Dave'n'Kathy's Vagabond Blog: PEI Lighthouses

Hi Blog!

We are a little behind in our posts. The last few days on PEI were long touring days. We are now settled in our campground in Pictou, Nova Scotia and hope to get caught up with our blogs.

On Friday, June 1, 2018, we set out on the East Coastal Drive. Our first stop was Point Prim Lighthouse. Point Prim is Prince Edward Island's oldest lighthouse. It marks the entrance to Hillsborough Bay, at the outer approach to Charlottetown Harbour.

The 60-foot tall brick conical tower is painted white. It has been in service since 1845. Point Prim is one of the few round brick lighthouses in Canada.

After Point Prim, we drove around to Wood Islands. The Northumberland Ferries operates a car ferry between PEI and Nova Scotia. Pictured below is PEI's only "family" of lighthouse. Front and center is the front range light, next is the Wood Island Lighthouse and the small light to the right is the back range light.

As full-time RVers, we find it irresistible to pass up the tourist photo op! Besides, Dave has always found Kathy to be a "catch."

Our next stop was the Cape Bear Lighthouse It was constructed on Cape Bear Point in 1881 to aid ships navigating the Northumberland Straight.

The Marconi Wireless Station was constructed just a short distance from the light. On April 14, 1912, Marconi Station received the "first in Canada" distress call from the Titanic after that ill-fated ship hit an iceberg in the North Atlantic.

Just around the corner from Cape Bear is Murray's River. We found the Murray's River Back Range Light, but were unable to get any closer. We learned a number of the 62 lighthouse are located on private property. We just had to admire this little guy from afar.

However, we were able to get up close and personal with the next light. In 1853, Panmure Head Lighthouse became PEI's first wooden lighthouse and the first octagonal one to be built on the Island. It was built on the northeast shore at the entrance to Cardigan Bay and Georgetown Harbour to alert ships of the dangerous shoal that was responsible for several shipwrecks, In 2015, the lighthouse was turned over to the Panmure Island Lighthouse Association, who have begun restoration work. The day we visited, some workmen were installing a new front deck.

While it was not an "official" Parks Canada Red Chair, Kathy never passes up an opportunity to add another "red chair" to her collection.

Dave, on the other hand, was enjoying the chance to get out of the Jeep and stretch a little before our next drive.

We worked our way around the coast from Panmure Island to Annandale. To save a little driving time, we bypassed Georgetown. We had our sights set on the next lighthouse.

The Annandale Rear Range Light was erected on the north shore of the Grand River. The light is a square, open-framed tower with sloping sides. The side of the tower facing the channel was slatted to make it more conspicuous, and the whole structure was painted white. From base to vane, the tower stands 56 feet tall. We thought about getting closer, but we actually liked this view.

On to the next light!

On our way to the Souris East Lighthouse, we stopped at 21 Breakwater for lunch. We each devoured a bowl of PEI mussels. Feeling sated, we continued with our adventure. Built in 1880, the white and red, square, tapered wooden tower of Souris East Lighthouse stands on a cliff above Knight Point

On our way to East Point, we deviated from our lighthouse quest, in order to pay a visit to Singing Sands Beach. While in Australia, we came across "squeaky" sand and were curious about "singing" sand. We did a little research and decided it was worth the stop.

On some beaches around the world, dry sand will make a singing, barking, squeaking, whistling, or screaming sound if a person scuffs or shuffles their feet with sufficient force. The phenomenon is not completely understood scientifically, but it has been found that quartz sand will do this if the grains are very well-rounded and highly spherical. It is believed by some that the sand grains must be of similar size, so the sand must be well sorted by the actions of wind and waves, and that the grains should be close to spherical and have surfaces free of dust, pollution, and organic-matter. The "singing" sound is then believed to be produced by shear as each layer of sand grains slides over the layer beneath it. The similarity in size, the uniformity, and the cleanliness mean that grains move up and down in unison over the layer of grains below them. Even small amounts of pollution on the sand grains reduces the friction enough to silence the sand.

As we arrived on Singing Sand Beach, we could see the Souris Ferry making its way to Nova Scotia. The beach was wide and the sand was a fine peach color.

Just like Goldilocks, we tested each part - down by the water, too wet; near the dunes, too dry; just above the high water line, just right! Click the link to hear what it sounds like when you make the singing sands sing - video of our walk along Singing Sands Beach.

The East Point Lighthouse is situated on the extreme eastern end of Prince Edward Island where the mighty tides of the St. Lawrence and Northumberland Straight meet to create a show. However, it was really calm the day we visited, so we didn't get to see much crashing wave activity.

Our return drive took us along the north side of East Coastal Drive. Our first stop was the little fishing village of Naufrage. "Naufrage" is the French word for shipwreck. The name stems from the numerous shipwrecks that occurred in the area, starting with the arrival of European settlers in 1719. Naufrage is known today for lobster and tuna fishing, and tourism.

The original Shipwreck Point Lighthouse was built in 1913 and was a square, two-storey structure that housed a fourth-order lens in its lantern room. In 1967, a new Shipwreck Point lighthouse was built slightly west of its original location, and its operation was automated. It is one of only two concrete lighthouses on the Island.

As we completed our drive, we made one last stop at Prince Edward Island National Park in Greenwich. Several folks highly recommended the floating boardwalk trail. It starts across old homestead fields and then enters a forest stand. As you come out of the forest, the trail takes you right across Bowley Pond on a floating boardwalk.

At the end of the boardwalk are the majestic Greenwich Dunes. These are unusually large and mobile parabolic dunes. This phenomenon is very rare in North America.