a walk in Breadalbane

From a plaque near this site:

Breadalbane was a bustling community on the upper Dunk River in the 1870s with several businesses. 
James Holmes had built adjacent saw and shingle mills. He was also the first postmaster for a year and the office was first named Holmes Mills PO even though the community became Breadalbane. 
In 1917 the mill site was acquired by Pomroy Murray who added a small two-storey electric light plant. 
The system produced enough power for distribution through the community but only for a few hours in the evenings. However, special provision was made for the hours of 10 am to noon on washdays.

First of all - try to pronounce it:  me and my Ontario ways had a hard time with this one:
bread - all - bun.
Beautiful downtown Breadalbane has a really nice park with a playground equipment, gazebo, even a washroom.  Other tiny towns take note!

To get there from Charlottetown, take highway 2 east, past Hunter River, Fredericton and Pleasant Valley. Turn left on Route 231 at the bottom of a hill.  There doesn't seem to be a sign for 231, so watch for an abandoned garage on the left just before the turn.

Drive 2 km to the village, turn left and park along the park.  Continue down the road, and the beginning of the trail is on the left, just after a babbling Dunk River.

This walk is probably my favourite so far.  It's a very narrow path, crossed with roots, along a steep bank with the river meandering below.

The beginning of the trail.

A Norway maple with tar spot, a fungus disease.  This maple is not native to PEI.  

The native maples do not get this disease.  

I have cut down all the Norway maples on my property just for this reason.

This is a burl - quite a common sight in PEI forests.  

It's like cancer in trees - cells in a certain spot begin to multiply out of control.
Apparently, little research has been done on the cause of this disease, but it is speculated that burls could be caused by a virus or insects.  But it's not all bad.  The wood from a burl is very beautiful and very hard.  Burls have been made into bowls and other decorative objects.
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It's a narrow, root-lined path with a steep drop-off down a bank into the Dunk River.

confluence of three streams

raspberry leaves are touched with frost.

foam in the water - I never know if foam is caused by pollution or if it is a natural occurance

This tree is slowly being eaten from the inside out by fungus.

The outline of the trail follows both sides of the Dunk River.

We had the choice of continuing the hike or crossing this bridge - only four at a time because it's a bit rickety.  We were told that the steel girders holding up the bridge were air-lifted in by helilcopter.  There really would be no other way to get them here on these narrow goat paths.

 misty pastel colours from a touch of frost.

This hiking group has been incredibly lucky with the weather.  Every Wednesday morning we have gone hiking has been gloriously sunny.

a walk at Strathgartney Park

Take the trans canada highway towards the bridge.  turn left at the sign for Strathgartney, and you will walk one of the most challenging trails on PEI - lots of steep hills, and roots to trip you.  But it's worth the walk.

the beginning of the trail

down the hill and through the gate

This white spruce looks like it sprouted red leaves.

this hollow tree is big enough to get inside

a group of blackened mushrooms at the end of their lives

spectacular view from the parking lot

a walk on McKenna scenic heritage road

The guide book says this is the prettiest hike on PEI, and it may be right.
It's about 30 km from Charlottetown.  Take the TransCanada, turn right in Cornwall at #248, then the next left #235/Kingston Road.  drive 16 km and turn left on highway 13.  After 5 km, turn left on #246/South Melville Rd. and drive 1.5 km.  McKenna Road is on the left.  It's a red clay road that meanders for about 9 km.  The only down side is that it's not a loop, so you need to make a decision about when to turn back and walk the same distance back to the car.

The forest is sugar maples, spruce, birch, and these lovely yellow beech.

The sides of the road are bordered by embankments covered with lichen and moss.

A hole in the bank covered with lichen looks like a cave.

red maple leaf on a white spruce bow.

fungus on the side of a big tree.

this mushroom is growing horizontally out of a bed of moss on the embankment.

a peeling birch

the bad side of the trail  - how can people dump a mattress in such a beautiful spot?

a walk on the Confederation Trail

This week, we drove from Charlottetown on the Malpeque Road towards Hunter River, turned left on Rte. 229, and stopped at the Confederation Trail.
This is the first sight:  three friendly domestic ducks looking for a hand-out.

The leaves from the striped maples have turned bright lemon yellow.

Flaming red maple leaves.

These berries from the mountain ash tree are much enjoyed by robins and cedar waxwings.

Another colour of fall - these ferns have changed to pale gold.

is it Christmas yet?

Now this seems crazy early.  I can remember snow on the carved pumpkins after Halloween, but this is a whole new kettle of the white stuff.  It's only October 19, and we have had 2 fluffy inches of the stuff overnight.

It actually took time and work to get the cars to the point where we could see where we are going.  This does not bode well for this coming winter!

giving back

I have lived on PEI for 21 years, but it took a Newcomer to take me on my first clam digging adventure.  She is a recent immigrant from China, and loves to forage for wild food.  We went to Tea Hill Park in Stratford.  Cross the Hillsboro Bridge, turn left at the first light, and drive a long way until you see Tea Hill Park on the right.  And there is the sparkling water, and miles of flat sand.  Go at low tide, and you will be competing with blue herons and sea gulls to find shellfish.

Along the shore are lots of tiny creatures.

I have rarely seen a live crab.  This guy had plenty of spunk.

This is what we were looking for - quahogs or clams.  They hide in the sand and squirt water when threatened.  We picked a bucket full in no time, and she showed me how to pop open the shell, clean off the black stuff around the edge, pry it out of the shell, blanch it quickly and eat with soy sauce.

I kept the bucket in the fridge overnight.  And I decided to cop out.  I would be happy to eat the clams after they are prepared and cooked, but there is no way I am killing them myself.  The next day, Wayne and I drove the bucket back to tea hill, and dropped them gently back into the water.  There were other people on the beach,and I'm thinking the clams would soon be picked up by someone else.

this blue heron is looking for his next meal.

back in the water, at least for now.