PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND and NEW BRUNSWICK

East Point Lighthouse, Prince Edward Island

Prince Edward Island is sort of the anti-Newfoundland - where Newfoundland is vast and rugged,  Prince Edward Island is small and neat and very pretty.  There is lots of rolling farmland with great vistas of beach and ocean, and many charming little seaside towns.  The large Scottish population here is probably the reason there are so many golf courses, and good ones too . . .arguably too good for us!  We stayed first at  lovely Brudenell Provincial Park, right on the water with fine views.

View from Brudenell Provincial Park

Lovely Combination of Farmland and Ocean Beach

We took a trip up the East Point Drive to the lighthouse on the end of the island, stopping along the way to admire the beaches, especially Singing Sands Beach where the sand sings beneath your feet as you walk.  Well, it sort of squeaks, but it's kind of like singing  . . . .

Singing Sands Beach

Music is a very important part of life here in PEI, and we found several places to enjoy different kinds.  Near our park there was a community meeting hall where they have Ceileighs on Thursday nights featuring the Sons of Fiddlers and other local musicians.  We enjoyed a rousing performance of fiddles, guitars, and pipes, and of course singing.

Ceileigh at Oak Acres Hall

We played golf twice on PEI, once at a lovely course called Dunderave which turned out to be quite a challenge!  Lots of water and sand and many doglegs, but beautiful.

Bob and Mark at Dunderave

Charlottetown is the capital of Prince Edward Island - an appealing waterfront city with a university and lots of good restaurants.  As luck would have it, we arrived there the same weekend they were celebrating the International Shellfish Festival - a very big deal here, with food and drink and music and dancing.  We joined in and had a fine time!

Pizza at a Sidewalk Cafe in Charlottetown

Moon Over Charlottetown

There was a fabulous Acadien family called the Arsenaults performing on Saturday night in the "big tent".  Acadiens are descendents of colonists of the French colony of Acadia on Nova Scotia, and were expelled from that area when the British took it over in 1755, called the Grande Derangement (sounds like a malady I may have had!!).  Their music is very upbeat and rhythmic, with lots of fiddles and even some accordians.  You can't help at least tapping your toes when you listen to it, and sometimes you just have to dance . . .

La Famille Arsenault

The Bucolic Beauty of Prince Edward Island

As we approached the 8-mile Confederation Bridge between Prince Edward Island and New Brunswick, we saw a lovely bright white lighthouse in the distance - the perfect symbol of this delightful island.

Prince Edward Island Lighthouse

Confederation Bridge

One of the most fascinating parts of New Brunswick is the Bay of Fundy, which features the most extreme tides in the world, up to 50 feet difference from low to high. We stayed in Fundy National Park, and Penny and I spent a great deal of time and energy looking for moose, even stooping to use the electronic moose-caller given to us by our friends at our St. Leonard campground, but all to no avail . . . not a single moose did we see, in spite of an evening excursion just at dusk. But all of us did see the impressive Hopewell Rocks, where you can literally watch the tide come in by watching the water rise on the rocks. These rocks, called flowerpots, have fantastic shapes formed over the centuries by water, sand and wind, and at low tide you can walk on the ocean floor beside these behemoths.

Hopewell Rocks

Near a small village we discovered the Ha Ha Cemetery, a peaceful final resting place for a few lucky souls.  I'm very fond of the name, even though I'm not sure it was intended the way it sounds.  Supposedly it was an Indian approximation of the call of the loon, but I prefer to think it was a nod to the whimsy of the universe. . 

Ha Ha Cemetery

We explored all along the north coast of the Bay of Fundy, visiting beaches, lighthouses, and even a covered bridge.

At Cape Enrage

Bay of Fundy

Cape Enrage Lighthouse

Covered Bridge in Fundy National Park

Herring Cove, New Brunswick

Moshi and Kibo have now visited seven Canadian provinces and one territory (Yukon), not to mention 28 states! They loved Canada, and hope to go back someday . . .

Are We Going Somewhere??

The King of the Road

Bob and the Kittens Catnapping

So it's time to leave Canada where we've had a fabulous seven weeks, but the leaves are starting to turn and it's time to head for New England - first stop, Bar Harbor, Maine.