We finally left PEI yesterday and today we’re writing from Shediac, New Brunswick. We crossed the Confederation Bridge in the morning and headed to Alana and Daniel’s place, a couple from warmshowers.org who allowed us to pitch our tent on their lawn.

 

 

We rode 82 tough kilometres because of the wind but that won’t make us forget the ball we had in the island over the last ‘long week’ –as they say in Belgium. When we were writing our last post in the blog we couldn’t imagine we’d spend so many days in Prince Edward Island. We’ve been there for eleven days!

 

 

 

While we rode on our last day in PEI the island seemed to cry its eyes off. ‘Don’t go!’, screamed the pouring rain and screeched the ravens while we pedalled along the southern coast.

 

 

Don’t you worry, PEI, we’re leaving but we’re not forgetting – our accounts in this blog will feed our memories in the future.

 

You’ve guessed right, this is TE writing again, also known as Granny TE for her pompous, old-fashioned way of speaking sometimes, but soon you’ll have to call her GraniTE instead, as she grows stronger every day :-D.

 

On 11 June we had a wonderful relaxing day in Charlottetown. We tried some local beers (by Upstreet Craft Brewing) and ate some delicious lobster at Waterprince Corner restaurant. We also had a couple of long walks along the harbour and were just mesmerised by the jellyfish at the docks – dozens of them! Some of the locals were puzzled and looked at us like ‘What are they looking at?’. We then had to explain we had never seen so many jellyfish (at least alive) and so close to the shore before. They’re amazing creatures to look at.

 

 

We also found time to cook at Aloha B&B and leaf through Keltie’s books about the island. Among others, we learnt about the hardships of crossing the strait a couple of centuries ago, way before the Confederation Bridge was built: In winter, passengers on the so-called ice boats would have to sometimes get off and pull with ropes through the frozen waters of the strait.

 

As we told –a few days ago– to a couple who stopped to talk to us, Canadian history is not less fascinating just because it’s shorter than Spanish history; it’s a history of hardship and fighting against the wilderness and the forces of nature. This tells a lot about the character of most Canadian people we’re meeting on the way: determined but also frank, understanding and empathic people; always ready to help.

 

On 12 June we left Charlottetown pretty late and we rode over 20 km on the Confederation Trail and we arrived at Trailside Campground in Tracadie, a little haven right by the side of the trail which used to be a post office a century ago, when the train still ran along the current trail. Jack, the campground owner, explained to us that the train would slow down and somebody would depose a sack full of post for a lady to classify on the very counter we were having dinner at.

That evening we didn’t speak so much with Jack because Pak was trying to assemble a new kickstand on his bike (to no avail, the metal around the bolts of the 49N kickstand sold by McQueen’s Bike shop in Charlottetown disintegrated as he tried to screw it onto the bike). I was also busy exchanging impressions about the island with LeeAnn and Wes, a very friendly couple from BC hosted in the campground we’d love to see again some time in the coming months, as we ride west.

Luckily we would return to the campground two days later and enjoy ample conversation time with Jack! But let’s first write about the east of the island.

On 13 June we passed by Morell and St. Peter’s on the trail – in between them, quite a bunch of beautiful spots along lakes and wetlands.

We did a dozen more kilometres and then at dusk we pitched the tent by the trail. We set off very early in the morning, so we went practically unseen and we bothered no one.

We turned on the trail towards Souris, we visited the lighthouse there and then we took the road north towards East Point.

Unfortunately, by then it was already pouring with rain, so we went west towards All Points East campground by North Lake. We were soaked and freezing by then, and the lady at the office suggested going to Pirates Boathouse Café for some lunch and hot coffee. We followed very gladly her advice and spent a good three to four hours there, eating delicious homemade food and pastry, and chatting away with Valerie, an excellent cook far before she incidentally became the café’s owner. She told us her story and her winters in North Lake, where the ocean freezes and seals play in front of her very kitchen window.

In the evening we decided to ride our bikes (22 km to and fro) to East Point lighthouse under the rain and we gaped for a long while at our first red sand beach. Then we reached an amazing spot after walking a short sandy trail among dunes and wetlands. It was a perfectly unspoilt beach but for a few ugly plastic items. We collected three pieces and carried them on the bike until we found a bin (one can’t do enough for the environment and we wish we could stop more often to clean after the pigs that throw plastic on these astonishing landscapes).

On 15 June we headed back 80 km on the trail to Tracadie. Had we known we’d return, we wouldn’t have taken all our load with us, but sometimes we get to be shortsighted even figuratively, we’re not perfect!

The only incident that day was a partridge that attacked us, with no serious consequence besides the scare of seeing a kamikaze bird as big as a football (or soccer ball, here) following us. Apart from that, it was a wonderful ride back thanks to the gentle weather and we had a great evening with Jack and the very nice people we met that day: Gail, Nancy, Oliver – and Bud! We had already met Bud two days ago but this time we all shared more anecdotes, fun stories and even karaoke songs!

The following day we had agreed with Jack that he’d do us the favour of picking us up in Cavendish, so we rode north without load, first to Dalvay-by-the-sea, where we stopped by to say hello to Nancy, and then 11 km into the national park on bicycle paths. We then had a quick snack in North Rustico and continued towards Cavendish through the provincial park. By then we had already bought our Discovery Pass, which will give us access to any Canadian national or provincial park… and we plan to use them!

In Cavendish we went by the colourful and slightly tacky resorts they’ve built to exploit the Anne of the Green Gables phenomenon. I personally loved the novel and the TV series in my teenage years, but in this occasion we prioritized the amazing red sand beaches of the area.

Jack picked us up as agreed and in the evening he shared with us and Tess, a new Australian guest, his yummy lobster and garlic bread. We shared our beers but man, you can’t beat a lobster treat! We’ll never forget this funky evening hearing Jack’s account of his interesting past. A toast to you, Jack!

On the morning of 17 June we wished a good continuation on the island to Tess and we thanked Jack once again before heading south. We used the last dry moments of the day to do some laundry at another campground and we rode under the rain down to Borden-Carleton, our last night on this gorgeous island.

Our wish for the future is that shoulders on the island roads will be widened to improve the biking experience. You can’t wish to keep cyclists always on the trail, they’ll want to eventually see the coast!

Thanks for reading our blog. We’ll try to update it every week but remember you can follow us on other social media!