We
left Quebec to return to Montreal to board the VIA Ocean overnight train to
Moncton which is stepping off point for the Confederation Bridge to Prince
Edward Island (PEI)
We had two adjoining cabins (single
occupancy ie we both had a lower bunk.
Each cabin had perfectly adequate
en-suite.
There was a small lounge car and a
dining car. Food was adequate three courses with a choice of main and
desert.
We are on the train for dinner,
breakfast and lunch.
Unfortunately, no suitable table for
cards.
Arrived Moncton 2 hours late. We
retrieved our checked in bags which had been successfully transferred in
Montreal
Then a 2hr drive via the
Confederation bridge connecting PEI to the mainland.
This is about 13 km long and is
most impressive. In the winter the sea freezes underneath.
We went alongside the Bay of Fundy
which has one of the largest tidal swings in the world. Does it beat
Broome.
Our accommodation is a hotel on
the middle of the northern coast (Stanley Bridge) We booked it out 22 of us including
the bus driver.
We are here for four nights.
It is called
Inn at the Pier
It has an outdoor patio where we
can have evening meals overlooking the Gulf of St Lawrence
The next day was a tour of eastern
part of the island. Unfortunately, very overcast with a sprinkle of rain
First stop was in the Cavendish
National Park home of endangered piping plover then a stop at North Rustico.
This is fishing village which instead of jetties sticking out at right angles,
had a floating platform parallel to the shore. this extended for about maybe
600m. The boats tied up parallel to this platform.
The platform was connected to the
shore by platforms every 10m or so.
Some fisherman were cleaning up
and much our amazement we saw two animals on the floating section which we
subsequently think are weasels , mind you they could be minks, otters or even
ferrets.
Lunch at St Peters was a chicken
sandwich with the thickest bread I have ever seen. Mind you it was very
fresh.
Called in to see the East
Lighthouse one of 36 around the island.
And then back via the Elmira
Railway Museum. PEI. had an extensive railway network till the 1930’s when it
was pulled up after the Canadian Government gave money to upgrade the
roads.
Second day was spent exploring the
north western part of the island.
A lovely sunny day forecast to be
24C
Our first stop on the way to
Kensington was a layby which the owner of nearby house had put in so that
tourists could enjoy the same view- water and trees- that he had from his
balcony.
We also went past one of the first
‘Anne of Green Gables’ (A of GH) developments. The Island is very proud of this
famous book and has milked it to the nth degree. About 4-5 houses with some
connection to the author, the farm and her family. Parks Canada have taken over
the and built a large centre including gift shop which we see tomorrow.
We even drove past an A of GG
alpaca farm !
We did notice the sign approaching
a bridge
‘bridge freezes before road’
as we would say
‘Beware ice on bridge’
After a lunch break -normal size
sandwich we headed to North Cape to see the lighthouse plus explore a wind
turbine interpretive centre. There were about 20 large wind turbines one right
beside the road. Owen asked the bus driver to stop so we could get out and listen.
A definite whissing noise but more mid frequency than low, but I guess would be
irritating when trying to sleep.
On the way back called in to see
the West lighthouse there were many cars as it was a nice swimming beach.
Got back about 5:15pm for oysters
on the balcony at 6:00pm and a beautiful sunset about 8:30pm
The next day was a drive into the
main town Charlottetown for longish lunch break but before getting there we had
an hours guided tour of the A of GG Park Canada Farm and interpretative centre.
The Centre had some interesting posters one showing how many languages the book
has been translated into and the other telling me that there have been three TV
adaptations made of the story.
I didn’t do the farm tour but
talked to some English and American tourists while Leith joined the group.
Leith said it was very commercial. You used could to be able to have your
picture taken milking a plastic cow.
In Charlottetown we saw a video
explaining that the island is considered the birthplace of the Canadian
Confederacy since the governor’s of five provinces met there in 1864 to agree
to confederate.
Back to the accommodation to have
mussels and lobster on the balcony.
The next day was an early start
since we had a five half drive to North Sydney to catch the overnight ferry to
Newfoundland. This meant a 5:30am alarm, loading the bus and departing by 7:30am
A wet and miserable day as it
rained most of the time.
We had two rather rushed stops as
had to be at the ferry terminal by 3:30pm. We made it with half an
hour to spare.
Louise Wilson
2022-08-19
A very pleasant way to see the world - and its critters, and its housing, and its food offerings! Being on the move so much, it makes me wonder if Leith has had time to read the LV book.
Ruth Keys
2022-08-19
Thank you David. I have travelled with you from Vancouver, to Montreal and PEI. Very good commentary and pictures. Keep it coming. Love to you and Leith, Ruth
Wai Yoong and Joseph
2022-08-19
Love your stories and pictures. It is really good that you have managed to travel such a long distance to see North America while C-19 is still haunting us. WY and I visited Canada in 1994, 2007 and 2018. We have yet to see Prince Edward Island. Many thanks for your effort in recording and sharing. Safe and happy travels always.
Yiu Lam Kwan
2022-08-20
love your narration of the journey and the photos are great. It seems to look so beautiful and scenic. do envy your seafood feasts 'on the patio'. thank you so much David for sharing your trip virtually...
Stephanie
2022-08-21
Another excellent blog David with lovely photos to accompany it. I think those weasels are otters which are a favourite of mine. The latest train looked like a nice way to travel! Love from Peter and me
Deb Ringe
2022-08-23
Great commentary and pics, David
Pam Mason
2022-08-26
Never got to this part of the world, but being a great fan of Anne of Green Gables, would have loved it. Love the photos.
Pam Mason
2022-08-26
Never got to this part of the world but would have loved it as Anne of Green Gables was a favourite book.