We've been in Maine 10 days today and I have not had a chance to update the blog. Too much to see, to much fun and best of all FAMILY! We have had such a great time re-connecting with cousins and my half brother Steve that time just gets away.
We were so lucky in timing that we were able to connect with my cousins Linda and Jimmy and Linda's husband Roger in Rockland. Jimmy was leaving the next day for Calif., but they were gracious enough to make the long haul to Rockland to meet us for dinner. We figured the last time I saw Jimmy was at Cyndie's wedding so this was really special.
Next reunion was with my cousin Judy and we finally got to meet David who we'd heard about for years. He has an incredible cabin on Deer Island that we were fortunate enough to spend the night at. It was hard to convince Fred we couldn't just move in to that adorable guest cottage overlooking the lake. When we arrived at the lake I mentioned that my brother Steve had called to see if we could connect. He was headed to Castine for his granddaughter's soccer game and he had to go right by Orland. We already had the commitment with Judy and this was the only two days she had to connect. Judy suggested we just head up to Catine and see Steve and Maureen so we did. Got to see their daughter and her family too so that was an added bonus. After a nice visit the 4 of us headed back to Deer Island and dinner at this awesome restaurant. The next day David was kind enough to drive us all over hell and back so I could take photos of some of the scenic spots in their area. Have to give him double points for putting up with me!
Today we went to Monroe to see a long lost cousin of Fred's. That was another incredibly cool experience. Bob invited us in to his home, prepared an incredible lobster dinner and come to find out he thought Fred was his brother-in-laws cousin!!! We had such a good laugh about that. He has built this really amazing round home....and I mean literally HE BUILT IT! Everywhere you looked there was something amazing to see. It was a remarkable afternoon.
We have commented at least a dozen times what a terrific this location turned out to be. We originally planned to spend a couple of days at Bar Harbor, a couple of days at Deer Island and a couple of days at Rockland. Steve suggested that Bar Harbor on the weekend would be a traffic nightmare so we reconsidered and found Orland. We were about an hour from Bar Harbor and Acadia National Park, an hour to Rockland, 30 minutes to Deer Island and about 25 minutes to Monroe. Leaving the RV here at Balsam Cove has worked out super. We've put over 500 miles on the car while here.....so much cheaper and easier than in the RV!
On our way here we did see Campobello, several awesome locations and we have lots of great photos to share. Hopefully soon!!
We leave here on Sunday and head to Booth Bay for 3 nights and then on to Kittery to David and Elisa's. Elisa is involved with the Portsmouth Philharmonic producing Swan Lake at Prescott Park over Labor Day weekend. We'll be there for both performances on the 2nd and the 4th. Looking forward to seeing them and of course Tristan and Neve.
We are thinking we'll leave the RV in Kittery and drive up to Auburn and then some day trips to Rockport, Saugus and those areas before moving on down to the Cape.
Friday, August 26, 2016
Monday, August 15, 2016
August 13 to 15 Reflecting on PEI and update
We only had a week in Prince Edward Island and it just was not enough. There is so much to see and with the Coastal Drives all mapped out for you it really gives you an awesome opportunity to see it all. Unfortunately it's time consuming because you just have to stop at every little inlet or town and check it out. The mileage really isn't all that much, but the day gets away from you. The other really handy thing about PEI is that all the interior roads are pretty much a straight shot from point A to point B so when you are tired of wandering you can pretty much shoot straight home. We left early each day, but never managed to get home before 5 and some times 6 PM which makes for a LONG day. We missed the entire Western Coastal Drive and a good part of the Central Coastal Drive due to time constraints. It's time to start heading back to the U.S. so that we have the time to see the places, family and friends that we want to see in New England before heading home. That being said, the E.C.D. was probably the most scenic (or so we were told) so we made the most of it.
Charlottetown, on little PEI, was actually the birthplace of Canada! We saw a great historical video about the Fathers of the Confederation that held the Charlottetown Conference in Province House in PEI to establish the Confederation of Canada. The town itself is beautiful with all the red brick and sandstone buildings that have been preserved. The churches are huge and magnificent. We toured two of them.
After spending 3 weeks in Newfoundland we found PEI to be such a contrast. We saw almost nothing growing in Newfoundland with the exception of the few roadside gardens up near St. Anthony. PEI is 3/4 farmland and dairy. Newfoundland was rugged where PEI is gentle rolling hills. Both places need longer to explore! I know we wont get back to Newfoundland, but if we did it would not be for less than a month and that would be our recommendation to anyone going. We found the contrast in colors of the farm fields to be so incredibly lovely. The soil on the island is about as red as it coul possibly be and is great for growing potatoes, cabbage, wheat and corn. The farms are huge and we learned they are mostly privately owned. The government stepped in to stop large corporations from buying up the land so it has remained private. Irving Oil is the largest and most wealthy corporation in PEI. Gas prices must be controlled because it's consistent at every station at 95.5 per liter today. When we first arrived in Canada it was 104.9, but we heard gas prices have dropped so we have benefited from that and of course the Candaian dollar being 76 cents for us.
We figured out the other day that we have driven about 5,400 miles in the RV and an additional 3,300 in the car. It has made all the difference in the world having the car. There are so many things we would never have seen if not for the car. On top of the ease of getting around we get 4 times the gas mileage so that's made a huge difference. There are a few places we went that it would have been nice to have 4 wheel drive, but we didn't miss much because of the poor roads. It looks like the car may need a paint job by the time we get home because so many of the roads are gravel and the pot holes are unbelievable! That was especially true in Newfoundland. Overall the roads in PEI were well paved and nice, but getting to some of the lighthouses we hit a few pretty rough roads.
The return Ferry trip was not quite as smooth as the going over. We missed the first Ferry and spent 4 hours hanging out at the terminal for the next one. We JUST BARELY got on that one and as we pulled in one of the guys thought we'd be too long because we were towing the car, but we made it with maybe 3 inches to spare!! Being down to one Ferry has really messed up the economy for the Eastern part of PEI. It's easier for the "locals" from Nova Scotia who would come for a weekend to take the bridge which brings them to the Central part of the island so they stay there instead. We heard from several business owners that their business was down as much as 50%.
Halifax was our next destination and we ended up staying 3 nights. The first day we drove to Peggy's Cove which was totally charming and packed with tourists! First time we've really run in to a crowd on this whole adventure so no complaints. The 2nd day we drove to Lunenburg which was another really pretty coastal town and the home of the Bluenose Sailing Vessel....which sadly was not there. We did go to the Dory shop and met the current owner. Fascinating little shop that still makes boats the old fashioned way. Fred had a great time talking to the guy. Lunenburg is definitely a tourist City with loads of restaurants and shops and gorgeous old buildings that have been maintained and restored. Very colorful town. We've also seen more pleasure boats than any of the other coastal towns we've visited. In Newfoundland they were almost non existent. PEI was still mostly working fishing boats with a few pleasure boats, but around the Halifax area it's been just the opposite with not so many commercial, but lots of pleasure and sailing boats. Much healthier economy here as well. On the last day we spent the entire day doing a walking tour of Halifax. Great City, built on a steep hill so lots of up and down, but beautiful old buildings. The Citadel was pretty cool, we saw Theodore Too which was a big thrill for us. One day when we were boating in Ft. Myers, heading up the river to down town we saw Theodore coming right at us. I have pictures!! I know...big surprise there. This is his home port and he's now a tour boat, but of course if famous for the cartoon show. The Maritime Museum was awesome and there was a great section on the Titanic. Fascinating.
Yesterday we made our way to Digby and made reservations to take the Ferry to Saint John for the beginning of our Southernly journey home. We catch the ferry tomorrow morning. We arrived at low tide and last night we watched the tide start to come in to the Bay of Fundy. AMAZING!! Not a wave like we saw before, just a constant moving in to the Bay. It happens so fast and was awesome to watch. Digby is known for their scallops and we can attest....they are DE-licious!!
Charlottetown, on little PEI, was actually the birthplace of Canada! We saw a great historical video about the Fathers of the Confederation that held the Charlottetown Conference in Province House in PEI to establish the Confederation of Canada. The town itself is beautiful with all the red brick and sandstone buildings that have been preserved. The churches are huge and magnificent. We toured two of them.
After spending 3 weeks in Newfoundland we found PEI to be such a contrast. We saw almost nothing growing in Newfoundland with the exception of the few roadside gardens up near St. Anthony. PEI is 3/4 farmland and dairy. Newfoundland was rugged where PEI is gentle rolling hills. Both places need longer to explore! I know we wont get back to Newfoundland, but if we did it would not be for less than a month and that would be our recommendation to anyone going. We found the contrast in colors of the farm fields to be so incredibly lovely. The soil on the island is about as red as it coul possibly be and is great for growing potatoes, cabbage, wheat and corn. The farms are huge and we learned they are mostly privately owned. The government stepped in to stop large corporations from buying up the land so it has remained private. Irving Oil is the largest and most wealthy corporation in PEI. Gas prices must be controlled because it's consistent at every station at 95.5 per liter today. When we first arrived in Canada it was 104.9, but we heard gas prices have dropped so we have benefited from that and of course the Candaian dollar being 76 cents for us.
We figured out the other day that we have driven about 5,400 miles in the RV and an additional 3,300 in the car. It has made all the difference in the world having the car. There are so many things we would never have seen if not for the car. On top of the ease of getting around we get 4 times the gas mileage so that's made a huge difference. There are a few places we went that it would have been nice to have 4 wheel drive, but we didn't miss much because of the poor roads. It looks like the car may need a paint job by the time we get home because so many of the roads are gravel and the pot holes are unbelievable! That was especially true in Newfoundland. Overall the roads in PEI were well paved and nice, but getting to some of the lighthouses we hit a few pretty rough roads.
The return Ferry trip was not quite as smooth as the going over. We missed the first Ferry and spent 4 hours hanging out at the terminal for the next one. We JUST BARELY got on that one and as we pulled in one of the guys thought we'd be too long because we were towing the car, but we made it with maybe 3 inches to spare!! Being down to one Ferry has really messed up the economy for the Eastern part of PEI. It's easier for the "locals" from Nova Scotia who would come for a weekend to take the bridge which brings them to the Central part of the island so they stay there instead. We heard from several business owners that their business was down as much as 50%.
Halifax was our next destination and we ended up staying 3 nights. The first day we drove to Peggy's Cove which was totally charming and packed with tourists! First time we've really run in to a crowd on this whole adventure so no complaints. The 2nd day we drove to Lunenburg which was another really pretty coastal town and the home of the Bluenose Sailing Vessel....which sadly was not there. We did go to the Dory shop and met the current owner. Fascinating little shop that still makes boats the old fashioned way. Fred had a great time talking to the guy. Lunenburg is definitely a tourist City with loads of restaurants and shops and gorgeous old buildings that have been maintained and restored. Very colorful town. We've also seen more pleasure boats than any of the other coastal towns we've visited. In Newfoundland they were almost non existent. PEI was still mostly working fishing boats with a few pleasure boats, but around the Halifax area it's been just the opposite with not so many commercial, but lots of pleasure and sailing boats. Much healthier economy here as well. On the last day we spent the entire day doing a walking tour of Halifax. Great City, built on a steep hill so lots of up and down, but beautiful old buildings. The Citadel was pretty cool, we saw Theodore Too which was a big thrill for us. One day when we were boating in Ft. Myers, heading up the river to down town we saw Theodore coming right at us. I have pictures!! I know...big surprise there. This is his home port and he's now a tour boat, but of course if famous for the cartoon show. The Maritime Museum was awesome and there was a great section on the Titanic. Fascinating.
Yesterday we made our way to Digby and made reservations to take the Ferry to Saint John for the beginning of our Southernly journey home. We catch the ferry tomorrow morning. We arrived at low tide and last night we watched the tide start to come in to the Bay of Fundy. AMAZING!! Not a wave like we saw before, just a constant moving in to the Bay. It happens so fast and was awesome to watch. Digby is known for their scallops and we can attest....they are DE-licious!!
Thursday, August 11, 2016
August 9 Charlottetown the last full day on PEI!
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| The green highlight covers all the roads we drove on the Points East Coastal Drive. |
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| Fred liked this warning sign. |
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| Brilliant idea for stop signs. The diamond is Yello and the round is Green. Great for someone that's color blind. |
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