June 20-27, 2023

We drove from New Brunswick into Price Edward Island via the 8-mile long Confederation Bridge, the only way to drive to PEI. It is Canada’s longest bridge and the longest bridge in the world to cross ice-covered water. It’s free to go into PEI over the bridge but $50 per car to get out. It cost us $67  for the RV and truck!

We spent 4 nights on the north shore of the island and then 4 nights on the east side. Our first campground was Twin Shores, near Kensington. What a fantastic resort! It’s like a small city with hundreds of camping spots, tennis/pickleball courts, playgrounds, ballfields, multiple restaurants/snack shops, etc. We loved our quiet spot on the bayside of the campground but the other side, on the beach, was beautiful too and much more woodsy. Since it was early in the season there were only 4 or 5 of us camping in this huge area on the bay where we got daily visits from a bald eagle.  The campers right in front of us were from Franklin TN and had two Rhodesian Ridgebacks (just like our grand-dogs and the same ages too). What a crazy coincidence!

This is the beach side of the campground.

The weather was beautiful so we spent our first day on the PEI National Park bike trails. We started off in the Cavendish-North Rustico area, enjoying a nice ride along the shore. At the Cavendish Beach parking area we were entertained by a bagpiper.

Next we trailered the bikes to the Brackley-Dalvay Entrance Gate and parked near the Dalvay-by-the-Sea National Historic site, once a private mansion and now a beautiful hotel. We ate delicious local oysters and fish ‘n chips at Richard’s midway through our ride. So fun!

 

The next day we went in search of the Confederation Trail, a 237 km multi-use trail criss-crossing the island. We set off from the Kensington Station trailhead and rode a few miles in each direction. It was a nice surface of rolled stone and we enjoyed our ride on this decommissioned railway line.

Another main attraction on this side of the island is in the town of Cavendish, the setting for the fictional book Anne of Green Gables. The original house that inspired author Lucy Maud Montgomery to write the book is located there at Green Gables Heritage Place. Anne of Green Gables, written in 1908, recounts the adventures of 11 year old orphan girl Anne Shirley sent by mistake to two middle-aged siblings who originally wanted a boy to help on the farm. They immediately become enchanted with her and decide to keep her anyway. The book has been translated into over 36 languages and sold over 50 million copies and has been made into movies, plays, musicals and a television series. I just read the book a few weeks ago so it was fun to visit the home…and it only cost about $5 for the tour 🙂

After four days we took off for the Seal Cove Campground on the west side of the island. We were excited to meet up with our friends from Tampa, Bill and Beverly, who were spending the next few weeks with us along our journey. They stayed in a small cabin just across from our campsite which was a beautiful spot overlooking Murray Bay.

Our first day there was a bit cold and rainy so we stayed inside and played games (Five Crowns and Chickenfoot). The next day, at the advice of Bethany who owns the campground, we went down to the nearby fishing wharf and bought 6 fresh lobsters for dinner later that night. We were lucky since this was the very last day of the lobster season! Next we found a spur of the Confederation Trail nearby in Murray Harbor and rode about 10 miles.

Lobster that night was delicious, cooked up in a pot provided by Bethany’s husband along with sea water to boil the lobsters in. So good!

On our last afternoon in PEI we went into Charlottetown, about an hour away, to eat $1 oysters at the Local Pub and then see the Ross Family Ceilidh (3 siblings). A ceilidh (also known as a kitchen party) is a social event where there is Scottish or Irish folk music and singing, traditional dancing and storytelling.

We ate 9 dozen oysters…such a deal…and really enjoyed the show afterwards. They were all fantastic but I think I enjoyed the fiddler the most. I would highly recommend this show!

Before we left the area I had to get a picture of this cool/creepy old abandoned house down the street from us complete with white curtains billowing through the broken upstairs window. I would have loved to go inside but didn’t dare.

We had a great time in Prince Edward Island but now it’s time to head to Nova Scotia and Newfoundland. Looking forward to more adventures with Bill and Beverly!