Construction on the Bluewater Bridge heads-up for GMCMI rally

[RF_Burns]

FYI for anyone going to the GMCMI rally and planning on crossing the Border at Sarnia ON / Port Huron MI. Be aware that the Bluewater Bridge is currently under construction on the USA bound side.

Reports of delays up to several hours going into the USA are normal.

Google Maps reports that going from the 401/402, crossing at Windsor is 50 minutes longer under normal traffic. So you may want to consider that option rather than sitting in traffic for longer.

Maybe others in the area can post some more detailed updates as we get closer to the travel date.

 

[Ken B]

The last time I went through Sarnia / Port Huron westbound, I did it at 1:30 AM. There was no one around but us and one Customs person,. Three questions, 1. Where are you going? Answer: Home to Indiana/ 2. Are you bringing in anything that you bought in Canada? Answer No. 3. Where are you coming from? Answer Owen Sound. Have a good trip. No paper work no id checked. Nothing.

Point is if you go through late at night there is probably no lines.

The time before I went through Windsor and there at least 2 miles of trucks backed up in the right lane. I went around all of them and pulled right up to the non-commercial gate and got waved right through.

There is a web site that you can check the expected wait times at most border entry sites.

Border Wait Times

bwt.cbp.gov

 

[RF_Burns]

I was wanting to give a heads-up to those who may not know about the delay's due to construction. I don't think they calculate the delay time for construction before the Customs House lines.

We will likely leave early and hit the border by maybe 6am.

 

[Ken B]

You are probably right. They usually are not very friendly or helpful going either direction. So what is on that site may not be very accurate.

I met a fellow in Montana one time who was a dual citizen and was stopped from entering the US 3 times. The first time he was just turned around and sent back for impersonating a US citizen. The second time he was sent back and banned re-entry for 10 years. Before the third attempt he went to the Consulate in Calgary, I believe, and got a US passport. They arrested him at the border and held him for a day. They apologized, issued him a letter saying he was OK in the future, and then released him. He later got a follow up letter on State Department letterhead and has never been bothered since.

The point is they had three opportunities to fix their problem and records and did not. They are just too arrogant to do things righjt at times.

I have met some Agents on the US side that have some common sense too.

Dick Paterson got stopped and his dog biscuits confiscated even though the box said they were made in the US. So after that anytime I send Dick anything in the mail I always include a couple of dog biscuits.

 

[Matt Colie]

I do have one now, but did not have a US passport until recently. What I have had (and still do) is my Merchant Mariner's Document. This what one carries as a member of a ship's company. Because I am a graduate of New York Maritime College and could also hold commission as a naval officer, it was stamped (still readable until very recently) "Validated For Emergency Service". I can't begin to tell you how many times I have been through a customs check. But I can tell you that the worst experience of all has been coming back through Detroit from visiting Mary's relatives that are Canadian.
My most recent joke this way is that they saw the sleeve that Mary uses to make the seat belt comfortable (not strangle) and believed it to be a holster. They have to inspect the entire car. Of course they found nothing, why would any US Citizen be bringing a hand gun back from Canada??
Matt - I have no reason to trust our government.

 

[Ken B]

I do not think you need to claim any guns when entering the US. I have brought rifles any times and never claimed them. Theu were take by me to Canada which I do claim but on the way back I never say anything as they were not acquired in Canada. Who knows? You know your Michigan driver's license is all you need. Michigan is one of the few border states they still accept. You also can still can use an original (not photo copy) birth certificate and a government issued photo ID like a drivers license. I think they just hassle every 5th person that come through to have something to do.

I got stopped one time at Niagara falls by the Canadians going westbound . He wanted to see my birth certificate. I said I do not have or need one. This is before they started requiring more stringent IDs. He said how are you going to get back into the US? I said the same way I did it yesterday going east bound. Why don't you just turn me around and I will go home on the south side of the lake. He said you may proceed. Have a nice day. .