Prince Edward Island Getaway

The carful of kids are on the move again, we have our eyes set on Prince Edward Island for the potatoes, seafood and Anne of Green Gables. I have activities planned for two days that will take us across the majority of the island.

The hull lifts and you drive into the ferry

The carful of kids have to get to Prince Edward Island (PEI) first, we were, most recently, exploring the Cabot Trail in Nova Scotia--one of the most scenic drives in Canada. After a quick night at a bed and breakfast in Pictou, the carful of kids are ready to drive the SUV into the hull of the 8 a.m. Northumberland Ferry that departs Caribou, Nova Scotia, to Wood Island, PEI.

We pass another ferry.

The carful of kids have an American-sized SUV so that means we are oversized in Canada and we are directed to the taller of two vehicle levels on the ferry. No one is allowed to stay in their vehicle during the crossing but there is enough to occupy passengers on the 75-minute voyage.

The carful of kids head to the cafeteria for a quick bite before we explore the rest of the ferry. Right on schedule, we arrive at the ferry terminal in PEI.

Our first scheduled stop is Happy Clammers but we have a couple of minutes so we head over to the Point Prim Lighthouse. It was constructed in 1845 of brick and is the oldest lighthouse of the 30 lighthouses on PEI.

They offer a tour and the carful of kids scale a series of ladders to the top of the 60-foot round structure where we find a fabulous view of the Northumberland Strait. The carful of kids walk through the living quarters of the lighthouse keeper--they are spartan and look cold in the winter.

Loaded back in the SUV, we arrive at the home of Goldie and Gilbert Gillis, the Happy Clammers, for our next adventure. The carful of kids want to dig up our lunch and Gilbert is showing us how.

After a quick introduction, Gilbert loads everyone up and heads over to his secret spot for the biggest, juiciest clams at low tide. To find and dig up clams, we start looking for the tiny little bubbles popping up through the red sand that signals a clam underneath. We carefully slide our shovel eight inches into the sand and if we're lucky, we'll find a soft-shelled clam.

And we do, the kids instantly love it and run all over the beach, looking for tiny bubbles. With the guide that Gilbert gives us, we check the size of our clam to see if it's big enough and then throw it into the bucket for lunch.

After our group fills a bucket, we head back to the Gillis' house for lunch. Goldie has clam chowder ready for us with some homemade biscuits--a real treat. The carful of kids top it off with the fresh steamed clams dipped in butter.

At Goldie & Gilbert

Happy Clammers with Goldie and Gilbert is a must for your visit to PEI with or without kids. They are an extremely nice couple and great with families--Goldie will whip up some buttered pasta for a picky eater too! Make reservations ahead of time for this popular activity.

Outside the Province House

After saying good-bye to Goldie and Gilbert, the carful of kids drive on to Charlottetown, the provincial capital of PEI, for some Canadian history. The carful of kids walk around the quaint downtown area filled with interesting shops and sidewalk cafes before arriving at the Province
House.

In 1864, the Charlottetown Conference commenced to debate joining the Maritime Union and the Canadian Confederation. The Province House is open to the public and is a Historic Landmark complete with costumed re-enactors to reinforce the history lesson.

After our history lesson, the carful of kids load up and drive over to the Prince Edward Island National Park. I'm a lover of old historic hotels so we stop at the Dalvay by the Sea. Built in 1895, it's a summer resort tucked in the park and hosted HRH Prince William and Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, in 2011.

The carful of kids are getting hungry so before calling it a day we head over to the Prince Edward Island Preserve Company, a charming business that makes and sells tea, jams and preserves among other things.

The carful of kids dive into the Lobster Pot Pie and the Seafood Bubbly Bake after sharing some PEI mussels along with PEI potatoes, both of which are island specialities. We eat everything but find room for dessert--Raspberry Pie.

The Prince Edward Island Preserve Company
has a garden of hope filled with butterfly-loving plants and that is where the carful of kids watch the sun set before finding our cottage close to Cavendish.

Up Next: The Anne of Green Gables Heritage Place