PEI: August 16

Day 9: August 16

Love this spot. Very quiet. We awoke early to a nice view and confirmed it was a great day for a bike tour. So off we went!

First stop was the East Point Lighthouse (and Internet access for blog catch-up!). 

While I was tucked inside, David was viewing several seals just off shore:

and a Cormorant "tree":

We headed west and rode through North Harbour, the home of the biggest tuna fishery:

We stopped in Hermanville at a potato vodka distillery (thought best not to have a tasting) and went to Shipwreck Point (this one was for sale!):

It's strange since the road is a far distance from the shore, except in a few places, so not as picturesque as we had hoped.

Cable Head East had THIS mansion (not for sale):

We went to Rick's Fish and Chips in St. Peter's (thanks to Joyce for the tip) and headed back east. We got back, had a beer and I walked the beach and saw these lovely things:

It was another great day here on the rugged, less populated part of PEI.

Here's the view from my chair (of David in his chair):

And the (best) views from the bike (in keeping with the Wooden Churches tour):

PEI: August 15

Day 8: August 15

Up early to another beautiful sunrise. We got packed up and prepared for the drive to the eastern end of the island (our tip to tip tour!).

It was a beautiful day and an easy drive and we ended up at Red Point Provincial Park near Souris. It's beautiful. In contrast to Jacques Cartier, which was a very tired park, this one is pristine and the staff was so welcoming. Though we could have had a site near the water, it was very crowded, so we took their recommendation and are in site 108, at the top of a hill overlooking the ocean:

We met neighbours Carol and Peter who welcomed us and gave us some advice about where to go, what to do, and where we can get Internet access. They're very nice.

We walked the beach, one striking in its relatively white sand in contrast to the red sand of the days before. And there were loads of people. We said we may go swimming this trip yet!

Back at the site, neighbours pulled in, parked right in my view and then their dog peed on my chair! Not a great start. But the woman apologized profusely and offered to clean my chair AND moved the car. So we chatted and all is well.

Some iffy weather is predicted, but we plan to ride the bike tomorrow and hopefully get in some beach weather for the next few days.

Here's the view from my chair:

PEI: August 14

Day 6: August 14

Another spectacular day!

We were awakened by a cacophony of sound at 6:30 and looked out to see hundreds and hundreds of cormorants flying just above the water. We're guessing that some kind of fish, maybe mackerel or herring, was schooling nearby. Too early to find a camera!

The day started sunny, so we decided on a bike tour of the entire North Cape Coastal Drive. I was able to sit back, relax and just enjoy the beautiful sights.

Biker Chick:

At Jude's Point, we saw scores of Great Blue Heron feeding:

We passed through large and small fisheries:

And saw many, many beautiful wooden churches (and we think the province should provide a “Wooden Church Tour” of the island):

Lunch was ice cream at Scooters (is that wrong?):

Three hundred kilometers later, we completed the tour, and I have to say that I love our bike.

It was another wonderful day, finished with another campfire. We're moving east tomorrow.

Here's a view from my chair:

and my favourite view from the bike (most pictures today were from the bike):

PEI August 13

Day 6: August 13

Today was a great day.

We woke to sunshine, but the threat of thunder storms. So we decided to move to another campsite for two more nights, unhitch the trailer, and head out for some exploring.

First, we got a site right on the beach, so we're thrilled. Then we headed out for some touristy things.

First stop was The Canadian Potato Museum in O'Leary (perfect, huh?).

It had a lot of info on potatoes, including all the potato diseases known to man, depicted in little potato coffins. Irresistible:

There was also a community museum with the complete office and all the equipment form a local doctor's estate. This included an Iron Lung. So sad to imagine people living inside these:

Next stop was Milligan's Wharf for a Fish and Chips lunch. What a find. It's right on a working and very busy harbour. After lunch here

we chatted with some fishermen and learned about Bar Clams

and the Herring season that begins Sunday. People are lovely and answer the stupidest questions, mine, of course.

Groceries and return to the beautiful campsite:

I walked the beach again and then we sat and enjoyed the water (so calm tonight):

There were so many people around since it was hot and calm.

We even had a fire, a rarity for us. Then it was an evening of celestial phenomena including many airplanes, several satellites, lightning over the water, three shooting stars, the clearest Milky Way, and even a swooping owl. Amazing.

Here's the evening view from my chair:

PEI: August 12

Day 5: August 12

Well, bad singing (Me and Bobby McGee) kept us awake later than usual. But the weekend is over, so...fingers crossed.

The skies were very overcast, so we hung around and decided to wait for noon before deciding on a bike tour. Olympics (we get one channel, badly) and lunch were followed by rain and darker skies, so we took a long walk on the beach (have found a few pieces of beach glass and some rocks, of course):

We met a lovely woman from Toronto who, with her husband, spends six months a year here. She said we were very fortunate to have seen the Irish Mossing yesterday since few Islanders even get to see it any more.

Back for more Olympics and reading. THEN, we decided to use the wind for something fun and went to fly our kite (we bought a $5 plastic Spiderman kite to see if we'd like to get a better one some day; I'd say the answer is YES!):

Rain started up again (this IS typical PEI weather and they NEED the rain because they've had the dry heat like in Ontario, but I want to tour with the bike!), so we came in, ate dinner and watched the Closing Ceremonies.

No new view from my chair (just add rain to the last one) or view from the bike. Tomorrow will be better. Promise! But we still love it here.

PEI: August 11

Day 4: August 11

A good night's sleep despite “the boys” who pulled in behind us, hauled out a load of beers, and had a campfire though there was a fire ban. Nice to have electricity and a fairly decent TV signal, so I heard Brian Williams and the Olympics in the background repeating over and over!

We got up early to slightly overcast skies but got ready for a bike ride. We headed up to North Cape, new territory for us. It was so cool to be riding and enjoying the sights and smells (some sweet, some kinda fishy).

North Cape featured a lighthouse, the Wind Energy Interpretive Centre (and wind farm), a great craggy coast and an inukshuk farm:

The really interesting part was the Irish Moss gathering we were lucky enough to see. Two women and a man were collecting the “seaweed” which would be sold, mostly to the pharmaceutical industry, for 12 cents a pound wet and 40 cents dry. We first saw the tractor and the women raking:

But further down the beach were mesmerized by the man and horse dredging the shoreline. Amazing:

Here's a video of this age-old skill:

Irish Mossing

We also saw what looked like walrus or sea lions beached on a reef off shore. We found out they were Grey Seals, but huge nonetheless. A great stop:

Off we rode to the harbour at Skinner's Pond:

We were heading for Fish and Chips when we noticed the blackening skies, so back to the park for lunch, a snooze, walk on the beach and talking with a couple from New Jersey and a guy from BC who has driven across Canada and is heading to Nova Scotia and Newfoundland from here.

Sounds like the party behind us is starting again. Oh well!

Here's the view from my chair:

And, here's a new feature, the view from the bike. It's from Skinners Pond, the home of Stompin' Tom Connors:

PEI: August 8, 9, 10

Days 1, 2 and 3: August 8, 9 and 10

The ocean calls, as does the open road for our new Honda Goldwing motorcycle (yes, we ARE that retired couple!), so off to Prince Edward Island for a couple of weeks. It's kind of an anniversary trip: we went there on our first trip together AND we'll be married 25 years this November. Wow. This is our new tow vehicle:

Tricking out the cargo trailer for the bike took some time, so we left late Wednesday, whipping through Montreal with hardly another car (and way fewer construction vehicles) in sight. We stopped in a Rest Stop for a couple of hours' sleep (amongst all the tractor trailers) and left early for New Brunswick, so no view from my chair for Day 1.

Day 2 was a lot of driving (and the bike trailer seems to keep us steadier and a little quieter on the road). We got to the de la Republique provincial park in Ste. Jacques around 3:30, got a great pull-through site, and relaxed, had an early dinner and early bedtime.

Here's the view from my chair:

Day 3 was overcast but the drive was good (it's an amazing stretch of highway from the north of New Brunswick). We always look for “Prudence” the Moose (“prudence” is French for “be careful” or “watch for”) signs along this highway. FINALLY, after many trips this way, we saw a moose beside a creek along a railroad track under a bridge we crossed. Awesome!

We crossed Confederation Bridge and got into PEI around 4:00.

The Gateway Village is a new addition to the bottom of the bridge and it has a great Info Centre and some shops (and lots of people!).

Our drive passed lots of potato fields and a couple of wheat fields. And potatoes plus wheat (ground wheat that is and cheese) make pierogi, so I feel right at home!

We decided to go to Jacques Cartier Provincial Park and got a campsite, almost on the beach. We'll stay here a few days and do some motorcycle touring (finally!!!). The beach is long, red and lovely. I love the seaside.

Here's a view from my chair: