Some details I forgot to mention

Every evening, the CycleCanada tour leader gave us each a map and cue sheet for the next day's ride. The cue sheets were clear and detailed enough, marked off in both miles and kilometers. But the scale could seem a little confusing, because at the beginning and end of the route the turns could be quite close together to get us through town and to or from our hotel, while in the middle there might be several miles/kilometers between turns or landmarks.

Also, the maps were similar to simple Google maps, showing a green line for our route and sometimes a grey alternate route, with crossroads, towns, rivers, and highway numbers labelled, but the maps didn't show any surrounding roads. If we'd taken a wrong turn or detour from the planned route, it would have been difficult to get back on track. I suppose tour businesses need to protect their turf, though. They'd put themselves out of business if they gave out maps and directions so detailed that anyone could ride a route once, then lead all their friends the same way.

Most of the riders in our group were aged mid-fifties to mid-sixties. My roommate was the youngest, at thirty-five. She was a teacher at McGill University, a Quebec native fluent in English and French, and so ended up taking on interpreter and guide duties. She had signed up for the tour only a few weeks from the start, after another group tour was cancelled, which saved me from having to pay extra for a single room. We first met in our shared room at LeDauphin in Montreal, and I felt comfortable with her immediately.

Like most bicyclists, we were all beer, wine and food lovers, although I am something of a wet blanket and fussy eater - no alcohol, no sardines, no duck, no red meat or pork. I became painfully aware of my caffeine addiction problem, even though I had tried to taper off before the trip. Once at our hotel at the end of the day, I began to feel a growing headache from caffeine withdrawal, and finally had to have a couple of before-diner cups from the coffee-maker in our room. One morning I had two strong cups at breakfast, which made me chatter unnaturally (for me) for about twenty minutes until the caffeine rush wore off.