing either way, aside from a couple of snarky US guards many years ago who just wanted to prove they could be difficult. In that time I've been pulled over for routine inspection I think 4 or 5 times, which I have no problem with. Never a problem coming back into Canada. I guess they've had lots of time to check me out over the years. There was one fellow I nicknamed "Mr. Friendly" whom I used to see from time to time. One exchange went:

- "What's the purpose of your trip?"
- "Visiting my gf in Bellingham."
- "That's the same thing you said last week".
- "Well, I know how important it is to have a consistent story."
- (Laughs) "OK, have a nice visit"