Oh, and for the record: I did not know the weed was there. At this point we guess that a friend was rolling a joint in the back seat of my car while were were driving to go skiing for the day and when it came time to roll he put the nug in the ash tray to free up his hands and just forgot it there.
Ultimately in the end though, I don't blame anyone but myself because I'm responsible for my car and what's inside.
After the 5 years I can 'request a pardon', which costs somewhere around $1000 (I had an initial $500 fine when it happened). Problem is, there are a number of us over here in Canada who are banned from America for similar dealings. Some have requested a pardon and gotten denied, and told to wait another 5 or 10 years. I know some dudes who got banned back in the 70's and 80's who still aren't allowed in. At this point I don't see an option (because paying $1000 to be told 'no' doesn't really sit well) so I'm just going to see how this whole "legalization" thing plays out and if anything will ever happen at a federal level.
As for the subject of this thread - I have no idea what Canada's policies are for Americans coming into Canada with weed so I don't really have an answer for you there - just thought I'd say how it is from the other side of things.