Tag Archives: PEI

Day 12 – Vernon River to Charlottetown – 44 km (27.4 miles)

8 Jul

We were so happy to see the bright blue cloudless skies and sunshine this morning. It was a welcome sight after yesterday’s rain. We ate a quick breakfast from the items we’d picked up at the little market yesterday and headed out on the bikes.

Leaving Do Duck Inn

The first portion of our ride took us along rural roads. Since I didn’t take any pictures yesterday, I took a bunch today. Knowing this is our last day to ride and see beautiful Prince Edward Island, I tried to capture it all!

We connected to the Confederation Trail after a few miles and I took in all the views, knowing this would be the last day on this memorable trail. Below is just a small sampling of the photos I took.

wild strawberries
an underpass for farm equipment
an old culvert dated 1930

It was a beautiful section of trail and a beautiful day. There were so many wild strawberries along the path in this particular area.

We once again we left the trail as we neared Charlottetown and rode the coastal roads. The view of the farm fields with the bright blue sky and backdrop of the water was gorgeous.

Still in a rural agricultural area, we saw some cute farm stands right on the road selling their produce. They were operated on the honor system.

As we neared Charlottetown, we had a portion of bike lane, the rest was on the shoulder of the road shared with cars. We also got into some hills! We pressed on though and my personal goal was to not walk my bike up any hills. I was very tempted on this particular stretch, but didn’t give in! We crossed a bridge from Stratford over to Charlottetown. It carried a lot of traffic and I was glad we had a separate bike lane.

We were ready for lunch at this point, and ate at a lobster house on the wharf with beautiful views of the water. I ordered a burger and fries and Jimmy went with fish and chips.

We explored the Charlottetown waterfront after we ate. It’s beautiful with little shops and restaurants. I love the colorful floating homes in the harbor.

these cute little floating homes are rentals!

With the return to Charlottetown, that completed our Tip-to-Tip ride of Prince Edward Island. When all was said and done, we’d been on the bike for 10 days and ridden 324 miles (522 km).

We did it!

We only had one day that was a complete rain out, only riding about 5 miles that day. We lodged at 9 different establishments from historic inns to a little farm cabin. I would stay at each place again. We met some wonderful people and found the residents of PEI to be very kind and welcoming.

The weather and the views were beautiful in late June/early July. We’d been told the island was flat, and we’d been told the island was hilly. It can be both, and some of that depends on your perspective. If you live in the Rocky Mountains, you’d say it was flat. If you lived in Kansas, you would say it’s hilly. It depends on where you are riding. The Confederation Trail, being a converted railway, is flat with not more than a 2% grade. Some of the coastal roads we biked were hilly, but not horrible. At least the route we took. There are more serious hills toward the center of the island I think. But I never had to get off my bike and walk, though at times I was tempted. We did a combination of the Confederation Trail and coastal roads. If you just stay on the trail, you miss all the beautiful shoreline, and charming little harbors. We felt safe on the roadways. Most have wide shoulders and little traffic. We found the drivers to be very courteous as they are accustomed to bikes on the roads here.

There are mosquitoes and lots of them. They did not bother us while we were in motion on the bikes, but in many areas, as soon as we stopped, we were swarmed with them. We had Off towelettes in our bike bag and those worked well to keep them away.

We reached out to George Larter with PEI Guide and Drive Service when we began to plan the trip in earnest. It was originally planned for the summer of 2020, but Covid-19 put that plan on hold. George develops itineraries for folks visiting the island, and provides a number of services. He made all of our lodging reservations for us, with the exception of the one we had already made at the Fairholm Inn in Charlottetown. He also picked us up a time or two to take us to different areas on the island so we could get everything in that we wanted to see with the time we had. He also transferred our luggage for us each day. All we had to do was leave it in the room when we left on the bikes in the morning, and it would be waiting for us that evening at the next place. He also went grocery shopping for us when he knew we would be staying at an inn with no dinner options. Of course he came to our rescue on the day it rained for 12 hours, lol, picking us up early so we didn’t have to ride in the rain. He was great to work with.

It was a great trip, one we will always remember. And what a blessing to have shared it together!

Lodging List

Mill River Resort

Prince County Guesthouse

Heritage Classic Inn

Fairholm Inn

Bishops Rest

Points East Coastal Inn

Georgetown Historic Inn

Cliffside Inn

Do Duck Inn

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Day 11 – Rain Out! – Little Sands to Vernon River

7 Jul

We knew the forecast didn’t look promising today. 100% chance of rain or very nearly, with the rain predicted to subside around 8:00 pm. The rain had started overnight, and while that made for great sleeping conditions, it did not make for good biking conditions. We enjoyed a cool drizzly rain while we slept and slept with all the windows open. Something we could never do in July in Kentucky’s heat and humidity!

After a full breakfast at Cliffside Inn, we donned our rain gear and started out. Our plan was to ride the coastal roads again, exploring the little villages and harbors along the way. We’d checked the route the night before and had a plan to cut down the miles if it was just too miserable in the rain. But even at the shortest distance, we would be in for an 18 mile ride to our next stop of Vernon River. So we took the plunge!

leaving Cliffside Inn

With the rain, we decided we’d bike to Point Prim and see the lighthouse there, and then reassess and see if we wanted to have George (PEI Guide and Drive Service) pick us up and drive us to our next lodging. George had been shuttling our luggage for us each day, and we knew he’d be in the area.

The rain was steady and blowing at us from an angle, making it hard to see. There was standing water on the road and the ride took our full attention. I did not take pictures. We’d only gone a few miles when Jimmy’s cell phone rang. We pulled off to the side of the road to take the call, and it was George, offering to come get us. He was surprised we’d already left the inn, and we arranged a place to meet him after he picked up our luggage. That made the ride much more tolerable, knowing rescue was on the way! I was already soaked through! He told us there was a stop a few miles ahead of us, and if we’d wait there, he’d be there in an hour or so. We arrived at the Woods Island Market area George had described, and found a candy shop, visitor center, old train depot, shops, and a trail-head for the Confederation Trail. We spent some time looking around a bit while we waited, and the owner of the candy shop offered us some hot tea. It was perfect! I wasn’t cold in the rain while we were riding, I guess I generated enough heat to keep me warm. But when we stopped and got off the bikes, I was so cold! I couldn’t get out of my wet clothes until we arrived at our next lodging and the hot tea helped! I sat under the covered porch on a bench and drank my tea.

George soon arrived, loaded our bikes onto the trailer and off we went. He had his wife with him this time. She just retired from her career as a labor/delivery nurse on Friday! So she is starting to pitch in to help George with the visitors to the island as this is his busiest time of year. We enjoyed the ride and the conversation. I especially enjoyed being in a warm vehicle!

George knew our itinerary each day, as he and Jimmy developed the ride plan together, picking routes to include all the things we wanted to see. He knew we’d not made it out to the lighthouse and said he’d take us there on the way. It was a pretty drive, but I was so glad I wasn’t biking it! The rain did not slacken at all. We walked up to the top taking in the views, and reading the information. The Point Prim lighthouse, built in 1845, is the oldest lighthouse on the island, and the only round one. It’s one of only three round ones in all of Canada. All the others we’ve seen have been short and square.

view from the top

The Point Prim lighthouse was the first one built on Prince Edward Island, and every ship that sailed into Charlottetown was guided by its light. The climb to the top was all by ladder, no steps! I thought it was especially interesting to see it during weather conditions that would have made its presence most useful to sailors!

This part of the island is very rural, with grocers and restaurants few and far between. George recommended we stop at a little market on our way to Vernon River since we would have no dining options. We hadn’t had lunch yet either, so we had to buy enough for lunch, dinner and breakfast. We bought just the basics, plus a quart of freshly picked strawberries. The strawberry field was across from the market and the berries were sold at the counter while they’re in season.

freshly picked local strawberries and thick multigrain bread!

We soon arrived at our lodging for the night. Though we were earlier than the check in time, it was no problem. George had called ahead to let them know our ride was cut short. The owner, knowing we were soaking wet and cold, had walked over to our cottage and turned on the heat for us so it would be warm when we arrived. It felt so good! There were not many options in this area. George, who made all the lodging arrangements for us, except for the one we’d already made in Charlottetown, had booked us a little cottage in this area. It was cozy and cute and situated on a big farm behind the farmhouse. Fields of potatoes and vegetable gardens surround the cottage. The view out our front window is a big red barn. There are 3 cottages and a separate little shed with a washer and dryer. I took these pictures after the rain. As predicted, the rain finally ended about 8:00 pm.

cottage
washer and dryer shed
clothesline
outdoor kitchen
potato field

We grilled burgers for dinner (still raining!) and checked the forecast for tomorrow.

Jimmy had supervision while he grilled
kitty watched us as we ate

Tomorrow will be our last day of riding and the day promises to be gorgeous! We’ve been very fortunate that in 11 days of riding so far, we’ve only had one complete rain out! We’re looking forward to bright blue skies again tomorrow. (Here’s the curious little kitty that watched me type this morning as I finished up this post. Notice the bright blue skies! Yay!)

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Day 9 – St. Peters to Elmira – 56 km (35 miles)

5 Jul

Today we rode the last section of the Confederation Trail’s main line from St. Peters to the end of the line in Elmira. There’s a nice little museum and welcome center there, and a sign that shows the ending point for those like us riding Prince Edward Island from tip to tip!

Today’s ride took us through a more remote area of the island. It’s actually all very rural with just a few scattered houses until you near a town. But we didn’t see many houses today, just beautiful scenery once again.

As we pedaled east, I began to notice wild strawberries and raspberries along the trail. The strawberries were very small, but sweet.

Today was the coolest temperatures we’ve had. I wore long sleeves most of the morning. It started out in the upper 50’s with a moderate breeze, and the high for the day was 64. Sunny skies kept us warm as we rode. Perfect bicycling weather!

At one stop along the trail, there was an artesian well bubbling up from the ground through a pipe. It is the only artesian well on the island. The water enters the subsurface at a higher elevation and is confined between layers of clay or hard rock. This causes pressure to build up and the water finds its way to an outlet at a lower elevation, and bubbles up to the surface. When the railroad operated along this line, this well was used to supply water for the steam enginnes.

artesian well

The water flowing from underground is a consistent 45 degrees (7c) all year long, so it never freezes.

We made it to the end of the trail in Elmira, having ridden the Confederation Trail from tip to tip along the center of the island. There are many spurs that came off the main line, and the remainder of the week we will ride some of those. But with today’s ride, we had completed our tip to tip portion of the ride.

In the old train depot in Elmira, they have a museum, a visitor’s center, and restrooms. We received a certificate for completing the tip to tip ride of 273 km (170 miles), though our mileage is higher than that because we added some miles on the coastal roads.

old rails still in place as we near the end of the line
Elmira Depot

After exploring the museum a bit, we found lunch at a food truck in the middle of nowhere. It was about 1.5 miles from the end of the trail. We took the road to get to the truck’s location, but the area is very rural so there wasn’t much traffic.

The views were fantastic and so was the food. I ordered the veggie sandwich with cheese, avocado, and coconut bacon (a new food I’d never heard of but delicious) and Jimmy ordered fish tacos. We had a view of the ocean as we ate.

Once we finished lunch, we had about a 6 mile ride to East Point lighthouse where we’d arranged with George to pick us up and take us to Georgetown for the night. The ride was all along the coastal roads. There was not a shoulder, but there were very few cars. This stretch was gorgeous!

We arrived at the lighthouse, parked the bikes and walked up to the top. The lighthouse was built in 1867 and was the tallest we’ve seen on the island. The others have been short and stocky, but this one was 66 steps to the top (I counted!)

George was right on time and loaded our bikes and another group’s bikes onto the trailer. The other group consisted of 3 ladies also from the U.S. Since it was the 4th of July, we had a little moment of celebrating Independence Day in the van, complete with cheers and applause!

George dropped us off in Georgetown so we could continue our ride tomorrow, and the 3 ladies were headed back to Charlottetown having completed their tip to tip ride.

The Georgetown Historic Inn was built in 1840 as a home. Throughout the years, the building has served many purposes; post office, general store, boarding house, warehouse and thrift store. In 1995, it was converted into an inn with 8 guest rooms.

view from the inn’s 3rd floor to the wharf

There’s a restaurant on the ground floor of the inn, we’ll have breakfast there in the morning, but George recommended a restaurant a short walk away on the waterfront. We’re glad we took his recommendation because it was delicious with beautiful views on the deck. After dinner we walked to the wharf and I took more pictures. Though we missed being in the U.S. for the 4th, it was nice being in such a lovely place!

bait sheds at the wharf

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Day 7 – Charlottetown to St. Andrews – 41 km (25.5 miles)

3 Jul

It was good to get back on the bikes today, even though the forecast called for rain. We didn’t have too far to travel to our next stop, so we planned to make good time to beat the rain. Even though it was cloudy and overcast, it was still a beautiful area. We left the inn and rode through the quiet streets of Charlottetown to the connector. Yesterday was Canada Day, and there were fireworks and celebrations into the night, so the streets were pretty much deserted this morning.

We traveled among cattle farms and fields of wildflowers.

We also noticed an abundance of apple trees along the trail. Apple trees are prevalent along old railways such as the Confederation Trail. Train passengers that traveled by train around the turn of the century had to pack their lunch for the trip. Lunches often contained an apple and the core would be tossed out the train window once the apple was eaten.

Baby apples

We traveled along and passed an area of salt marshes. They were beautiful with the tall grasses and the twisting streams of water, bordered by wildflowers and cattails.

The ferns are shoulder high!

We made good time and were soon at Mt. Stewart. We knew we’d be too early to check in, so we found a local spot for lunch before pedaling the last couple of miles to the inn. Laurie’s Country Kitchen was just the spot! Our server was from Virginia! She said she liked it when she got to wait on fellow Americans because when she tells them their check will be at the counter, they know what she means, lol.

Jimmy looked over the menu and decided to eat like a local. He ordered the hot hamburger, not to be confused with the hamburger also listed on the menu. He was not disappointed! A hot hamburger consists of 2 thick pieces of bread with a hamburger patty between, topped with peas, gravy, and caramelized onions. It is served with vegetables and fries! He loved it!

Just as we finished eating, it began to sprinkle, so we did our best to beat the rain, and we were so close! We were within a mile of our turn when the skies opened up. We grabbed our rain gear and kept pedaling. We took cover under a trailside shelter within sight of the path to the inn.

The sign pointing to the inn

The rain didn’t stop so we just trudged on up the hill to the inn. There was a grassy path that led from the trail to a dead end road, and the road led to the inn.

Bishop’s Rest Inn is in sight!

We were certainly happy to see Bishop’s Rest and get out of our wet clothing. The house once served as a parochial home for St. Andrews Church next door, and when the innkeepers bought it, it had been vacant for 15 years. They’d driven past the house many times and even wished to own a place such as this, but knew it would never go up for sale since it was owned by the church. One day when they drove by, a little for sale sign was in the yard and they called and made an offer. Today, Sarah runs the B&B, and Ben runs a bakery above the garage. We were greeted by Ben when we arrived and allowed to store our bikes in the garage.

The house is in a beautiful location on a hill overlooking the church cemetery and the Hillsborough River.

We went up to our room and changed out of our wet clothes and placed our order for dinner. Ben is a chef and offers dinner for guests if needed. There was a great selection of entrees, including his homemade pizza, but we decided on the salmon. It was so good and so good not to have to get out on the bikes in the rain and try to find dinner! There really aren’t too many restaurant options around, and being situated on the Confederation Trail brings them many bikers and walkers. So they decided to use Ben’s skills and offer an evening meal option and see how it went. I think it’s been a big success!

Ben also operates a bakery on site. It is a self-serve bakery based on the honor system. Another bonus to staying here is the smell of freshly baking bread! Breakfast items are placed out the night before and I was excited to see an assortment of Ben’s bakery items.

By the time we’d finished dinner, the rain had stopped and we walked over to the old church and the cemetery.

Bishop’s Rest B&B adopted its name from Bishop MacEachern and the historic property on which the house is situated. It’s in the little village of St. Andrew’s, and St. Andrew’s Church is right beside the house.The Bishop came to the island in 1790 and served the people of his parish tirelessly. When he arrived, he was the only priest on the island, and had the responsibility of 1000 Catholic parishioners scattered across a large area. Though he did not restrict himself to people of the Catholic faith. He made himself available to serve all people and all faiths. He died in 1835 and being much loved by the people, was buried under the altar of the church. His remains have since been moved twice, once when the church was relocated closer to the road, and finally into a crypt behind the church.

the crypt

The church beside the inn has an interesting story. It was built in 1805 and when the church grew, they built a bigger one closer to the road. This one sat empty until they decided to move it to Charlottetown to be used as a school. It was moved in the winter of 1864 and transported by men and horses on the ice-covered Hillsborough River to Charlottetown. I don’t know what that distance would be on the river, but the distance by bike was 24 miles. The whole community was on standby for what was called a “stupendous undertaking”.

“For more than a month the good people of St. Andrews worked under the direction of their pastor, and then, all being ready, they awaited coming of a severe frost to prepare the ice for the heavy load in store for it…On Monday, the 7th of March, in response to an eloquent appeal…500 men, Protestants as well as Catholics assembled with 120 horses, all ready for the work.”

Rev. John C. MacMillan (The Catholic Church in Prince Edward Island, 1835-1891)

What a sight that must have been, 500 men and 120 horses moving a church over the ice of the river. But about 7 miles from Charlottetown, they had to veer around a wharf, which moved them closer to the channel of the river and thinner ice.

“After sundry warning sounds, with a tremendous crash the whole building was submerged and was firmly embedded at the bottom of the river. But the faith that can move mountains was not wanting here: it worked well combined with the muscle and sinew of the faithful, and at 4 o’clock p.m., by almost superhuman efforts, the chapel was dragged from the water and the march resumed.”

Rev. John C. MacMillan (The Catholic Church in Prince Edward Island, 1835-1891)

What an amazing story of the church next door. But since the church is still next door, that means that it was returned to this location once again from Charlottetown! The story does not end there. After a 2 day journey on the frozen river, the church was deposited in Charlottetown and served as a school for girls from 1864 to 1976. It was the core building for St. Joseph’s convent and other additions to the original building had been added through the years. In 1987, the convent caught fire, but miraculously, the original structure of St. Andrews Church, sustained very little damage.

A group called the Friends of St. Andrews acquired the old church and brought it back to its original location in the little village, causing one parishioner to comment that St. Andrews is the only church “to have gone to town and back!”

St. Andrews, built in 1805 having gone to town and back

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Day 6 – Rest Day

2 Jul

Today was a scheduled rest day and it came at a good time in our trip. We’d decided to keep one of the days that we are in Charlottetown open, to give us the flexibility to explore by car. The timing of it couldn’t be better, since Jimmy broke a spoke on his rear bike tire yesterday and needed time to replace it. God blessed us with this free day that we didn’t know we’d need! We took our time this morning, hanging around the inn after breakfast for bike repairs and were so grateful we didn’t have the pressure of trying to get on the trail.

We decided we’d devote the day to the Cavendish area to take in the Anne of Green Gables sites. As it turns out, today is Canada Day, (similar to our 4th of July) and because of that, it was free admission to the Anne of Green Gables Heritage Center and the national parks on the island. An unexpected bonus!

First stop though, was Avonlea Village located near Green Gables. It was a collection of historic buildings, shops, and restaurants. We explored a bit and ate an early lunch before heading to Green Gables.

We were very surprised that nothing was crowded today, especially since it was a national holiday and free admission! But there were very few people at Green Gables or Avonlea Village. We got right in and enjoyed touring the house and grounds.

There are two trails on the property, one is Lover’s Lane which was one of the author’s favorite places when she lived on PEI. The other was the walk through the haunted woods, just a shady little trail that went from the author’s home where she lived with her grandparents, to this home, Green Gables, owned by her cousins.

We took a little stroll down Lover’s Lane, and also checked out the haunted forest.

“This evening I spent in Lover’s Lane. How beautiful it was-green and alluring and beckoning! I had been tired and discouraged and sick at heart before I went…and it…stole away the heartsickness, giving peace and newness of life.”

The Selected Journals of L.M. Montgomery, entry of August 1, 1909
Lover’s Lane
Trail between Green Gables and the author’s home (aka haunted forest)

Lucy Maud Montgomery spent the first half of her life on PEI after the death of her mother. She came to live with her grandparents and was a frequent visitor to this farmhouse which was owned by her cousins, David and Margaret Mcneill, who were brother and sister. It was this house she began to imagine as the home of Anne Shirley when she came to live with the Cuthberts’, another brother/sister.

“I have woven a good deal of reality into my books. Cavendish is to a large extent Avonlea…Green Gables was drawn from David Macneill’s house…and the truth of my description of it is attested by the fact that everybody has recognized it.”

L.M. Montgomery’s Journal, January 27, 1911

We left Green Gables after a thorough exploration and headed toward Dalvay-by-the-Sea. The road traveled along the Bay of St. Lawrence, and though we’d ridden this section on bike yesterday, we didn’t mind seeing it again because it’s just so beautiful. At a little roadside pull-off we walked out to a scenic point and got to see a young lady playing the bagpipes at the cliff’s edge. She was very good and I talked to her a bit.

During the tourist season, (May-October) they have tour busses scheduled to make a stop at this location, and her job is to be on site playing the bagpipes when they arrive.

She said there were 56 scheduled stops at this spot throughout the season. I was glad the bus was late, because we got a free private concert since she was practicing to be ready. It is a beautiful place to stop.

The Cavendish area was first settled by Scottish immigrants, (the Mcneill family for one, relatives of L.M. Montgomery), and there are still Scottish influences to this day. Yesterday on the bikes, I noticed several locations with signs in the yard announcing Ceididh and listing a start time of 7:30 pm. Each sign, no matter the location listed the same start time. A Ceididh is a traditional Scottish social gathering or visit. There are quite a few gatherings like this in the area, and it seems most involve musical entertainment and food! The ones that involve food are called kitchen parties. Sounds like my kind of party! Everyone is welcome, residents and visitors alike, and they are held weekly throughout the summer.

Our last stop of the day was Dalvay-by-the-Sea. We had reservations for dinner and we arrived a bit early, so we sat in the big chairs on the front lawn that overlook Lake Dalvay. The lawn was full of geese near the water.

Open May through October, Dalvay-by-the-Sea is a Canadian National Historic Site located in Prince Edward Island National Park.

The house was built in 1895, by an American who was once president of Standard Oil Company with John D. Rockefeller. Alexander MacDonald had left his home country of Scotland to seek a better life, and ended up in Cincinnati, Ohio. He married Laura Palmer, and they had one daughter also named Laura. Laura married and had two daughters, Helena and Laura (the 3rd Laura in the family!) When the mother of the two girls died at a young age, the girls went to live with their grandparents. They were given the very best of everything, and traveled extensively with their grandparents. It was on one of their travels that their grandfather fell in love with PEI and decided to build a summer home there. Construction began in 1895 and he called this home Dalvay-by-the-Sea after his boyhood home in Scotland. He also had a home in Cincinnati named Dalvay.

Local building materials were used exclusively to build the home. Sandstone was quarried on the island and used in its natural boulder form. The huge fireplaces were also made of quarried stone.

The family enjoyed many wonderful summers there, and would host a big party for all of the locals before they closed the house for the winter. The event involved a dance and a hired violinist. It was a lavish event that was the highlight of the year for the local folks that lived nearby.

It operates today as a hotel, and visitors are welcome to enjoy the grounds and explore the home while in the area. We had made reservations for dinner, and I took lots of pictures on the inside. There’s a large center hallway through the middle of the home, and the upper floor is gallery style with a grand staircase leading up to the rooms.

In the main hallway across from the stone fireplace was an old desk containing scrapbooks and old photos of days gone by. I was excited to look through the scrapbook that was devoted to the royal visit in 2011. Will and Kate visited Dalvay-by-the-Sea on their royal honeymoon tour.

Anne of Green Gables fans will recognize Dalvay as “The White Sands Hotel”. In the movie starring Megan Follows, a scene involves Anne going to a recital at the White Sands Hotel. Anne loses her papers all over the dunes with the hotel in the background.

The food and service were perfect. It was such a treat to explore the home, then enjoy a meal there.

And now for the rest of the story of Dalvay-by-the-Sea. Mr. Macdonald, the grandfather of the two girl’s last visit to his beloved summer home on PEI was in 1909. His health had slowly deteriorated and after he closed the house for the summer, on his way to the train station, he requested to have the horses stop when he reached Long Pond. He stood alone for a long while looking back at his home and quietly said, “Goodbye Dalvay”. He was never able to return and died in 1910 in California.

He left Dalvay and most of his massive fortune to his two granddaughters who were 16 and 17 at the time of his death. The house and estate were to be managed by their father until the girls became of age. The estate was worth $15-million and made the two girls some of the wealthiest women of that time period.

Though both girls had originally planned to marry successful young men from the Cincinnati area, they decided they might do better for themselves if they went to Europe and tried to marry into royalty. Not surprisingly, considering their vast wealth, both girls succeeded. Miss Helena married Prince Mural of France. Her sister, Miss Laura married Prince Rosspigliosi of Italy.

Their father, in managing their inheritance, made some poor decisions and bad investments and the girls learned that the large fortune their grandfather had left them had dwindled down to almost nothing. Both of the princes divorced the girls after learning they no longer had access to money. Helena died of cancer at the age of 38 and Laura moved to New York where she had to work to support her family and could no longer afford to keep the Dalvay property.

It changed hands many times throughout the years until it was acquired by Parks Canada in 1959. I really enjoyed learning about the home and the family that lived there, and am glad this treasure was saved for all to enjoy.

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Day Five – Cavendish to Dalvay-by-the-Sea – 52 km (32.5 miles)

1 Jul

We’d arranged with George Larter (PEI Guide and Drive Service) to pick us up from the inn after breakfast and shuttle us to Cavendish. He was right on time and had his grandson, 7&3/4 year old Jett, assisting him today. They loaded our bikes onto the trailer and we set out.

Cavendish is not easily bikable from Charlottetown (at least not by us) because there’s not a bike trail to that location and the roads are heavily traveled with little or no shoulder. Plus, we wanted to maximize our time, so a shuttle out and back was our best bet. We enjoyed the 40 minute ride and George dropped us off at Cavendish beach with instructions to call him when we wanted to be picked back up and returned to Charlottetown. He also had some great suggestions for dining options that the locals enjoy. He’s a wealth of information about PEI in general having lived and worked here for many years.

Our route today took us along the north shore of the island from Cavendish to Dalvay-by-the-Sea. Most of it was on dedicated bike trails that followed the coast. The bike paths we used today were part of the Prince Edward Island National Park. The scenery was gorgeous and the bike trails were mostly paved with some boardwalk trails.

Almost immediately, I was able to see the Lake of Shining Waters, as Anne of Green Gables called Mcneill’s pond, named for one of the three Scottish families that founded Cavendish. The bike trail goes right over the pond on floating platforms.

The trail along the coast is beautiful and the weather was delightful. Sunny and warm but certainly not hot. The bright blue skies were the perfect backdrop.

We never tired of the coastal views!

George had mentioned that today was the end of the lobster season, and we could expect much activity on the docks and wharfs. We rode through a beautiful section of trail in the village of North Rustico.

North Rustico was where the first Acadians settled in 1790. The village of 810 people are mostly direct descendants of the original Acadians. There are currently five Rusticos on PEI! They are North Rustico, South Rustico, Rusticoville, Rustico Harbour, and Anglo-Rustico. I guess you have to be pretty specific about which town you call home! They had a nice welcome sign on the harbour trail and the trail led directly to the wharf. I was actually surprised we were allowed such access to the wharf, because it was a beehive of activity and definitely a workplace. Lobster boats were streaming to the dock with their loads and tractors and front-end loaders were busy unloading the traps. We walked right along side the boats and watched the work.

Though they were busy with the day’s catch, they seemed to enjoy showing us their haul. We left the wharf and the bike trail and switched to the roads for 10-12 miles. But before we left North Rustico, George had told us about a little roadside stand that sold lunch. We climbed a hill from the wharf on Route 6 and soon found the spot George had described. We would have missed it altogether without the recommendation, because it was a tiny little shack as nondescript as could be. It was hardly noticable at all.

There were two menu items. Fish and chips and clams and fries. There may have been 3 menu items because I think you could just get an order of fries. The little shop is operated by one man who does the order taking, the cooking, and serves as cashier. In a separate little shack, his wife is busy cutting fries. They only serve PEI grown potatoes hand cut into fries.

We decided we’d better order one of each. Clams for me and fish and chips for him. It was delicious! We had seating out back at picnic tables in the shade, and there were several people already eating even though it was early. There was one mason jar of salt, that someone had modified by punching holes in the metal lid, and one bottle of vinegar. If you needed salt for your fries or vinegar for your fish, you’d just walk over to the table of the people that had used it last and ask to borrow it.

After our lunch, we continued on with our ride that took us along the shoulder of Route 6 all the way to Brackley Beach. We were on the road for 10-12 miles riding on the wide shoulder. We don’t love riding on roads, but sometimes it’s necessary to see everything we want to see. Drivers are cautious around bikers here, and courteous enough to move as far away from us as possible when passing. We rode more hills today too with long climbs followed thankfully by long stretches of coasting.

The hill behind me in the photo below does not look very impressive, but it was a long, hard climb. I made it to the top, and took a little rest, just to take a picture of course, lol.

Very happy that hill is behind me!

We took a short detour down a side road (at George’s recommendation) and saw the oldest church and house on the island and the oldest bank in North America. All at one location!

The church was built in 1838 by Acadian craftsmen. It is the oldest Roman Catholic church still in use on Prince Edward Island. The three bells in the tower were cast in Sheffield, England. The door is unlocked so visitors can take a look at this historic church.

pulls for the 3 bells in the tower

Right next door to the old church, is Farmer’s Bank of Rustico. The bank was the first credit union in North America, and was the model for all credit unions to follow. It was the brainchild of Father Belcourt, who was the priest at St. Augustine next door. In December of 1859, Father Belcourt arrived at St. Augustine to take over the parish. He had been a missionary among the aboriginal people of Manitoba for 30 years before arriving at Rustico. He had a heart of service for the people, and immediately recognized the desperate poverty of the Acadians. They were being unfairly treated by English settlers, paying high interest rates for loans, and having to give an unfair percentage of their crops or goods as collateral. It was a difficult cycle to break. Father Belcourt set out to help improve the lives of the Acadian residents. During his 10 year tenure in the parish, Father Belcourt started a library, a school, a band, and a bank giving the Acadians the tools for a better life. He also started an adult study club with the aim of improving adult education. One prerequisite of the study club, that met weekly, was that one abstain from alcohol in order to be a member. He’d seen first-hand the affects of alcoholism in his previous parish and wanted to protect the people of Rustico.

He was a man of many talents and built everything from boats, furniture, musical instruments to buildings, using his skills of carpentry, design, and mechanics. Always looking for ways to improve the area, he imported the first “horseless carriage” to Prince Edward Island, and was later involved in the first car accident.

Today, the old bank building houses a very nice museum, and I was given a private tour of the museum and the oldest house in PEI, which is right next door. I was the only visitor and my tour guide was a college student working at the museum during her summer break. She did a great job and told me her first cousin lives in Kentucky!

We soon left route 6 and got back on the coastal bike paths of Prince Edward Island National Park for the rest of our ride. We cycled to Dalvay-by-the-Sea.

Covehead Lighthouse

We have reservations for dinner at Dalvay-by-the-Sea tomorrow night. Today we just took a look at the outside. I’m very interested to see the inside, as Will and Kate spent part of their honeymoon trip here!

We turned back toward Covehead lighthouse to eat dinner at Original Richard’s. We timed it just right and missed the long line that usually fills up the parking lot. We’d arranged to be picked up there after dinner. We both ordered the lobster roll and PEI fries. The pictures do not do it justice! We ate it on the deck overlooking the long line that had formed. Also the wharf was very busy with the last of the lobster boats heading in. Another gorgeous day on PEI!

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Day Four – Hunter River to Charlottetown – 32 km (20 miles)

30 Jun
Hunter River

Today was a light day as we made our way back to Charlottetown, our home base. We had arranged to leave our car parked at the inn in Charlottetown and ride out from there. After exploring the north end of the island, we’ll be in town for three nights, being shuttled to and from the Cavendish area tomorrow to explore the national park there, then we will have a rest day to explore off the bikes. The rest day will include all things Anne with an “e”! After the rest day, we will start our 6 day exploration of the other side of the island.

We are using a guide service to transport our luggage for us each day. When we arrive at our B & B each night, our bag is in our room waiting. When we leave for the next destination, we leave our bag and the guide service picks it up and takes it to the next night’s lodging.

After a continental breakfast at the Inn, we placed a new pin in their visitor map marking the state of Kentucky for the first time.

It was a beautiful day with no wind! A miracle! The rain and cloudy skies from yesterday yielded bright blue skies and sunshine today. It was gorgeous and the trail from Hunter River to Charlottetown was some of the prettiest yet! As we left town, I took a few photos of beautiful Hunter River. The water is so clear you can see to the bottom of the river.

We had a bit of a climb from Hunter River to get to the trail, but once on the trail it was an easy ride. Because the trail runs on the old Canadian rail line, it is fairly level with not more than a 2% grade. We did have two climbs, but they were so gradual it didn’t bother us at all, and we had 2 very easy stretches of pedaling following the climbs.

We’ve noticed in a few places along the trail the presence of old culverts with dates ranging from the 1920’s-30’s. When the railroad originally came to Prince Edward Island in the 1870’s, it was a narrow-gauge railway (42″ from rail to rail), because it was less expensive to build, and there was never the thought that it would be necessary to connect to any other line on the mainland. They were an island after all, with the mainland at least 8 miles away with no bridge. But in 1917, a rail-car carrying ferry went into service from PEI to New Brunswick. The railways on the mainland were standard gauge (56.5″ between rails). Initially they addressed the issue of converting the narrow gauge to standard by adding a third rail! But in the 1920’s work began in earnest to switch the whole island to standard-gauge, which involved installing these culverts. When the railway was converted once again to a bike trail, these were removed, but they stand alongside the trail as a little piece of history.

1930 culvert

We continued on, taking our time soaking in all the beauty of God’s creation in this part of the world. We had plenty of time since we knew we couldn’t check in until around 3:00 pm.

mustard on the left, potato rows hilled and ready for planting on the right

As we drew closer to Charlottetown, the scenery changed from rural farmland to quiet neighborhoods as the trail took us through the backyards of the suburbs. I think it’s fun to get to ride through a neighborhood and check out the back yards!

We found a great lunch right off the trail at the Charlottetown Farmer’s Market. Inside were vendors offering every type of food imaginable. We couldn’t resist authentic shrimp tacos.

Tomorrow, on to Cavendish!

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Day Two – Mill River to Miscouche – 69 km (43 miles)

28 Jun
Ferns along the Confederation Trail

Today’s ride on Prince Edward Island took us from the coastal roadways to the Confederation Trail. The trail was built in the 1990’s following the discontinuance of rail service on the island. What was left when the railways abandoned the lines, was a beautiful opportunity for a bike trial down the center of the island. We left Mill River Resort after a hearty breakfast and had a short stretch on the road until we reached the Confederation Trailhead. Yesterday’s ride along the coast was breezy, but today was tough! We pedaled against a strong headwind all day. It never let up. At times I struggled to keep my bike under control as a swift crosswind would swiftly change directions. The battle of a ride was worth the rewards in the beauty of the trail though. Today’s views were ferns, wildflowers, songbirds, wild raspberries, and marshes all along the trail.

As we approached the little town of O’Leary, we came to the home of the Canadian Potato Museum. I’d heard it was well worth a visit, and noting that it was just one kilometer to the left of the trail, we set out for the short detour. However, I did not fully understand the signage. To me, the sign below was a fancy way to show the museum was to the left. But what it really meant was you turn right, then left, then left again.

When we couldn’t find the museum to the left, we went back to the trail and I checked the sign again. A very kind trail worker helped me to interpret the sign. If I’d noticed the two other directional arrows underneath, I might have figured it out, but I doubt it. We added some extra mileage with that mistake but had a good laugh. And now I know how to interpret directional arrows on PEI.

The Potato Museum was really well done and it was interesting. PEI is very proud of its potato production, growing 25% of the potatoes grown in Canada on this its smallest province. We passed farm after farm of beautiful potato fields on today’s ride. One of the nicest things about this museum are the people that work there. The two ladies behind the ticket counter offered to take our saddlebags while we toured the museum. They promised they would guard them while we looked around. As Jimmy was paying the entrance fee, an older gentleman struck up a conversation with me, asking about our trip, where we were from, etc. He pulled out a few travel flyers from the racks that he thought I’d enjoy and had some good recommendations on sights to see while on the island. He couldn’t find one particular flyer however. It was a detailed description of the lighthouses on PEI. He told me about a few of the surrounding lighthouses, but was sorry he couldn’t give me the pamphlet. I thanked him for his recommendations, and we parted ways and started toward the exhibits. As we passed the ladies at the counter, one of them said, that was the director of the museum you were talking to. He stops by from time to time to meet people and check up on us.

We were about half way done with the museum when the same gentleman came up from behind with the lighthouse flyer in hand. I don’t know where he had to go to find one, (there wasn’t one at the museum) but he found it somewhere in town, and was so happy to give it to me. He was just the nicest man. We talked a good bit more and he asked more about Kentucky and said he knew it was a beautiful state. I asked him if I could take his picture because he was so kind.

Just one of the friendly people we’ve met on PEI!

Once we finished with the museum, it was back on the bikes and back in the wind, but with more beautiful views.

We were in a fairly remote area today and the only lunch we could find was at a convenience store. Our seating area was on bales of potting soil out front as we watched the farm equipment drive by on the way to the potato fields. I enjoyed every bite!

We finished up our ride and I took a few more pictures. I really enjoy all the signage on the trail. I stop at every sign. All the bridges and gates are painted purple on the Confederation Trail, and easy to identify.

purple bridge
potato field

We were both very glad to arrive at the Prince County Guest House. It is a beautiful old farmhouse right across the street from a lovely church.

There weren’t too many options for dinner in Miscouche, but the town does have a food truck! We walked down the street and ordered dinner (a Halloumi crepe for me, and a cheeseburger and hotdog for Jimmy, along with homemade PEI fries) We brought our food back to the inn and ate on the back deck overlooking the vegetable garden. A delicious end to the day!

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