Cavendish revisited

Just off-shore, two fishers work to flush oysters. The tasty molluscs grow in brackish water which is often sandy. Sandy oysters wouldn’t be marketable so fishers immerse them in clear sea water for a time to flush out the sand before the morsels are sent to market. 

We could see the cages with the oysters. This area is in New London Bay, tucked behind the sandspit at the western end of Cavendish Beach.

My husband and I had loaded our bikes and headed for the national park at Cavendish in Prince Edward Island. It is one of our favourite places to cycle and we visit often. There is always something different and interesting to see as we ride. This oyster cleansing was a first for us.

On the way to the Homestead Trail, we pass a patch of giant Cow Parsnip, 

which is at least waist height now. It resembles Queen Anne’s Lace which we haven’t seen yet this year.

Overhead, the contrails are back. 

Skies above Prince Edward Island are usually full of air traffic from across the Atlantic and the rest of North America. This past year, the contrails have been missing. Seeing them this day is a hopeful sign about returning to pre-Covid life.

The Homestead Trail is bumpier than we remember but it adds a new element to the journey. The canopy covers the trail in places and the bumpy downhill ride through light and dancing shadows makes us laugh when we compare experiences at the bottom of the hill.

Wildflowers abound, 

a succession of colour and variety, so we stop often. Beautiful floral faces reach for the sun. Rose bushes line a picnic area. 

Was a homestead here at one time?

Wild Madder is everywhere along the trail. 

Also known as Smooth Bedstraw, early settlers used it for mattress stuffing. It is also a source of dye and today pharmaceutical companies research its bioactive ingredients. Of course, it was used in traditional medicine.

Later, beside the Lake of Shining Waters, lupins reach for the sky too, with the dunes of Cavendish in the background.

Meanwhile, we notice the sea arch at MacNeills Brook is widening. How long until a sea stack is formed? 

Geological succession is fascinating too. 

Along St. Peter’s Bay

The trail along St. Peter’s Bay is one of the most beautiful sections of the Confederation Trail on Prince Edward Island, with the bay on one side of the trail and fields and cottages on the other. 

Wildflowers abound with the bonus of the sea as a backdrop.

Wild Madder lines the trails now while the huge, waist high Cow Parsnip pops up in places. 

In several areas, lupins are beginning to look worn but pretty.

Meanwhile, the star of the area, St. Peter’s Bay, always catches one’s attention. On the bay, crews were busy in mussel boats. 

We watched for a few minutes, thinking we haven’t had mussels recently. We’ll soon fix that situation with our favourite recipe involving curry and coconut milk. Fresh mussels are always available locally.

In some fields, workers were baling hay. 

I wonder what my grandfather, a fisherman-farmer in Newfoundland, would think of the location by the sea and the baling machine which rides over the hay and after several minutes ejects a wrapped bale from the back. 

Granda forked hay into a wagon and the old horse pulled it to the barn where it was stored. Gone are the hay rides we enjoyed every year.

It was fascinating to watch the precision of the operation these days, a long way in distance, time and tradition from the back-breaking work of yore.