Firewood into California... rejected at the border coming home

What a crock of crap ... seriously ....

Where did you get stopped? I live here and I have never heard of that rule? How much wood did you have? My Son in Law is a CHP and I will call and ask if he has ever heard of it

Points to you my friend! Way to make a stand, I love it. Only thing I can figure is perhaps they are worried about some new type of pest getting introduced to the state. Remember those dreaded fruit flies?

Now that is funny, about 15 years ago I was going from Las Vegas to Calif. I had a small box truck with a metal cage in the back with a mean old 12' Reticulated Python in at and got stopped at the AG station. They wanted to know what was in the box. I told them I don't know, I'm just the messenger. The girl opened that box and turned white as it was huffing away. They sent me on my way really quick!

Oh man, this is priceless!

I have heard of similar situations, and, no, they will not bend an inch, not even a millimeter...I find how you handled your case with the AG rep very dignified,...and hilarious...poor fella must have been chuckling after you drove away, knowing you had very valid points to add to the discussion, and realizing how silly the whole situation is...I would have paid good money to see this! Hey, maybe they had video of it and we'll see it on Fox Reality Channel!!!!!! HAH-HAH-HAH!!!!!!!!!

I know it could have been very frustrating, but it sounds like you just took a ridiculous situation and had some fun with it.

Nicely done!

Eric

Silly bureaucrat....

Wow. And I live here. (Puts his head in hand, shaking it in shame.)

I spoke to a CHP buddy and he has never heard of it - Son in law is out on the street right now so could not reach him - Must be an Agriculture thing - I know we have been under a med fly quarantine here for several months

Some guys get to have all the fun! Glad you got him, Bob.

Maybe he had a hidden agenda and wanted the stash of fresh Hickory for his own smokes????

Dog gone Californians...Wait a minute! Thats me. Seems like there are better things to be looking for at the border.

Any more questions on why CA is broke (ok, out of money but the other broke also). Hey Governator, maybe you could make another commercial on why we need to go to CA?

This law is governed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, but enforced in some needed states.



Going Camping? Don't Bring Firewood
[font=Verdana, Helvetica]August 2008[/font] Did you know that by transporting firewood you may unintentionally spread invasive insects and diseases that can destroy trees and reshape entire forests? State and federal quarantines attempt to prevent such damage by prohibiting firewood transport into or out of certain areas, or limiting transport to a specified radius.
Examples of invasive species that can travel in firewood include:

• The emerald ash borer, a beetle from Asia that kills American ash trees within one to four years of infestation. It is spreading throughout the Midwest and some southern and mid-Atlantic states, but has also shown up at campgrounds outside of these regions.
• The Asian longhorned beetle, whose larvae kill mature trees by feeding on the heartwood and inhibiting the trees’ vascular system. It has been found in Illinois, New Jersey, and New York, and poses a tremendous threat if it spreads.
• Sirex noctilio, a wood-boring wasp that can kill trees (mainly pine) in a matter of months by injecting a fungus into the wood to feed its larvae. An adult wasp can carry the fungus as far as 100 miles. It has been found in Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania, and Vermont.
• Sudden oak death, a forest disease caused by the fungus Phytophthora ramorum, which has affected several tree species in California and Oregon.
• Not to my liking, but they do have some rules that can really agitate someone traveling. I've had problems trying to bring fresh NM chile into Cali, but if it's been roasted, you're ok. Go figure.

Illegal wood... Unacceptable...

Illegal aliens.... come on in, plenty of work for you to do.

Good on ya for standing your ground. The guy probably either admires the heck out of you or thinks you need therapy. Or both.

The Dept of Agriculture may be fun to fool with but when crossing the US/Canada border, do not play with those folks, they have no sense of ha ha.

In the 1980's two of us riding Honda V45 Sabers were crossing at the Osoyoos/Oroville crossing. My buddy said jokingly to the US guard " I have a 21 cubic foot frost free refrigerator and my pal ( Pointing to Me ) has all the drugs in his saddlebags. The guy motioned me forward asked what I had to declare. I said nothing. He said ok on your way. But They kept Harvey for about 6 hours while all the rookies took turns grilling him till he sweat off about 50 pounds. I set up the tent at the State park in Oroville then went to the bar to wait for him. Trust me on this one, Harv was one sorry puppy who will never joke at the border again.

Crossing at the same place a year later I had 6 90 cc dirt bikes on my trailer as part of a convoy going to a motocross race, one of the other fathers had all the larger 125s and 250 bikes on his trailer. There were 15 bikes in all on trailers. The guard said it would be $35 bux for the trailer and $5 bux per bike. I noticed a sign that said that empty trailers were exempt. So I asked if we unloaded the trailer and I get the kids to push their bikes across the line how much. He said well in that case nothing but he'd prefer that the bikes be pushed by an adult. So the adults in the group and I began to unload the trailers. I just got one bike off my trailer and my friend got one of his bikes off when a senior officer came out of the US building Whoa! Then asked his guard what gives? He listened to our plan. Then he kind of rolled his eyes and said oh for petes sake put that bike back and on the trailer. You're way, no charge. We thanked him and left that place. Nice guy used his head and We saved us $145.00 that day. After that we were usually just waved across.

For the most part the International border is no hassle but sometimes it can be I have seen rude people get the shock of their lives at the border.

There is a good commercial out showing a Canadian couple at the border wearing team Canada Hockey Shirts, their faces painted with red maple leafs. A US guard is standing there with their detached car door held in his hands their stripped apart car in the background. He says to the triumphant Canadian fans, Hope you folks weren't in a hurry.

I don't care hoo ya are that funny!!!

Hey maybe the Ag guy was practicing for an interview for a job in Washington DC. He would be a shoo in...