Pownal Loop again

A perfect cycling day, a tailwind on fast smooth roads, a section of trail, a picnic, 21c and blue skies.

Tea Hill

Pownal Loop by road

Another great day to be out on two wheels. Main roads were busy but the country routes much less so. I took a sandwich in my jersey pocket and stopped halfway to eat and enjoy the scenery. I met a cyclist from Newfoundland who was just in PEI for the weekend.

Trying to make the road crossing on Route 1 near Mount Albion meant a long wait for a break in traffic.

Charlottetown to Hunter River and back on The Confederation Trail.

64km ride to Hunter River and back on The Confederation Trail.

Charlottetown City Limits loop

Charlottetown with Maisie

Baltic Road to East Point on The ConfederationTrail

This Sunday dawned warm and sunny so we drove 90km to our previous turnaround point just east of Souris. Passing Basin Head we drove into a thick blanket of sea mist bit this cleared as we veered inland. We parked at the Baltic Road trail crossing and set off on one of the most remote stretches of The Confederation Trail. Emerging from a nearly continuous canopy of trees after 9km we reached Elmira, the end of the former railway line (now The Confederation Trail) where the station, ticket office, buffers and a stretch of rails give a small sense of how the railway looked 40 years ago.

Leaving the trail we headed out on almost deserted roads for a further 9km until we reached East Point with no more land left to cycle. A pod of seals was relaxing a couple of hundred yards offshore, their black skins glinting in the sun. The lighthouse with its gift and snack shop and a sprinkling of cliff top homes gaze out north and east towards Newfoundland and The Atlantic Ocean.

Completion of this 35km leg marks the conclusion of our bike ride to all points east and makes a total round trip ride of some 242km in half a dozen rides over the last few weekends. A short break is now in order for beaches and a bit of hiking before we choose another section of The Confederation Trail to ride.

K and I ride to the Hillsborough Bridge and across