Going through your pictures is well above and beyond the norm for a GA arrival, although it is legal.
I am acutely aware of this, but legal does not mean right. I am kicking myself that we didn't put away the cameras. We did turn off our phones. BTW, this authority extends to 100 mi of the border, and in some areas, is routinely abused to evade 4th amendment search restrictions.
We could see an agent intently clicking through something on her PC, but it wasn't until we returned to the airplanes and found one of the camera memory doors open that we realized what happened. The agents were so focused on distracting us for 20 minutes that they forgot to ask us the basics: did we have weapons or fruit.
Our family went through the Trusted Traveler program (NEXUS) specifically so we don't have to deal with issues like that. It involves fingerprinting and a background check to assure of a lower risk of threat, making crossings easier for members. Highly recommended if you frequently cross.
You are supposed to stay inside your plane and in the designated area - away from other aircraft and people.
Yes, and the penalties are draconian, which is why we were confused when the CPB agent we called expected us to go the road station without being met at the plane.
I'm armchair quarterbacking here, but I'll wager the reason they were surly is probably because you didn't follow directions and subsequently put yourself in a situation where the responding agents could easily have assumed you ditched items outside the airplane upon arrival. Consistent behavior like that from our GA population could and probably would create a scenario where CBP makes it even more difficult for GA pilots to file and cross the border back into the U.S. I'm assuming you had passports and all the other required documentation, and weren't a grumpy smart-a--, giving them another excuse to ruin your day.
Not trying to hammer you here, just using your example to show why things can get difficult at the border, and what we can do as a group to make it better.
Nope. Everyone in the group is an experienced international traveler, was polite, and we followed instructions to a T. eApis was filed, we called in advance, had records and passports. I have been through Porthill before. We all briefed the process before flight. At least two of the group has dealt with authoritarian border patrol agents far worse than CPB, although I wonder about CPB's trends.
Most CBP agents have to deal with extraordinary pressure to not "fail" and allow bad guys or bad items into the country. Their families' food & rent depends on it. Therefore they are already pre-loaded to identify us as potential threats. What we can do is be pleasant, know the rules before arrival, follow the rules and be understanding of what can be a pretty cruddy but important job.
That all said, there are some CBP agents that revel in controlling the situation, and some of them step outside normal boundaries. Know your rights and know what both they, and we, are supposed to do. See above website to understand those rights.
And I think this is closer to why the agents were surly. First, they didn't really know what to do with airplanes, despite being a port of entry for aircraft. They were uncomfortable and afraid of making a mistake.
Second, like many people working for large organizations, they've allowed compliance with bureaucratic rules to overrule their basic decency. I seriously doubt they signed up to the border patrol so they could troll through private vacation photos, seized from near professional equipment, on the waaaay outside chance they might find child porn.
Sorry for the long response, which is intended for all of us, but I often read or hear about this or that CBP agent who ruined someone's day. The issue can often be tracked back to someone not knowing the rules. Guess which party typically falls into that category. Hint: it isn't the CBP employee!
Frankly, I am getting tired of the nearly universal response that if you have trouble with government employees, then the problem must be with you.