Jul 25, 2006 - Prince Edward Island - PEI

We arrived at the campground in PEI around 4 pm. We crossed a nine mile long bridge from the New Brunswick mainland to the island. We didn't pay a toll to get here, but it will be at least $40.50 to get off the island. The base toll is for a two axle vehicle and then you add $6.75 per additional axle. Everything is very pretty and well maintained. The main industry on PEI is agriculture. There are potato, wheat and barley fields everywhere. They also raise lots of vegetable crops. Tourism is a close second to agriculture, followed by...

Jul 22, 2006 - PEI

PEI Day 1 Our tour bus picked us up this morning under cloudy skies, but without the forecast rain. Our first stop was about a mile away at the National Park - Green Gables. PEI would probably be a remote sparsely populated farming island without the publicity it got from Lucy Maude Montgomery's Anne of Green Gables book. That book, and the 12 others she wrote with a settings in the Cavendish area, have made this a destination tourist location. The Canadian government has bought much of the area around Cavendish for the park and the...

Jul 21, 2006 - To Cavindish, PEI

We traveled about 140 miles from Hopewell Cape to Prince Edward Island today, just ahead of Tropical Storm Beryl for the most part. For the first time since we left Maine our route took us be a large complex of big box stores, including a large grocery. Just in time too as the fridge was getting pretty bare. Naturally one of Beryl's leading rain bands just happened to be there at the same time. The route also happened to have a couple of tricky turns which gave us the opportunity for a short scenic side trip. This trip took us across the...

Jul 15, 2006 - PEI - Charlottetown & Anne of Green Gables Play

Charlottetown is the commercial and educational center of the island. It is named after Queen Charlotte, consort to George III, and became the capital of the province in 1764. The town is also known as the birthplace of Canada since it was here, in 1864, that the Fathers of Confederation convened to consider a political-economic union that resulted in the formation of Canada 3 years later. Our tour guide pointed out most of the historic sites and toured us along the waterfront to see the historic homes and modern mansions. We saw the...

Jul 4, 2006 - East Coast Road Trip and Rest

The first three weeks of this journey was a restful visit with Bob and June in Ottawa and then an exploration of our own country's East Coast. In a rented cadillac we explored Quebec, PEI, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia - over 3,000 kilometers. Highlights: June's 65th birthday (Heather's mom) Jer and Heather's ceremonial cell phone toss into the Ottawa River (yes - true. you can only contact us via internet now) A new traveler's haircut for Heather in Quebec City Watching World Cup Soccer. Maritime Hospitality - "How long you home 'fer -...

Jun 6, 2006 - PEI - Cavendish Beach

June 6 - Cavendish Beach The sun is now out and we hit 21C today. Time to go to the local beach. The Cavendish area has many tourist attractions (like Ripley's Believe it or Not, Wax Museum, Amusement Park and the Avonlea Village). Including the Cavendish campground there must be 1,000 campsites in the area, so you can image how busy it must be in the summer. Cottages seem to be a very popular means of accommodation as they are everywhere. The national park is not open right now, but you can still access the beach and a biking trail, so we...

Jun 3, 2006 - PEI - Charlottetown

June 3 - PEI The beginning of the PEI trip is not quite what we expected. Although, I'm not sure what I expected. A little bit of the problem of having childhood memories of a place that maybe doesn't match reality. When Stewart was about 7, his family traveled from Ottawa for a summer vacation in PEI. Other than images of the campground and walking through dunes to the beach, he can't remember much else. There was also another trip as a teenager, again, not much recollection other than staying at a cabin with sweeping views of a bay. We...

Sep 10, 2005 - Kira from PEI

Hey it's Kira from PEI, Yesterday after leaving New Brunswick we came across the big Confederation Bridge across the Northumberland Strait to get to PEI. All through the day we drove so I will go onto today. Today we went to see Anne of Green Gables. It was so neat. For the last two weeks I have been reading Anne of Green Gables. It is really good! We got to see the barn and the house and walk down Lovers Lane and the Haunted Wood trails (You will understand if you have read the books)! We also learned about L.M. Montgomery and where she...

Aug 29, 2005 - Murray Beach to Cornwall, PEI - 81 km

We were up early to prepare our last galley meal of the trip. Tent down, it was off to prepare brekkie. Toad in the hole was on the menu this morning. I used to make this breakfast when I was at Girl Guide camp in the summers. Making it for one is MUCH easier than making it for 34. We formed somewhat of an assembly line...I was cutting the holes in the bread and TS and Earl were buttering it. Once the cooking started, it was Nathan and I manning the frying pans, Dawn was cracking eggs into the holes, and Earl was serving the gang and TS was...

Aug 10, 2005 - Louisburg, Nova Scotia and Our Voyage to Cavendish, PEI

We got almost no sleep on the ferry. You are not allowed to sleep on the floor, which is understandable in a place where people are sometimes seasick. The seats were not especially uncomfortable, at least for the first hour. By the fourth or fifth hour, though... We unloaded in the dark in North Sydney. Our plan was to drive to the 18th Century fortress at Louisbourg, about an hour away. Upon arriving, we found it did not open for several hours, so we set up the tent in a grassy patch near the water and caught a bit of sleep. It turned out...

Jul 28, 2005 - Charlottetown...a week-long layover

The week in Charlottetown was the first long stay since leaving New York and the reunion. It was a good chance to become familiar with a town and its surroundings. PEI, famous for red earth and potatoes had lots more to offer. Tourist season was at full tilt; red double deck busses and excursion boats were loaded. Both marinas in town held forth with evening dock parties that seemed to compete in decibels and lateness. It was a great chance for us to re-provision and take care of some of the boat maintenance. Returning from the grocery...

Jul 25, 2005 - New Brunswick and PEI...the Scots

Underway Monday, 25 July was at high slack tide and as soon as we cleared the lift bridge, we were off down the "gully". This is a trough of mud embankments and swift currents. Mercifully, we had the depth and the current was manageable. The wind picked up a bit as we crossed Miramichi Bay so we decided to anchor first off Portage Island. That spot wasn't well protected so we pulled up the anchor in a good rain storm and scooted further in to Bay du Vin. On arrival, we were hailed by a couple of cruising friends and invited to dinner. These...