Day 109: P.E.I. Sightseeing

The day started out bittersweet. We discovered that the ferry traveling from North Sydney, NS to Argentia, Nfld is seasonal and sets out on it’s last sailing on September 24th, three days from today. It’s 385km from Liz and Gerard’s house to North Sydney if we take the ferry from P.E.I. to Nova Scotia, thereby, skipping New Brunswick all together. There is no way that we can even cover this distance, especially since the ferry leaves at 6:00 am leaving us only two days, really, to get there.

This was a huge slap in the face to us. There are two sailing options to Newfoundland: a five hour ride to Port aux Basques on the South Western coast, or a 17 hour ride to Argentia on the South Eastern coast. The former leaves you 908 km from St. John’s via the lonely Trans Canada Highway - the only trans provincial road, while the latter leaves you a mere 133 km from St. John’s. With our diminishing time we were opting for the 17h cruise. The thought of those barren and mountainous 908 km is not so appealing these days as it seems that after over three and a half months and 7400 km this country is finally starting to wear us out (and our wallets for that matter). We were at first disheartened by the prospect of a cross-Canada journey that discludes Newfoundland, but after some tough deliberation we decided that we didn’t want to rush the rest of our trip just to get to St. John’s.

Our first reaction was to decide that Newfoundland was out of the question and, to instead travel down the Annapolis Valley in Nova Scotia and then loop up the Bay of Fundy via St. John, New Brunswick back to P.E.I. But as the day went on our spirits were low. For 3 1/2 months we’ve had our sights set on St. John’s as our final destination. It just made sense to us we guess. It was proving difficult accepting the idea of skipping Newfoundland all together and, by means of our route, not having a true final destination.

Late afternoon we called another board meeting. The idea of scratching Newfoundland was really bothering us. Our compromise was to b-line through New Brunswick and Nova Scotia and attempt the grueling 908 km ride to St. John’s. I won’t be easy but we figure it is the only way we’ll be satisfied.

All of this mulling occurred over a pretty cool day of sightseeing in Charlottetown (although we’d best go back to see it when we’re not mulling). We started our tour with the mandatory stop at Province House, where the idea of Canada’s confederation was born. From there we walked around downtown, stopping in a few pretty neat boutiques. We got a first hand look at how to make stained glass windows from an artist who allows people to come back to her studio and watch her work. Then it was onto the soap shop where we did some really good spying for “It’s a Beautiful Day Soapworks.” Mom you should really look into doing a chocolate soap. Dad, just imagine the opportunities for your label.

According to Liz this is actually a common occurrence in P.E.I. Granny apparently thought so too.

This was just too tempting.

On our way back we pulled a drive-by on The Royal Canadian Legion Branch #1(!), a site that we were actually quite excited to find at one point, but the anticlimactic site of the public library-like structure didn't inspire anyone to stop in for a pint.

We wrapped up our day with another wonderful family dinner, complete with the 20lbs of carrots that we picked from the garden (our instructions were to “pick enough for yourselves and a little bit more for the rest of us.”) We thought that we had picked a normal amount.

B&K

Day 108: Magdelen Islands - Liz and Gerard's House

km today:
total km:

After four days of operating on “island time,” having to wake up at an hour requiring an alarm clock was a jolt to the system. We got our second jolt to the system at Tim Hortons, a slightly odd place to have our last meal on this mostly un-commercialized island. It was fast though (well almost - they just didn’t quite understand our impeccable French accents and messed up our order), and we had a ferry to catch.

We cruised down to the ferry dock and right onto the ferry without having to buy or show a pass. We were beside ourselves with excitement. Had we just gotten on for free? Saving seventy six dollars would certainly be a highlight to the day. So we discreetly settled into the journey and read the crossing away. Not surprisingly, we were the fools. The ticket booth is on board (not very well marked we might add) and the army of extremely vigilant ticket police found us before we had even made it back to our bikes.

Arriving on the P.E.I. side was like stepping back in time. It was warm! Like it had been in mid August and it was apparently a “cool” day according to the very chatty tourist information employee. Also surprising was the fact that we now have to get used to greeting people with “Hellos” rather than “Bonjours.” We won’t be butchering anymore French until we’re heading back to Montreal.

Though P.E.I. is, of course, more developed than the Magdelens we still feel like we’re on “island time.” Popular conversation topics are golf, weather and a lot more golf. Confederation trail suited the casual atmosphere to a “T.” Free of traffic (of any kind really) we joyfully meandered to Liz and Gerard’s.Katie was so excited at the opportunity to take a cheesy photo it took Brandon 3 tries to snap a keeper because she kept putting her thumb or head in the way of the sign.

Very necessary barriers to keep out ATVs.

All to ourselves!

The atmosphere at the house was not so serene, but buzzing. We arrived to a VERY excited Granny Joyce who had already been staking out our arrival from the top of the driveway. Open arms and lots of kisses welcomed us in. It was great seeing (and for Brandon, meeting) Liz and Gerard after a highly anticipated reunion. Staying in a waterfront cottage would be a luxury at anytime but enjoying our surroundings with family hosts elevates the experience a number of notches.

It was especially touching being with Granny. It seems like ages ago since she hosted us on only our second night into the trip when we were still so scrawny and naive as to what lay ahead. It’s just so cool how she’s here to see us almost through. She too clearly got a kick out of seeing us again but wasted no time in making fun of Katie’s new “odd” short hair cut. As she told Pat/dad in reference to Katie, “She’s not fat, she doesn’t really look that different, but her hair is short, and it just looks odd.” A few hours in and the insults were rolling, the wine was flowing and we were loving it.

B&K

Day 107: Magdelen Day Four

km today:
total km:

Our day started off with a bang. We had an exciting breakfast of PB^2M (the M stands for maple spread - it’s fantastic!). We immediately left camp to buy “lunch” aka a box of raisin bran with 2L of milk. It was an excellent excellent way to start off our day. We’re serious too. To us, cereal is a true treat, especially when we have it with real milk, not the powdered stuff we’ve been eating for the last half of the trip.

Fueled, we headed back down south to Ile du Havre Aubert to check out more of the cool boutiques (it was Sunday when we came last and most were closed). It was not easy going today as the wind was fierce, forcing us to a crawl. En route we were distracted by the sight of many a coloured kite zooming back and forth up and down in the sky. Closing in on them we discovered that they were attached to a bunch of surf boards! One of the coolest sports on the island is kite surfing. With the aid of these huge parasails the surfers are able to zoom all over the place without any waves required. Waves only make it a lot more fun for them as they launch off of them gaining like 20 feet of air at a time.



The guy with the pink kite we nicknamed "pinky" (pretty original we know). He's in every picture because he was the best and, therefore, our favourite.

After being distracted for close to an hour we reluctantly tore ourselves away to continue on our slow trek. Our first stop on the island was at “Artisinants de Sable,” which translates to sand artists basically. It is an entire gallery devoted to works of art composed almost entirely of sand. Some of the works were really beautiful and tempting but, even though they assured us that they were hard as rock, we figured that a day in the trailer would revert them back to their original form.

The rest of the day was spent exploring the charms of “la grave,” Magdelen’s oldest and most cultural town, and also where we ate dinner the other evening. The artists here are actually quite artistic, every is completely different and full of genuinely good and unique art. It would be so easy to spend a lot of money here.

We fell asleep very content, feeling as though we’d seen the islands and ready to leave in the morning.

B&K

Day 106: Magdelen Day Three

km today: 72.1
total km: 7145.5

Feeling ambitious, we packed up our campsite and readied ourselves to head north to the English speaking islands of the archipelago. After remaining stationary for two nights it must have been particularly strenuous for us to pack up because by the time we’d eaten breakfast, organized our gear, and made it onto the road we we’re already in need of a hearty lunch. Two litres of milk and a box of Corn Flakes later we were ready to begin our journey north.

Havre aux Maisons was the first island on our touring itinerary. Almost as soon as we arrived on the island, we detoured off the main highway onto a scenic coastal road. Our first pit stop was at their local fromagerie, or which the islanders are very proud. Unfortunately the white coated, hair netted and immaculately disinfected looking employees were busy in discussion within the factory itself, so no samples for us. From there it was onto the historic Herring smokehouse of which the islanders are also quite proud of. It’s the only one remaining from the glory days when smoking herring was a thriving industry. It’s been turned into a national historic site where a short informative tour is followed by a sampling of the different products.Very pleased with the samples, and informed that it went really well with beer, we made sure to pick up a package before continuing on our tour. Katie’s pretty sure that the excuse to try out some more of the delicious local beer may have been half the reason why Brandon was so gung ho to pick up a package. In the heyday these rafters was packed with skewers of herring.

Our tour of the eastern coast was delightful:
Typical island scene.

Katie's first steps into the Atlantic!

Different shapes appear in the cliffs with different light.

All of this because of erosion. So cool.

Katie vandalizing the sandstone in the background and the phosphorescent fungi in the foreground.

Brandon taking his turn to vandalize.

It was just too tempting....(etched with an open crab claw found dried on the beach)

The road heading north from Havre aux Maisons was completely uninhabited and flanked on one side by shimmering lagoons alive with birds and fish and crap (Brandon ran out of creativity and Katie thought this was literary gold)...........and flanked on the other side by wind shaped sandy dunes that would look more at home in the Sahara desert were it not for their thin cover of vegetation.

After about 10km we reached the tiny island Pointe aux Loups (it’s more like a mound of sand that is slightly larger and higher than the rest of the mounds of sand around it). It’s still beautiful though, as is everything around here. It was here that we discussed the fact that it was already 5:30 pm and we were only 1/3 of the way there. We took a quick browse of the Maison du Heron, an engrossing little gallery, and came out with an original greeting card. Figuring that this was good enough to validate our journey all the way out we turned around and headed back to our our cozy campsite on Cap aux Moules. Our day was quite eventful and we decided that a trip all the way to the north end would have entailed far more cycling than relaxing.Figuring that we cycle enough as it is, and finding the idea of relaxing far more enticing option, we came up with a new plan to spend our last day covering missed ground on Ile du Havre Aubert (the south island).

Can you see Katie?

B&K

Day 105: Magdelen Day Two

km today: 25.92
total km: 7073.4

After a full 10 hours of sleep Katie still struggled to open her eyes without her head swirling. Though she hadn’t had sip of alcohol for days, she felt like she was in the depths of a nasty hangover. A slow rising and a slow pace to the day was necessary. Thankfully, we already decided last night that we are going to extend our Magdelenian experience by two days, so Katie’s sickness couldn’t have been better timed.Pushing up our driveway.

With only a quick bite in us for breakfast our first stop was in Cap aux Moules for lunch. Pas Perdus, brimming with character and a local clientele, is a bistro/bar/internet cafe that oozes with island atmosphere. We arrived with no expectations, were immediately impressed with the atmosphere and absolutely sold once the table d’hote commenced. The main feature was, of course, fresh from the sea. We were more than pleased with our ample portion of halibut topped off with lobster sauce. Washing it all down was a pint of the rouge variety of the local brew. Only the blonde is yet to be tasted.

All around us were carefree locals. There was a twitterpated 80 year old couple sipping wine and playfully throwing flowers at each other, young parents joyfully sipping expressos and a lone man kicking his feet up, enjoying the sunshine and his pint of beer. We were so taken with our surroundings that we ended up milling with the locals and losing ourselves in our book for hours.

Finally stirring from the spell, we set off to continue our exploration of the islands. We stopped at many a local establishment, sampling chocolates, baked goods and the local art, some of which is really quite impressive. It took much restraint not to empty our pockets at some of the boutiques.

Once again victims of the island time, it was already 4:30 before we really got going on seeing the island. We only made it to the South Western shore of Cap aux Moules today, and we didn’t even completely finish our tour, but seeing any more would have required us to rush - something that just doesn’t fly around here.



The colours even extend to their boats.

Heading to the lighthouse.

The second this horse saw us he perked up and trotted over to us like an excited puppy. He was super excited when he discovered the carrots in Katie's pannier.

Can you tell that Katie is deathly afraid of horses?

Tried our hands at fishing.


B&K

Day 104: Magdelen Day One

km today: 54-ish
total km: 7045.0

Thankfully our expensive cruise came with a breakfast buffet at which we baffled the staff with our multiple appearances in the line, even running a couple of laps after the ferry had docked. They told us to take what we wanted and we took it to heart.

As to Iles de la Madeleine, it was love at first sight. Lush green rolling hills, sheer red sand cliffs and deep blue water meet in a dramatic juxtaposition of the colour wheel. Adding splendor to the scene are the electrically hued houses that dot the landscape like easter eggs. Fusia, lilac, indigo, pink, turquoise, green, yellow and burnt orange are just some examples of the colours we’ve seen. Surprisingly, they blend right in. It’s the tans, whites and greys that stick out like sore thumbs. The way of life here is a bit different and the colours just fit the scene. We’re back on island time where the pace of life is slow and relaxed. Stress does not exist here.

The only downside so far is the discovery that we just missed lobster season in this seafood haven. We’ve been told that when in season lobster is so cheap that you can eat it until it comes out of your ears. Oh well, we’ll just have to make due with devouring the plethora of other underwater creatures that are offered fresh daily.

Squatting heaven, only 50m from the campsite.

Perfect lunch spot, beautiful and sheltered.

A better view of our lunch spot (that dot next to the church is Katie talking to mom and dad.)

Not quite knowing where to begin our explorations, we decided to just hop on our bikes and start riding. True to the island time zone, the majority of the shops, boutiques, art galleries, cafes and restaurants were closed today. It was Sunday after all. Our tour was, therefore, purely scenic. Not that we minded in the least:



Riding to Ile de Havre Aubert.

Downtown Le Grave.

Drinking local beer in a local cafe (le Cafe Grave) with a bunch of friendly locals.

On our way back.

B&K

Day 103: Chandler Wait Day - Magdelen Islands

Today was full of grey skies and copious amounts of rain, which we were afflicted with seeing as how we risked waiting till after second breakfast to become nomadic. This turned out to be a bad idea since we got soaked packing up the tent (we were damn fast too, like 8 minutes to get everything packed up).

We relocated to the Metro grocery store, picked up some food supplies and proceeded to loiter outside like a pair of homeless bums, eating sandwiches and reading our book. This is really how we spent most of our day since our ferry to the Magdelen Islands wasn’t scheduled to leave until 11:45 pm. We must really have looked homeless too, seeing as how a nice local woman pulled over and asked us if we knew where we were sleeping that night, and whether or not we needed to stay at her house. We declined, but were touched by the gesture.

The day was still quite enjoyable, other than the slight harassment from a senior citizen. He was actually a very nice fellow, but he kept interrupting our book at some key moments to repeat exactly what he had told 5 minutes before, which was usually something about the train schedule back to Vancouver. Due to this overly curious old man, we relocated to Explorateur Pub/Resto where we, the sole patrons, drank a pitcher of beer and blogged till dinner time.

Way past our normal bedtime, we finally embarked on our “luxury” cruise and found our “deluxe” state room. To celebrate on our holiday from the norm we cracked open a bottle of cognac and paired it with chocolate. Cheapest bottle of cognac in the store and discounted expired Hersheys chocolate enjoyed in our tiny cramped room with the narrowest bunk-beds we’ve ever seen.

First and only time in Brandon's life that he does not have stick legs.

The cruise did actually have a cinema, library, gym, lounge, bar, dining room and cafeteria on board. Pretty posh compared to B.C. ferries. Unfortunately, it was so late by the time we got on that the only thing we had the energy for was to go to bed. We’re such lightweights.

B&K