PEI Lighthouses - South Central Edition

Hi Blog!

We really wore ourselves out yesterday between the Green Gables tour and the north part of the Central Coastal Drive. We had hoped to finished the south part of the Central Coast Drive today, but knew from yesterday's experience, we wouldn't be able to do it all. We pored over the map and decided to just hit some of the highlights.

Our first stop was the small town of Victoria, founded in 1819. By the late 1800s, the settlement was prosperous with three wharves and many thriving businesses.

Pictured below is the Victoria Range Light which guided ships into port. This light, along with the Leards Front and Palmer Bank Range formed a straight line that ships to follow right into the harbor. Unfortunately the two small lights were on private property, so we couldn't bag them. During the summer months, you can visit the small museum in the base of the lighthouse.

Because of its sheltered harbour and strategic location, Victoria became an important seaport with a significant amount of trade with Europe, the West Indies and other East Coast ports. Today it boasts a thriving tourist trade. Many of the historic buildings have been spruced up and turned into B&Bs and small businesses that cater to tourists.

While in Victoria, we decided to stop in the Lobster Barn Pub & Eatery for lunch. On our bucket list was to have PEI mussels in PEI! If you like seafood, you've probably encountered Prince Edward Island mussels. The ocean climate and tidal patterns in this area are great for raising mussels, and in the past several years, Prince Edward Island has become one of the primary providers of fresh mussels in North America. One of the biggest selling points for P.E.I. mussels is that they are consistently good. These mussels are huge, sweet and tender, and they are equally great cooked simply in white wine (for Kathy) or in more complex sauces, like coconut curry (for Dave). They certainly lived up to their reputation.

After lunch we began our drive along the south central coast in search of more lighthouses. Here Kathy peers out over the red sand cliffs in search of her quarry.

While no lighthouse was found, we did discover a nesting pigeon at Canoe Cove.

We also spotted this fisherman racing along from trap line to trap line. He was a little too far away to tell if his traps were full or not.

We enjoyed a short walk on this red sand beach.

After stretching our legs, it was back to the coast drive. When we stopped at Rice Point, it was Dave's turn to search for the lighthouse. Again, we came up short.

However, we did have a lot of fun rock-hopping along the shoreline.

As the tide went out, we discovered dozens of little snails clinging to the red rocks.

Our next stop took us to Port-la-Joye/Fort Amherst National Historic Site. This location has the double distinction of hosting one of the first Acadian settlements in present-day Prince Edward Island, as well as the first military fortification on the island while under control of France as well as the first military fortification on the island while under control of Britain. From 1720 to 1770 Port-la-Joye, later named Fort Amherst, served as the seat of government and port of entry for settlers to the island while under both French and British control. As such, it played an important role as a colonial outpost in the French-British struggle for dominance in North America.

This port was also the site of Le Grand Dérangement or the expulsion of the Acadians from PEI by the British after the Seven Years' War (known in the Colonies as the French and Indian War). In 1758, more than 3,000 settlers were deported to France. During the crossing and in the first months after arriving in France, approximately half of the deportees perished. Most died while at sea, either by sickness or drowning. This memorial commemorates the tragedy of the expulsion of the Acadians.

While the fort is managed by Parks Canada, we found no Red Chairs. However, Kathy did find a bench with a lovely view of Charlottetown across the bay.

A hiking trail leads to two range lights, but the trail was closed because local coyotes are having pups and can be a little aggressive with the tourists (in addition, it is best for the coyotes if humans don't disturb the dens during this period). So, we took this photo of the Warren Cove Front Range Light from a safe distance.

Here is the Warren Cove Back Range Light. These two lights line up and ships can follow the lights in and out of Charlottetown Harbour.

Just beyond the entrance to the National Historic Site is a dirt road leading out to Blockhouse Point and the Blockhouse Point Lighthouse. The keepers house consists of a kitchen, a parlor and two bedrooms on the ground floor and four more bedrooms and a bathroom on the upper floor. The beacon was originally a catoptric light, but in 1909 a more efficient fourth-order Fresnel lens was installed with a mercury vapor light source. The present seven-foot, octagonal lantern room was put in place the following year. The current signature of the light is a three-second flash, followed by a one-second eclipse. If you look closely you can see the light glowing in the red tower.

After finishing our drive, we returned to camp and took Baxter outside for Happy Hour.  We were surprised by this view of a cruise ship, which we had earlier spotted at dock when we were at Rocky Point, leaving the harbor. It's not often you can sit in camp and watch a cruise ship go by. This ship was so large, we could still see the smokestack as it passed the far side of Rocky Point.

The weatherman is predicting a nice day tomorrow, so we hope to be able to paddle around the bays near our campground. Stay tuned.