Did you know that the USD is so low that today it exchanges for the same amount as the Canadian Dollar?

Its a multitude of causes; but basically the US economy is poor right now... (I think the most significant recent event was the crash in the US housing market due to sub prime mortgages) no one wants to invest their money in the US so they are placing it in more stable markets right now, ie. Canada.

Its not the first time that the Cdn dollar has been worth more than the US dollar, but it has been a long time (back in the 70s).

You don't need to do any exchange at all. Just go to any ATM that you can see and withdraw money with your trusty old bank card. It's better to take out more, than less, since you pay a fixed fee for the bank machine access of $ 1 - $ 2.50 each time you make a withdrawal. The exchange is the interbank rate and will be better, by far than anything you can get by carrying bills across the border. Should you find that you have too much left over when you leave again, just step in to any bank in Canada and turn in your CAD for USD. AS already mentioned, you can also use American money in most stores but be prepared for a VERY BAD exchange rate. You do know, I presume that your credit card works just fine in Canada. Your home bank will do the currency conversion at a quite favourable rate, far better than exchanging dollar bills anywhere.

The dollar was devalued when minimum wage went up recently (lagging indicator). A hidden danger to raising the minimum wage.

Yes I heard. Wonder of wonders