22/07/2024 – Back Home 5

21st July – we drove to Greenwich, part of PEI National Park. They offer 2 trails which string together to make a 7km stroll through a remarkable range of ecosystems. You walk from meadows, sprung from rewilded farmland, to Atlantic beaches, through grey and green dunes, across freshwater lakes. They have a fantastic pontoon walkway, a few hundred metres long, that is very special.

We saw an osprey bathing: gently landing on the water, ducking fully under, before rowing itself back into the air. Why? to remove parasites? To stay cool? No idea, but, it was fascinating behaviour. Later, a pair of terns started dive-bombing, harrying it away. We saw diving ducks resurface with minnows in their beaks, electric-blue damsel flies, bird-sized dragon flies, whirligig beetles, a muskrat slip into the water out of the cats’ tails.

Round the cape, in scrubby woodland, we met ground squirrels. Most were flighty, but one was so enamored of his acorn he allowed Carey to approach very near, producing a charming series of ever-closer photographs. We circled past a field, pink-purple with Rosebay Willowherb, an echo of those Spanish poppy fields. I picked some wild raspberries.

We returned to Charlottetown for a potato-heavy lunch on the patio of an old brick building off Victoria Row. Which was where we were when Biden stepped down. We were in the Keg in Montreal when Trump was shot. We promise not to eat fancy Canadian cuisine on this trip again, just in case it’s having a butterfly effect on American politics. We are both truly relieved a genuine choice is restored to US voters. What they do with it is up to them.

22nd July – we returned to the National Park, driving further west to Berkley Beach and the trails of Robinson’s Island. The main, “family” beach was gorgeous golden sand, full of holiday makers. The island beach (5km away, deep in the park) was iron red, tumbled with “rocks” so soft, they frayed to sand under your thumb. We added a fine plump toad, some clouded yellow butterflies to our species list, but otherwise, it was a lovely re-run of yesterday. We snacked on more sun-warmed raspberries. We watched more ospreys. We marveled again at the amazing, relentless process of plant colonization, turning sand into land. We were again mesmerized by the extraordinary dance of reeds, grass, wind and water. It is truly beautiful, healthy country.

Later in the afternoon, we drove even further on and toured a bit of the Green Gables coast. That, too, is beautiful country, in a different way: charmingly-coloured clapperboard houses; porches with hanging baskets of flowers; haywains planted up on street corners with white-painted kerbs; trimmed lawns and planted fields; horses and barns.

As we move on tomorrow, we maxed out on PEI dairy today: dinner at Moo Moo Cheesy Grillery (sublime mac ‘n’ cheese deploying award-winning Cows cheddar), followed by Cows double cones (they don’t call it “super premium” for nothing, wow). So good!