June 2016 - a wee bit of exploring on PEI

Welcome to PEI
Let's start with a few facts about PEI:

• Canada's smallest province
• Population of about 146,000
• Charlottetown is the capital and largest city; population of about 35,000
• Major economic forces - agriculture (PEI produces about 25 % of potatoes in Canada); fishing, tourism
• Located in the Gulf of St. Lawrence near New Brunswick and Nova Scotia
• Referred to as The Garden of the Gulf, the Birthplace of Confederation and the Cradle of Confederation

The greeter at the Charlottetown airport definitely is unique.

After arriving in Charlottetown in late May, I drove to New Brunswick to spend time with family before returning to PEI for a few days of exploring and a Habitat for Humanity project. 


I grew up on a farm in central New Brunswick and remember going on family holidays to PEI on a couple of occasions. Even though I was quite young on the first trip, I clearly remember some things from that trip - the red soil, the red sand beaches especially at Cavendish, the Anne of Green Gables site and searching for golf balls in the stream there (golf course next door). We went there again as a family when I was in my late teens and then about 15 years ago my daughter and I spent a couple of days there. 

Getting There
On my first two trips to the Island, the crossings were made by ferry while the two more recent crossings were driving over the Confederation Bridge. The 12.9 km bridge opened in May 1997 and provides a quick way to reach PEI except on days when the wind is strong and the bridge is closed. While I enjoy the flexibility to drive to the Island, the high sides of the bridge do not allow for much in the way of viewing for people driving in cars. Nevertheless, it is an impressive structure. This year it costs $46 to cross the bridge for a car and driver; a bit more if there more passengers or for larger vehicles. The painless part of this is that you do not pay when going on to the Island; you pay when you leave with lots of great memories.

Immediately after arriving on the Island, there is a large visitors' centre which is well worth a stop. There is a PEI tourism centre with extremely helpful people and plenty of information. There are shops to purchase crafts and souvenirs as well as a number of places to eat.
 
PEI is divided into three counties with one of those being Prince County which can be accessed soon after crossing the bridge. Other than having been to the largest centre (Summerside) several years ago, I had not spent anytime exploring the west and north part of the Island so that is where I went. I didn't have a specific plan for exploring, which was very appealing.

Shortly after arriving on PEI, one is quickly aware of the beautiful pastoral landscape of the Island and it is easy to understand why the Island has a reputation as a place of outstanding natural beauty. For the first night of lodging, it was a short drive to the village of Miscouche, where I stayed at the Prince County B&B - a large farm house had been converted into a comfortable bed and breakfast operation. After settling in, I went for a walk and was quickly into the countryside. There is plenty of farming in the area, but many people drive to Summerside for their job. Directly across from the B&B is an impressive church, which seems almost too large for the size of the community. I regret not visiting the Acadian Museum in Miscouche and will make it a priority to do so if I am ever back in the area.    

After a very comfortable sleep and an excellent home-cooked breakfast, it was back to driving with my destination being the northern tip of the Island (North Cape). It was a relaxing drive that included a few stops along the way before reaching the farming-fishing town of Tignish. As with driving in any part of PEI, one of the things that stands out on the landscape are the churches - there are many and virtually all of them are well kept. Many churches on the Island are known for community dinners open to the public with lobster dinners being the specialty.

Tignish
Before driving to the North Cape, I stopped in Tignish which is the largest town in the area with a population of about 1,400. When exploring, I stopped at a large red brick church where there is a Celtic cross and other memorials honouring 
the Irish who settled in the north part of the Island. Irish roots are deep here and evident in so many ways. 

Constructed between 1857 and 1860, the St. Simon and St. Jude Catholic church is one of the town's defining and popular structures. Tignish was founded in the late 1790s by francophone Acadian families with immigrants, mostly from Ireland, in the 19th century who settled in a smaller nearby village called Anglo-Tignish. Many residents of Tignish today are of either Irish or Acadian heritage. 

Memorials outside the church commemorate the Irish immigrants who arrived in the area beginning in 1811. The Irish presence on the Island is seen in ways - many people with ginger coloured hair as well as in place and family names. There is a strong Scottish heritage on the Island too, but I did not explore communities like Alberton where many Scots settled.

North Cape
At the northern tip of PEI, North Cape is the dividing point that delineates the western limits of Northumberland Strait from the Gulf of St. Lawrence. More specifically, a 2 km long natural rock reef extends off shore from the cape to mark this delineation. The reef can be easily seen from the shore.Tide level was quite high when I was there so it wasn't possible to walk along the reef.

Start of the reef with the white caps marking the reef's path

At North Cape, the Canadian Coast Guard operates a lighthouse as a navigational aid beacon to warn mariners of the hazard associated with the reef. Adjacent to the lighthouse, there is an interpretive centre, marine aquarium, gift shop, restaurant. and the Atlantic Wind Test Site. The test site has several buildings and wind turbines of many shapes and sizes. 

The Irish connection is also seen in this area through the commercial harvest of Irish moss seaweed during the summer.  

Skinners Pond
Not far from North Cape is the rural unincorporated community of Skinners Pond, where the main commercial activities revolve around the fishery and agriculture. Skinners Pond is best know, however, as the boyhood home of Canadian musician Stompim' Tom Connors who was adopted and raised by a local family.

After leaving Skinners Pond, I drove along the coast and was treated to more beautiful scenery. The next stop was at the Canadian Potato Museum in the town of O'Leary. The museum is a tribute to the humble tuber with all things focused on potatoes from the displays to items in the gift shop. When approaching the front door of the museum, visitors are welcomed by the world's largest potato sculpture.

After a bit more driving through the countryside and small towns, I arrived at my lodging for the night in the village of Stanley Bridge. I checked in and then went out to explore a few craft shops before having a fine dinner of pan fried haddock (a fish we rarely see on the west coast unless it is frozen). 

Green Gables
From Stanley Bridge it is a short drive to what is undoubtedly PEI's major attraction - Green Gables. The huge attraction of this place is based upon the Anne of Green Gables books of Lucy Maud Montgomery. The site attracts visitors from around the world and, over the years, millions of fans have made the journey to PEI and discovered the area that captivated Anne in the Montgomery stories.

Anne's bedroom

Green Gables is a beautiful site with many heritage builds, most notably the house where Anne grew up. When the novel Anne of Green Gables was first published in 1908, most readers could only dream of visiting its magical setting. While the book became popular around the world, it is likely that many readers had no idea where Prince Edward Island was and some may well have thought it was a fictitious place. Fans who make the journey to PEI discover the land that captivated Anne in Lucy Maud Montgomery's stories. The site is great for wandering around and includes short walks through a forested area. In addition to the Green Gables site, there are "Anne" themed attractions and events in many place on the Island.

On to Charlottetown
After finishing the visit at Green Gables, I drove on to Charlottetown to reacquaint myself with the downtown and check out a few potential restaurants for dinner with my Habitat team the following week. For a small city, Charlottetown has plenty of very good restaurants that receive high ratings on Trip Advisor and other sources. I also found a coffee shop that serves excellent coffee (one way I rate towns and cities). Then, I made my way to check-in at the hotel on the outskirts of the city. A successful day all around. 

If you're traveling to Charlottetown, here are a few good quality eateries - Gahan's House, Terre Rouge Bistro Piatto Pizzeria and Enoteca, and The Dunes (north of the city near Brackly Beach).

Final Thoughts
I had a great time relaxing on PEI and highly recommend it as a vacation spot. The scenery is spectacular and the people are friendly. The province does an excellent job with it tourism promotion and IMHO certainly lives up to its billing. I was pleased to learn a bit more about the strong Irish influence there and also see the presence of so many people with ginger hair.

PEI - June 2016: Habitat for Humanity Project

Introduction
My trip to PEI (Prince Edward Island) in June was principally to volunteer on a Habitat for Humanity project as the team leader. The post is principally about the build, but a few other things are thrown in.

Sometimes called the Garden of the Gulf, those living in the region commonly refer to PEI as "The Island." PEI is well known for its red soil and red sand beaches, lighthouses, churches painted white, lobster dinners and other seafood delicacies, Anne of Green Gables, and for being the birthplace of Canada. The island province has a population just under 150,000 with about 35,000 of those people living calling the capital city of Charlottetown their home.  


Habitat for Humanity Project
Habitat for Humanity (HFH) has been active on PEI since 1996 and since then has provided many Island families with a safe, decent and affordable home. My team in June worked on the 55th HFH house on The Island, which is a remarkable achievement for the local affiliate. They have been able to do this due to the contributions (time and financial) of local volunteers, partner families as well as teams comprised of people from across Canada, partnerships with local businesses, organizations and governments, and access to property at a reasonable cost.

All of the team arrived in Charlottetown by about 6:00 pm on June 4 (Saturday), so the first thing to do was ensure the team was introduced to each other which was followed by a short orientation by a local HFH representative. We then went out for dinner as a group, which provided a great forum for conversations and getting to know each other a bit. A few people came with a friend or partner, but most of us did not know each other before arriving on The Island. Many people were tired from travels, it was not a late evening. As a team leader on these trips, I always find it interesting to see how people come together to quickly work well together and have fun as a group.

The following day (Sunday), we spent the day with a mix of local historical and cultural experiences starting with a guided tour of the old area of downtown that included walking past Province House National Historic Site. This is the site of the Charlottetown Conference in 1864, the first meeting that led to Canadian confederation in 1867. The building's heritage value relates to its association with Canadian Confederation and the judicial system in PEI. Unfortunately, it was closed for renovations so we didn't get to see the interior.

 Our tour guide

After the walking tour, we took some free time to explore a bit in the downtown before having lunch; then, it was off to Cow's Creamery for one of their delicious ice cream cones! Next on the agenda was a drive outside the city for a tour and tasting at Matos Winery. Matos is a family owned and operated business that started in 2007 after spending a great deal of time researching the most suitable grapes for The Island. They use the French approach of  terroir - finding the best grapes for the combination of soil, slope, sun exposure and weather variations. The owners - Jaime and Heather Matos - were born on the island of Pico in the Acores, just off of Portugal. They moved to Ontario when they were young and eventually made PEI their home. Already they have produced a number of awarding winning wines.

Province House - site of Charlottetown Conference

At Cow's Creamery 

Matos Winery

Our day concluded with dinner at a middle eastern restaurant owned by a HFH partner family who came to The Island as refugees from Afghanistan. They opened especially for our team and we were the only people in the restaurant. Our tasty meal was an indication of the good quality food over our week there. If you're ever in Charlottetown, try Sadat's restaurant.

On Monday morning, it was off to the build site which was about a 15-20 minute drive north of the city to a rural village called Harrington. The build site is located in an area where several HFH houses have already been built with more to come. Our efforts focused on a house that was already under construction and we started at the stage of installing sheathing on the exterior walls and roof, installing external Styrofoam insulation, framing interior walls, installing a number of windows and other tasks during the week. 

We struggled a bit with persistent rain throughout the week and, while our work days were cut short on a couple of occasions, people hung in there despite uncomfortable weather conditions. One day, we spent about half the day helping at the HFH ReStore. Despite battling the wet weather off and on, we finished the last build day in sunshine knowing that we had moved the project along a great deal. By the time we left, the house was completely wrapped in Styrofoam insulation, roof is completely covered with OSB and waiting for shingles to be installed, the interior walls are framed, framing for ceilings is getting close to being ready for drywall to be installed, a number of windows were installed, a garden/storage shed was constructed and waiting for siding and roof shingles. 

During our week there, we had some fantastic dinner meals at local restaurants - Piatto Pizzeria and Enoteca, The Gahan House, Terre Rouge Bistro and The Dunes. The food and service in all these were very good, but the atmosphere at The Dunes is truly unique. 

The Dunes is located north of the city not too far from the build site. Before dinner, we drove to Brackley Beach in Prince Edward Island National Park - home to sand dines, beaches, sandstone cliffs and more. It has been a popular vacation spot since the late 19th century. It was wet and windy for our visit, so we did not stay long. Nevertheless, it was enticing as a place worthy of another visit. The Dunes is a combination of a gallery and restaurant. The gallery features a broad mix of the creations of local artisans as well as various forms of art from around the world that is displayed in a rambling building with many rooms. Many creations are featured in the gardens outside, but the weather did not cooperate for viewing these. Having been there previously, I scheduled dinner so people would have time to explore. This was a good call on my part and an excellent dinner topped off an interesting and fun day.

Brackley Beach

I was very pleased to hear recently that the new owner and her three children moved into their new home in July and a celebration was held on July 31 to welcome them to the community. Even though we were not there to share in this celebration, this project once again demonstrates the critically important role that Habitat for Humanity takes in giving people "a hand up" to improve their housing situation.

Want more PEI?
In addition to the HFH build, I was able to also spend a few days exploring this beautiful province on Canada's east coast. If you're interested to reading a bit more about PEI look for another post on my travel blog.