Anne of Green Gables? Naw, that's Nancy
Sunday 19 May
Charlottetown, PEI
What a difference a day makes! The weather today was stunning - sunny, calm, and much warmer than yesterday. We were really glad about that, because we really had only today to explore beautiful Prince Edward Island, and it's so much nicer when it isn't raining or snowing. Mind you, it was still a touch on the chilly side. But everywhere we went on the island, we saw people mowing their lawns, and the walk-up hamburger joints were busy.
PEI is surprisingly big. It would be a long day to try to see it all in one go, just driving around the perimeter. We didn't want to do that, so we chose a couple of areas in which to wander, and concentrated on that. After a breakfast of Canadian champions at Tim Horton's, we set off to the north. Charlottetown is situated on the southern side, about mid-island. We wanted to see the airport (of course!) and meander on up to the northern side, and Cavendish, of "Anne of Green Gables" fame.
(A side note: I must be one of the few who hasn't read the books, or seen the TV show or movie(s?) about PEI's most famous fictitious person. Certainly, I've heard about the stories, and have a vague idea about what it's all about. Fortunately, I travel with a very well-read librarian, who can give me the "Cliff's Notes" version, so I can appreciate what I'm seeing. Also, now I'll go read the stories - they sound delightful.)
PEI is very agricultural, as evidenced by the many, many farms and fields everywhere. The soil is a wonderful deep red color, owing to the high concentration of iron oxide. It makes such a beautiful contrast: bright green fields interspersed with rich red. Mostly, it's potatoes and grain, but there's a lot of hay being grown, too. Lots of dairy farms. (Canada's famous ice cream & cow-pun company, Cows, is based here in PEI) Lots of tractors and equipment! We saw the John Deere dealer outside the town of Summerside, and it was bursting with tractors, lawn tractors, equipment of all kinds.
Unfortunately, this doesn't come close to showing the deep red color. But maybe you get the idea
We actually got a little off-track trying to find our way, believe it or not. PEI does a good job of labeling its three primary tourist routes, and we had plenty of maps, GPS, etc. No worries - it's kind of fun to just explore, anyway!
We did follow the signs for the Green Gables route, and that got us up to the northern shore. Explored a beach near Rustico Harbour, including its lighthouse. Then, off to Cavendish and the Green Gables National Park.
As you can imagine, you can't really turn around on this island without running into something "Anne" themed. It's impressive to consider what a contribution it makes to PEI's economy, the tourism alone. Whole tours flock to Cavendish, there's a Green Gables Golf Course just next door, there are "Anne" shops in Charlottetown, not to mention the plays, books, etc. etc.
Anyway, today, the site was open on the outside, but not on the inside: the interior of the house, the visitor's center, the people dressed up in costume - that all happens later in the season. We were able to explore the grounds pretty much by ourselves, which was just dandy. We also took a peaceful walk along a trail set out through the woods. That was nice.
After all that, we started to head for the West Coastal Drive, which took us past the only other airport on the island (surprise, surprise!) What was a surprise, though, was finding a collection of three Canadian Air Force planes on display, in a memorial park! And, to top it off, a glider spiralling above. Couldn't have planned it better!
Hey, I could take this home! Well, maybe not...
The drive on the southwest side of the island took us into Acadian country, with French place names, lots of Catholic churches, and beautiful sweeping vistas down to the sea. Oh, and somebody with a driveway painted as a runway!
We worked our way gradually back towards Charlottetown, observing that in the area of several rural churches, there are signs cautioning about heavy church traffic. In both English and French, of course.
Back in C-town, we ate dinner down along the waterfront - I wanted one more lobster dinner :-) We had a friendly waiter, and we think he's a French-speaking native of PEI. Anyway, in the dining room, we were in the minority as native English speakers: there was a family from Quebec (?), a group of Japanese people, and more. Fun!
Beautiful, soft light as the sun set, as we watched two guys and a yellow Labrador get in their power boat and cruise away. And watched the light change over quiet Charlottetown.
The hockey tournament's over, so the hotel should be quieter tonight. Tomorrow, we turn south and west, and will continue in those directions for the rest of the trip. We'll cross the Confederation Bridge, shoot across New Brunswick, and aim for Bangor, Maine.
Cheers,
--Kit and Nancy
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