Chase Outdoors

For me, visiting Prince Edward Island is like stepping back in time.  Rolling hills, pastoral villages and small family-owned farms remind me of my home state of Maine when I was growing up. The coast is dotted with dozens of working fishing communities.  People are genuine, helpful and unpretentious.    There is a strong Scottish heritage with traditional music and dancing an important part of the provincial culture. 

Prince Edward Island has become a destination for vacationers seeking a quiet, peaceful setting and beautiful, scenic landscapes.  From my perspective, cycling the Confederation Trail offers the best opportunity for enjoying the wonderful benefits the island offers.  The abandoned Prince Edward Island railroad bed has been converted into a continuous 170 mile rolled stone bicycle trail that connects the community of Tignish on the western end of the island with the tiny village of Elmira on the extreme eastern shore.  Eighty miles of branch trails provide additional cycling options. 

Recently, a geriatric band of New England senior cyclists traveled to the island for a biking vacation.  Consisting of three aging married couples, all had passed the half century mark and the oldest amongst us, Crabby Bill, was 76 years young, but could pass for older.  For some unknown reason, the guys all acquired unflattering monikers, while the ladies nonchalantly avoided any negative depictions.  I think it has something to do with gender differences ….well, I guess I won’t go there.  There is no confusion as to how Crabby Bill and Cranky Franky acquired their nicknames, but how I got labeled Rotten Ron completely escapes me.  When I think about it, I’d rather be called something distinctive like Rotten Ron, rather than just plain Nancy, Alice or Carolyn.  Nancy was called Bob on occasion, in recognition of her new doo.  And, Alice has been called Saint Alice for nearly a generation simply for the obvious reason that she’s married to Crabby.  How Carolyn has assiduously avoided any descriptive appellation, negative or positive, is a matter that warrants further consideration.

Initially, we camped at scenic Cedar Dunes Provincial Park near West Point, which is located on the southwestern tip of the island.  This picturesque campground has a sandy beach along Northumberland Strait and the island’s only lighthouse restaurant is just a short mile away.  Using the campground as a base, we did day trips cycling the western half of the Confederation Trail.   One day blended into another as we spent gloriously sunny days conquering new sections of trail, running our shuttles and shopping for fresh fish for our evening meals. 

After several days, we broke camp and traveled east to Brudenell River Provincial Park on the eastern shore.  This perfectly positioned Crabby to accomplish his secretly coveted frequently denied goal of completing the entire Main Trail.  Despite his advancing years, our aging, near octogenarian companion persevered and reached his objective in the Village of Mount Stewart on our final day of cycling.  In violation of doctor’s orders, a huge ice cream cone followed by cold beer was his reward. 

For information about more outdoor adventures, Crabby invites you to visit our website, which he created, at www.ronchaseoutdoors.com.  For details about the best mountain hikes in New England, obtain a copy of our book, Mountains for Mortals – New England.

This entry was posted on Thursday, November 5th, 2009 at 2:26 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.