Lynne and I made plans to go to Crabbe Mountain for their annual Fall Festival of Colours. It's about a 45 minute drive and it was a lovely day for it.
The line-ups weren't big and we whizzed through in no time. Lynne actually listened to what the helpful guy was telling us about what runs to look for. It was pretty much Greek to me. She listens, I take photos.
Ah...now that I saw the map all the names made more sense...
A nice abstract of the ski runs...
Very interesting!
You had choices: You could get a ride to the bottom on an ATV; you could walk straight down on the bigger path; or you could go off to the left through the trees.
Pretty! What a perfect day...
It was a bit chilly...we even started off wearing gloves.
Loved the names...
We opted for the less steep, through the trees trail...
I could see why it was less steep...there were many switchbacks.
We brought our hiking poles, which I was grateful to have.
What the heck?
Still had the gloves and jackets on at this point...
But not for long...
These young 'uns made it look easy. Carry a kid on your shoulders no less. The path was very rocky, so kudos to them.
Lots of tree roots...
And out of the trees and into the sunlight...
At the bottom people were lining up for the chairlift to go back up the mountain. There was live music and a BBQ. It was really well done.
Ooh the chairlift...I was glad Lynne had skied before. At least she knew how to get on the lift!
And we're off. I was busy holding on to poles, backpack and my phone.
The lift was going very slowly, probably about 1/3 of the speed it normally goes.
At this point, I was thinking "if we fell out, it would hurt, but I don't think I'd die."
Oh fun...people had stuck things to the trees...a butterfly!
The Joker!
I wasn't sure what that was. I thought it was a mushroom?
Such a beautiful day...
Flip flops...because why not?
Almost at the top...
Now I think it would hurt if you fell out!
At the top!
This is where Lynne's memory helped. Buddy had been telling us what we would see at the top. He mentioned Mount Katahdin, which I always love to watch for when we're in Maine.
Dude was walking up the looong hill with a child on his shoulders. To be honest, there were a few unhappy kids around. It was a lot of walking.
I think this was the black diamond run "Poker Face."
At least the sign was pointing in that direction...
Spectacular day...couldn't have asked for nicer weather.
Time to head back down to the lodge...you could catch a ride on the hay wagon, but the line-up was long.
Almost there...
Ooh yum! We "deserved" this!
Holy moly! We were going to give those chips our best shot!
Lynne's Strava app showing our zig zaggy walk down...
Another anniversary to celebrate in Charlottetown. During Covid, when we couldn't go outside our Atlantic bubble, we went there for our anniversary, and it's become a nice tradition.
My usual quest to get a photo of the Confederation Bridge. Very unsuccessful...
Now we're talking! If you go to Cape Jourimain and pay $10 to enter the park, you get a great view.
Both sides...it was worth it.
They have lovely trails and you could walk to a lighthouse.
Way over there...I'll save that for another time.
We met this gentleman from Michigan in the parking lot. He and Jim were oxygen buddies. We don't often see someone walking around with an oxygen concentrator like Jim's, so we stopped to talk. Interestingly, he and his wife had been to the Miramichi, as she is a descendant of Charlotte Taylor. I asked if she had read The Nine Lives of Charlotte Taylor, and he didn't think she had, so I shared that info with him.
We arrived at our condo and were able to check in early. We have stayed in this building four times with three different condos.
You can't beat the location for people watching...
Jim's favourite activity...
We have yet to go to this restaurant, which is strange because it is so close. Maybe next year!
All of a sudden we hear the music from Jaws...da da da da. Too funny. Usually the Harbour Hopper has finished its season when we are there in late September, but they were busy this year. The voice you hear saying "Here we goooo!" was the delightful guide, Glen, whom we had the pleasure of meeting the next day.
Our daily activity...a game of Five Crowns.
Lovely sunset from the kitchen window...
One ship had departed, but this one was hanging around. There were very few pedestrians, so I imagine everyone was already back on board.
And still there...eventually we heard the horn blowing and off they went.
I went out for a walk the next morning. Colourful kayaks next to the convention centre...
And a popular spot for photos...
We decided to hop on the Harbour Hopper...you always learn something new about the area, and it was fun to tour around before splashing into the water.
The impressive St. Dunstan's Basilica. Several churches stood here before the first cornerstone for this church was laid in 1896.
Founders Hall food market is next door to our building. We would often pop over for lunch and bring something back to the condo to enjoy.
Going by our building...cue the Jaws music!
One lady commented that she got splashed going into the water. Glen had an answer for that. "Be quiet or everyone will want it!" He was a character.
Definitely not a good time to go down the stairs...
Glen...he had many jokes and stories to tell. He also made it a point to come and chat with everyone on board.
Going by the convention centre...the spires of St. Dunstan's beside it.
This was a favourite spot for the cormorants. I circled our condo on the right.
Coming out of the water...much less dramatic than the entrance.
Our tour continued up the street by the Water Prince Corner Shop, a very busy restaurant and a favourite with the locals.
Kirk of St. James Presbyterian Church...there are no lack of churches. This church was built in 1877 at a cost of $20,000.
A tour by Victoria Park...the grass everywhere is brown. It has been such a dry summer.
Lovely playground...
Past Government House, the home of the Lieutenant Governor.
Every light standard had a cluster of sunflowers...very pretty.
I was trying to capture the mural on the building...
And almost missed the antique fire truck...
Mmmm...Cow's Ice Cream. There is also one on the boardwalk, but it was already closed for the season.
Past Victoria Row, which is home to restaurants, galleries and live music...
We lounged around after the tour and ordered from a nearby restaurant. It was so yummy that we ordered from them a few days later. Roasted sweet potatoes, edamame beans, avocado, chicken, kale...soo good.
The sun set on a lovely day...
Sunrise! What to do today?
The cormorants were in place...
One cruise ship in port...Mein Schiff, which translates to my ship.
I went through the gallery and resisted the urge to buy something. But the gardens in the back were the showstopper...
Meticulously manicured...
Absolutely stunning...
We headed back to the condo and popped into Founders Hall for a monster sandwich that we shared. It was yummy.
Always a favourite stop for people to take photos...and the place where the Harbour Hopper enters the water. Several times a day we would hear the Jaws theme. It was always fun to watch.
This ship had to swing its stern around to head out of the port. It was pretty neat to watch. It took 5 minutes and then they sailed away.
Next morning was lovely and sunny. I headed out for a walk past another church...St. Paul's Anglican Church with its beautiful stained glass windows. Tour guide, Glen, had mentioned that you can date a lot of the stone buildings by the soot on them from the Great Fire in 1866.
We admired these hanging baskets every time we drove by them...
We had such lovely weather...
Anniversary Day...#34. We headed to the Water Prince Corner Shop for dinner.
And wandered back home looking a little fuzzier than when we left! It was a very good dinner.
We had planned to head home today, but since we had decided to have the kitchen cupboards and main areas in the apartment painted while we were gone, I wasn't surprised that they weren't quite finished. Thankfully, our spot was available for another night and we didn't have to move.
There was a craft fair setting up in the park...
We went for a drive to Souris with its pristine lighthouse...
Before heading to Basin Head Beach with its "singing sand." Apparently, due to the high silica content in the sand, it will make a noise when your feet sink into it.
Ice cream shop, cafe and what looked like a wedding or church venue...
How pretty! I headed down the stairs to the beach...
No walking on the dunes! Stick to the paths...
Gorgeous...
I walked along to the rocks...did I hear any singing? I can't say I did. Maybe if I taken my shoes off...
Buddy! You seem to have lost your body...
No climbing on the rocks....
So I headed back...what a beautiful day!
I can imagine it's a very popular spot in the summer...
The water was so clear...
I climbed back up the stairs and took one last look. So, so pretty. I would definitely do a return visit.
On the way home, we drove by this church. Was it really abandoned?
I love these statues. I have a bigger appreciation of them from having toured the Bonaventure Cemetery in Savannah.
St. Alexis Church includes an almost 300-year old bell discovered in a farmer's field in 1870 and was thought to have been buried during the Acadian expulsion.
A pilfered picture of what the church looked like before its last mass in 2015.
With one last look, it was time to head home...
We shared a pulled butter chicken stuffed baked potato from Founders Hall for lunch. Yummy!
One last lovely evening...we hope to be back next year.
Because I had done a lot of talking about it, but didn't get there, we stopped at the border before the Bridge for a Cow's ice cream. Delicious as always...
And arriving home...gulp! We were definitely a few days too early.
We arrived home on Monday and the painter finished on Wednesday. By Thursday, everything was back in place. Except for dusting! Lots of dusting!
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