Summer Arrives on PEI!

Monday, June 24, 2013

Greg took a short bike ride down to Montague before we packed up and left for Prince Edward Island National Park on Sunday. It was another mostly sunny day and we enjoyed the drive through the interior of the island to get to the north shore. Traveling across rolling hills, we passed green fields, newly planted potato plots, cows, and lots of farms. Greg picked out a restaurant in North Rustico near Cavendish and the national park. We found the Blue Mussel Cafe on a sand spit in the ocean past the harbor. They had just opened for the season the day before. Sitting outside on the deck with a view of the harbor, we tried the beer from the newest brewery on PEI, the Beach Chair Lager from PEI Brewing. Greg got a lobster roll, his first lobster since we arrived in Canada. It was fun to watch the German tourists try oysters on the half shell and steamed mussels. We splurged with desserts. I got the rhubarb crisp made from the local in-season rhubarb. Yummy, and not too sweet!

Lupines everywhere!

Potatoes, in progress

Blue Mussel Cafe

North Rustico harbor

Sunshine, Beer, Summer!

Vacationing cows on PEI

It was a short drive over to Cavendish and the visitor center. Cavendish is the center of the Anne of Green Gables attractions. The house and grounds that inspired L. M. Montgomery to write her books is part of the national park. Because of budget cuts it is open only on Tuesdays through Thursdays until July 1. The books are hugely popular in Japan and busloads of Japanese tourists come to see Anne's house. They have been very disappointed this year to come all that way and are unable to tour the house. While we were at the visitor center, two young Japanese women came in with bike helmets on, obviously very tired from biking to come see the Anne site. They were politely disappointed to find out it was closed.


We spent a long time at the visitor center taking advantage of their wifi to catch up with e-mails and post the blog. Then we drove the short distance to the park. As we stood at the entrance window talking to the ranger about the campground, the mosquitoes descended. We quickly jumped back in the cab and went off to pick out a site. The campground is along the beach. There is room for tents on the bluff, but no RV's, so we picked a two way site, which provides electric and water, in the woods. A three way adds sewer to that. We saved a little money by planning on using the dump station when we leave. We were also charged less because, until July 1, it's still considered the shoulder season.

Multitasking blog and email

We backed in, put up a few blocks for leveling the RV, Greg began to hook up, and the mosquitoes found us! Black fly season seems to be almost over, but now we have mosquito season. We had a small overlap between the two. In the campgrounds people spray themselves heavily with repellent and build smoky fires to sit in. We go inside, open the windows and count on our screens. At the last campsite we had to keep closing the windows as the smoke shifted.


We took a walk on the beach before dinner. There's red sand and flat rocks that go out into the water, which is surprisingly warm. The clouds began to build up. The forecast called for a chance of thunderstorms, so we headed back to our site. Later the rain began, not thunderstorms, but downpours, all night! This morning the sun came out, but now it is steamy!

Cavendish Beach

Lifeguard stands waiting for summer

Tidal pond outlet

Red Squirrel gathering burlap next to camper

Greg went out for an exploratory bike ride along the coast this morning, and rode the scenic Gulf Shore Trail back to North Rustico, where we ate lunch yesterday. On the way there he saw a mink near the trail. After lunch we both rode out partway along the same path and stopped from time to time to take in the view of the red cliffs. I'm still trying to figure out how to use the battery boost. The battery sits on a rack over the back tire, and the motor is attached to the rear wheel. Both are heavy, so I'm learning to control a bike that wants to sway if I turn too sharply. But, I sure was happy to have it on the hills. We talked to an older couple on bikes who stopped to talk while we were resting at the top of a hill. He had a lovely accent and rolled his “r's”. She said that they were going to go over “da” and then over “da” and back. We don't know where they were from. There are so many distinctive and charming accents.

 

The mosquitoes found their way into the shower house where we showered after our hot, steamy riding. What a change from weeks and weeks of rain, wind, and cold. It feels like summer has finally arrived in Atlantic Canada. We ran the air conditioning for the first time since last December in Florida, just to lower the humidity in the RV. While I was cooking dinner, Greg said, “Hey, look! A fox!” At the campsite two down from us, a fox was slinking around. He even got up on the picnic table to check it out. The campers were smart and didn't leave anything out when they left. We saw a fox on the side of the road when we drove in yesterday. A couple stopped to get out of their car to look at it. We thought that it was too friendly for a wild animal, but it appears that it's accustomed to people.

Fox on picnic table

This morning, Tuesday, dawned without rain, so we made it through the night without the loud strumming of rain on the roof. Greg first rode the six mile Homestead trail and came back to tell me to get ready to ride, while he rode his bike into town for a few provisions. After he got back with the local Gahan Brewery beer in his backpack, we set out for the trail. The day was hot and muggy, but the trail went through a cool, shady spruce forest, along a bay, over two bridges and through the countryside surrounded by farm fields. The wildflowers are blooming, and the huge thickets of rambling roses smelled heavenly, the humidity encouraging their fragrance. We stopped several times to watch the tide flow out under the bridges while the crabs and fish fought the strong current.

Tidal pond outlet

Farm Fields

The “turbo bike” was a big help and I used it more today now that I know the battery will last a long time. I hardly put a dent in it today. The bigger issue for me was a problem with the generative braking. When I brake the back wheel, where the motor is, it switches to the generative mode and puts charge back into the battery. It's a cool feature, but too sensitive and hasn't turned off reliably the last two days. It gets stuck in the mode and makes it difficult to pedal. Yesterday, I was having to pedal on a long hill that Greg was coasting down. I finally discovered that the G braking was stuck and I was working against it. Today I fell over when I starting riding because it was stuck on and I couldn't pedal hard enough to get started before falling over! We decided to disable it, so I really enjoyed the rest of the ride without having to constantly worry about the brakes acting up!


After lunch today we planned to put our swimsuits on and go to the beach. We wanted to be able to say that we had actually gone swimming in the Gulf of St. Lawrence! After a hot, muggy morning, in the afternoon, the clouds came back and the temperature dropped into the mid-60's and the wind picked up, so we passed on the beach. Instead we had a relaxing afternoon in the RV reading and listening to a French radio station playing jazz, folk, and generally odd-sounding music. Greg was calling it Acadian rap, but who knows?


This evening the sky looks threatening, and there is a possibility of thunderstorms, but so far all is quiet. Tomorrow we will stop at the Cavendish visitor center again and post this to the blog, stop at the Anne of Green Gables house, and then move east along the north shore to another section of the national park with new bike trails for us to ride. Next Monday is Canada Day, celebrating the founding of their nation and the official start of summer, so we will move on to some of the less popular parts of the island. This week we are able to stay at the national park without reservations and avoid the crowds. We still want to re-visit the eastern end of the island where we traveled the first time we were here, and see the western end, which will be new for us. As long as we leave the island in time to reach Sydney, Nova Scotia and the Newfoundland ferry by July 10^th, we'll be on schedule!