
Frightened immigrants are creeping into Canada through a quiet border town in northeast New York to escape Donald Trump.

The families are fleeing through the town of Champlain which shares a border with Quebec.

They make their crossing on Roxham Road which leads them directly towards the village of Hemmingford and in to the path of Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers who take them to immigration offices where they can apply for asylum.

Since Donald Trump tried to implement a controversial travel ban stopping citizens from Muslim majority countries from entering the US, foot traffic on the road has increased.

A Turkish family crosses the Canadian border at Roxham Road in Champlain, New York, on March 5. The crossing has seen heavier foot traffic since Donald Trump implemented his travel ban

A Pakistani family of four was seen walking down the road with their suitcases on February 28 to make the crossing

Residents of Champlain told The New York Times how some families were sneaking over the illegal crossing in the middle of the night to avoid being caught.

'I’m not O.K. with it but I definitely can’t blame them,' Matthew Turner, who lives on Roxham Road, said.

Earlier this month, families claiming to be from Turkey were pictured being arrested after making the crossing at Roxham Road.

They were met sympathetically by police officers, one of whom was seen carrying a baby in a car seat while its mother pleaded with them. They carried the few belongings they could manage for the journey.

Crossing illegally at Roxham Road gives the families a quicker chance of settling in Canada.

It is illegal for any migrant to apply for asylum at the dozens of official border crossings. If they show up hoping for the best, they are turned back to stay in the US.

But if they cross illegally, they are arrested on Canadian soil. Police then have no choice but to allow them to make a refugee claim, process them and release them.

A woman carries a boy under her arm as she navigates her way over an icy stream at the Roxham Road crossing

Roxham Road runs directly over the border. It is in the town of Champlain in north east New York

Some of the immigrants ask taxis to take them as far along the road as possible before completing the journey, residents said. One family is seen making the crossing on March 6

A family soldiers on towards a Royal Canadian Mounted Police officer despite warnings they will be arrested. The migrants go to the crossing with this logic in mind, knowing they will be allowed to submit an asylum application once in police custody

A Royal Canadian Mounted Police officer helps a young child up a hill at the crossing. He was taken into custody with his Turkish family

A man is arrested while his wife and son hug on February 23. Residents said the path had become busier since Trump took office

On February 20, Royal Canadian Mounted Police met a family who had made the crossing. One officer was pictured carrying a baby in its car seat as its mother was arrested

Families make the crossing with whatever possessions they can carry. They are forced to abandon some treasures which prove too difficult to carry across

With this logic in mind, the immigrants deliberately cross despite warnings from Canadian officers not to when they reach the border.

Roxham Road is one of the holes which led officials to liken the border to a block of Swiss Cheese. There are similar crossings happening in Vermont where families ditched their brand new cars and walked across the border last month.

They arrived in Stanstead, Canada, and went for pizza before being arrested.

Their hopes are shared by dozens of other migrants being housed by a charity in Buffalo.

Vive La Casa looks after the migrants while they wait for appointments with Canadian immigration agencies. It is operated by the Christian charity Jericho Road Community Health Center.

Its occupants enter the US legally, often on student visa, and go there to apply for asylum when their legal stay is coming to an end. They can apply for asylum in the US but the charity mostly helps them settle in Canada.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has shared his unequivocal openness to refugees since Trump began adjusting immigration laws.

An official tells a Turkish family where to go after arresting them in Hemmingford, Quebec, on March 6. Families chose to get arrested in Canada rather than stay in the US in fear of deportation

A police officer helps a young boy into a van while his mother follows. They were likely taken to an immigration office at an official border crossing to file asylum applications

In Champlain (above), residents said they did not like the influx of illegal crossings but shared their sympathy with the migrants making them

Residents in Champlain said more immigrants had been passing through since Donald Trump became President

When the first failed ban was temporarily implemented in January, Trudeau said all refugees 'regardless of your faith' were welcome in his country.

The first temporarily stopped citizens from seven Muslim majority nations from entering the US even if they had been granted a visa or green card.

It sparked hysteria across the country and abroad.

Protests erupted outside JFK airport as the affected citizens were questioned or detained, and others found themselves sent back to where they had come from on deportation flights.

Swift action from several federal judges stamped it out. Trump, outraged by the challenge, vowed to fight back in court but retreated.

Instead he has put forward a revised plan which is yet to be signed.

It drops Iraq from the list of affected countries and replaces an indefinite ban on Syrian refugees with a 120 day suspension.

It also exempts visa and green card holders.