Swallow Tail Lighthouse
This is the lighthouse you see as you approach the island on the ferry. It was first built in 1860. You can volunteer to be a light keeper!
Back on the mainland and driving northeast along the coast you’ll have plenty of options to explore. The sea caves in St. Martin’s are an attraction as is the seafood chowder at one of the restaurants on the beach there.
St Martis Sea Caves
At low tide you can explore these sea caves, but watch the tide! There’s also some yummy seafood chowder to be eaten here…
CAFE TIP: In Alma there’s an excellent cafe that was so welcoming and warm we ended up staying there for many hours escaping the rain. The owner (from Buenos Aires) made us feel at home and everything is super casual. And the coffee and food were excellent, too. And free wi-fi.
Hopewell Rocks is a main attraction and where you can see close up the effects of the world’s largest tides in the Bay of Fundy. To get the full experience visit at low tide, then again at high tide. Even better, take a guided kayak tour during high tide so you can explore the rocks and arches by water.
Hopewell Rocks
Great place to experience the highest tides in the world at the Bay of Fundy. Neat rock formations that you can explore by foot at low tide. At high tide you can kayak around and through the rocks, right where you were walking. The tide rises over 40 feet, it’s pretty insane.
Hopewell Rocks Park
I highly recommend taking a #kayaking tour during high tide. This Bay of Fundy’s tides rise over 40 feet so a lot of what you walk on and see at low tide is completely covered with water. It’s neat to explore the rocks in a different way, cruising through the arches and seeing the shore from the water. The info the guides give is also very interesting. #kayak #paddling
It’s exciting approaching the Confederation Bridge. At 13kms / 8mi long it’s the “longest bridge over ice-covered waters in the world.” Take the last exit before you get on the bridge and pause at the rest stop. There’s a little path leading to the shore where you can get great views of the span.
Confederation Bridge
13 kms/8mi long, the #bridge was built between 1993 and 1997. It’s free to cross over onto PEI but you pay a toll on the way back. It was around $50 in summer 2016. This view is from the New Brunswick side, the last exit before the bridge.
Prince Edward Island
The place to be on the island is the coast, in our opinion. Driving inland was cruising through a lot of farm land and not very inspiring. Most of the native forests on PEI were cut down for agriculture when it was settled, so there’s not much going on in terms of large wooded areas. But the beaches there are among the best in Canada.
It’s fun to wander the streets of Charlottetown, down to the wharf, and then all along the promenade through Victoria Park. If you’re a beer drinker, check out The Gahan House, a restaurant and local craft brewery. I really enjoyed their blueberry ale.
PEI’s beaches
As I said before, the beaches on PEI are stunning. Many are fine white or red sand and some have big sand dunes. In the north there are protected areas that form Prince Edward National Park (the different areas are Cavendish, Brackley-Dalvay, and Greenwich). If you’re an Anne of Green Gables fan you’ll probably also head to Green Gables for that experience.
Cavendish Campground
This campground is right in PEI National Park, Cavendish and on a really beautiful stretch of fine sand beach that goes on for a long time in either direction. There are lots of camp sites with great ocean views, and plenty of #biking options nearby.
When you’re done in the national park, check out the “singing sands” in Basin Head Provincial Park. They don’t so much sing as they squeak, but a pretty cool phenomenon nonetheless. Panmure Island to the south is connected by a thin causeway; on one side of it the sand is red, on the other it’s white. If you drive onto the island you can also visit a lighthouse.
Basin Head Provincial Park
Really nice fine, white sand #beaches here. They call them “singing sands” because it squeaks when you walk on the #beach… We were told this is due to a high silica content, but my quick research says scientists don’t have an exact answer. There’s a little bridge (pictured above) that you can jump into the channel from. The current in the channel flows into the ocean but it’s fairly safe… Although there are signs forbidding diving and jumping into the channel, but people did it anyway and the life guards just watched. #swimming #swimminghole
Panmure Island Provincial Park
A neat little nook of PEI to explore. There’s a narrow causeway that connects to the #island. On one side of it the beach has red sand, on the other side it’s white sand. There’s a campground near the causeway and also a food shack with #free-wifi. On the island is a #lighthouse.
PRO TIP: If you have an oversized vehicle (over 6’6 high or 20′ long) you won’t be able to make a reservation for the Wood Islands ferry to Nova Scotia. Or at least that was the case for us in July. We drove there hoping to get on as standby but were told it was highly unlikely as commercial vehicles and tour buses always have priority. We ended up driving back to the Confederation Bridge which is around $50 to get off the island (free to get on).
