Prince Edward Island Day 7 ~ Charlottetown (Again) & Local Theatre!

It was another overcast and drizzly day, so we decided to stay close and walk some of the Confederation Trail in Charlottetown. The Confederation Trail is a 273 km (170 mile) multi-use (walkers, bikers, runners, snowmobiles, etc..) trail system throughout PEI that was built on the former railroad corridor. There are different sections throughout the island that pass through forest, farmland, wetlands, and various communities. We walked the trail for about 3-4 miles.

When we were here four years ago, we grabbed some great Thai food at a local food truck and sought it out this year as well. Luckily for us, it was along this portion of the Confederation Trail, so we stopped and enjoyed a quick and yummy lunch! 😋

 

We meandered the waterfront again and enjoyed some Cow's ice cream once more ~ they offer different flavors each day!
 

As we were walking around, Brad wrangled this lobster!

 

After chilling/napping at the Airbnb for the rest of the afternoon, we headed back into Charlottetown (only a 10 minute drive) to the Confederation Centre of the Arts to see some local theater ~ C'Mon In!  An Island Kitchen Party. 

 

When we purchased the tickets we did not realize that this would be music and singing with a lot of PEI/Atlantic Province humor, but we really enjoyed ourselves and there were a lot of explanations from the performers who knew that non-Islanders and non-Canadians would be in attendance. 

What is a PEI kitchen party? Basically, it is a social gathering that just sort of "happens" as people show up at someone's home - they all hang in the kitchen, and enjoy songs, music, dancing, story-telling, and food. It is still a strong tradition in PEI bringing people together. 

Prince Edward Island Day 6 ~ The North Central Coast (well, some of it.......)

Today we had much cooler temps (high 60's) and rainy (think Oregon rain - a steady drizzle), so after a slow morning, we headed to a few places along the northern central coast that we could do indoors, first stopping at the Great Canadian Soap Company where they make handcrafted natural products using goat's milk.

 

There were tons of options for soaps, lotions, etc....we each chose one soap  (Brad's is the licorice, Suzanne's the vanilla) and a vanilla-scented goat-milk based lotion. 😀

 

We then worked our way to The Handpie Company in Cavendish.....

 

.....and had lunch sharing two handpies ~ a chicken pot pie one and a curry garbanzo bean one ~ both were delicious! 

 

 

The rain pretty much stopped for a bit, so we continued onto the Cavendish section of PEI National Park and walked a bit along a boardwalk/gravel path.

 

Then it was onto The Prince Edward Island Preserve Company where we tried some of their jellies, but given that it was lunch time and the rains were pretty steady at this point, the place was quite busy......well, busy for PEI standards😉....and we did not stay long. 

 

Oh, almost forgot - our first stop of the day was at a nearly pharmacy to get hydrocortisone for our now itchy mosquito bites we got a couple days ago ~ Suzanne has about 40 bites; Brad one. Sigh......😕

So a quieter day here in PEI, but still wonderful! 

 

Prince Edward Island Day 5 ~ Victoria-by-the-Sea and More!

Today was another lovely day weather-wise and we decided that since we drove so much yesterday, we would take a shorter drive to Victoria-by-the-Sea where there are many artisan shops and....lobster rolls! 🦞

Of course the day started with another lighthouse. This is the Victoria Range Lighthouse, built in 1879 ~  it was the only PEI range light designed to display two different navigational lights from one structure.

We then wandered around the quaint village checking out all of the local artists and their wares - we even bought some coconut scented hand cream made from PEI potatoes! 😀

 

We also enjoyed the different architecture of the homes built between 1850 and 1915....

Of course, we were hungry, so we went to Richard's Seafood (the second of the three Richard's Restaurants).......

......for a Connecticut-style lobster roll (our preferred style - warm with melted butter) ~ yum!

 After eating, we continued to meander, checking out the dock......
 

...and the "dog library" full of fetching toys 🐕

 ...and some colorful buildings by the dock......

 

 We continued driving.....

 
 ... eventually finding ourselves with views of the Confederation Bridge, which spans eight miles and connects PEI to New Brunswick (it takes about 10 minutes to drive). It is the longest bridge in the world that crosses ice-covered water (the Northumberland Straight), construction started in 1993, and it took over four years to complete. (Until this bridge was built, the only way to get to PEI was a ferry.)

We continued driving west and ended our day as it began - at a lighthouse! This is the Seacow Head Lighthouse, built in 1864.
 

 

It sits atop beautiful red sandstone cliffs.....where the young folk enjoy jumping into the water......😁

 There were amazing views in this area....

 ...that a couple osprey enjoyed as well!

 There ya have it! Another great day on Prince Edward Island!

Prince Edward Island Day 4 ~ Lotsa Lighthouses!

Today was a bit overcast and cooler, so we decided to drive along the southern and southeastern sections of the East Coastal Drive. (We did much of the northern and northeastern side a couple days ago.) It ended up being a day of lighthouses! 😀

First stop, Point Prim ~ the oldest lighthouse on PEI built in 1845......and undergoing major repairs in 2026! 😂

 

Besides being the first lighthouse, it is constructed from brick, whereas the other lighthouses on PEI are wooden-framed. 

Thanks to google, here is a picture of what the lighthouse looks like under all of that construction wrap:

 

 

A bit down the road is the Wood Islands Lighthouse built in 1876.....(Brad is searching for ships.) The Woods Islands Lighthouse was the last lighthouse on PEI where the last keep and his family lived in an attached keeper's residence (until 1981). 

 

 As we continued driving, we saw the ferry from Nova Scotia (75 minutes to cover 26km AKA 16 miles).

 

Then it was onto the Cape Bear Lighthouse (on the southernmost tip of PEI), built in 1881 and was one of the first wireless stations to receive a distress signal from the sinking Titanic.  

 

It was here that Brad considered becoming a lobster fisher! 🦞

 

There were also some lovely views of the red sandstone cliffs...... 

 We then drove a bit out of the way to Montague to have an excellent lunch at Copper Bottom Brewing, then back to see our final lighthouse: The Panmure Head Lighthouse, built in 1853 (out of wood and the second lighthouse built after Point Prim).

 There were some beautiful views in this area......

 

 We then stopped and walked along the beach.....

 

So that's four out of the 63 lighthouses on PEI! 😎 All-in-all, a lovely day even with some overcast skies and a bit of rain. 
 

Prince Edward Island Day 3 ~ Charlottetown

We decided that we wanted a day of very little driving, so we headed to Charlottetown (10 minutes away, the capital of PEI) sometime late morning and spent about five hours walking around, having lunch (then ice cream), people watching, and enjoying the general vibe. 

 The architecture, of course, is maritime and historic (yup - that's a nice word for old😉, but in a good way.....)

 

One thing we love about PEI (Canada in general) is the dedication to recycling....

 

 

...and the inclusiveness of everyone.....

 It is a bit old school here, with meters that still take coins 😮

 

...and an actual working pay phone! 😵

 There were lots of sailboats doing their thing in Charlottetown Harbour...

 The weather was once again perfect! 🌞