Island Treasures

As the time winds down until I'm there I can't help but think about my favourite things to do and places to go when I'm on the Island. I'm going alone this time, and this will be a quick and busy trip without time to tour and visit, so I guess I'm missing those things that I won't be able to do this time. But when you go to the Gentle Island, give these a try. Click on the links at the end of each description.

Places to eat

You can't go Down East without eating at Brehaut's in Murray Harbour. Great chicken & chips and homemade pie. Lots of seafood too if you like that sort of thing. Thankfully it's already open for the season because I have a feeling we will be eating there a lot until we get the stove and fridge hooked up: Brehaut's Restaurant

When in Charlottetown, the best fish and chips and beer is at the Gahan House 

Island History

I've been a member of the Prince Edward Island Museum and Heritage Foundation for 30 years now and I always make a point to visit their headquarters Beaconsfield on Kent Street in Charlottetown. The first time I went there I was with my Dad and Grampy and we looked through old family records. The house has been restored and is well worth a visit to see the second finest house ever built on the Island: Beaconsfield

The Heritage Foundation has several sites and I like going to Orwell Corner as well, which is not far at all from the house. It's a small town that time forgot. The main road was diverted around the town many decades ago, so the town stopped growing and changing. Grampy told me when he was young that the road still went through Orwell, so seeing this village is like seeing the Island of his childhood: Orwell Corner

Everybody should visit Government House, Fanningbank. This IS the finest house on the Island, and the tours are great. You can see the Queen's bedroom and it's filled with fantastic antiques. It is also one of the oldest houses on the Island: Fanningbank

I always enjoy catching up with Donna Collings at the Garden of the Gulf Museum in Montague. First of all, I love the building, the old Customs House designed by my favourite architect William Harris in the 1880's. It is also the oldest museum on the Island, opened in 1958. The museum holds the original land grant and papers of my great-great-great-great grandfather James Munn who settled in the area 205 years ago: Garden of the Gulf Museum

Art

David and I collect art and usually find something to take back here to Nebraska to remind us of the Island. One summer I found in Details Past and Present an original watercolor by Robert Harris, of Murray Harbour, dated 1868! I also really like the work of Richard Vickerson and have 2 of his watercolours, and one is of the old store in Orwell. The gallery is located on Victoria Row (in another William Harris building) on Richmond Street in Charlottetown: Details Past and Present

David's favourite gallery is located on Great George Street in Charlottetown: Pilar Shepherd Gallery

We usually visit the Confederation Centre of the Arts to try to see the Robert Harris collection, for which the art gallery was built, but the last few years they have mothballed it unfortunately: Confederation Centre of the Arts

One of the best galleries, with a great restaurant, is the Dunes on the Brackley Point Road. We always spend at least half a day there: The Dunes

Beaches

Panmure Island is a great beach. Very quiet compared to the north shore, and close to home: Panmure Island

I also like going to the beach at Northumberland Provincial Park, near the Wood Island Ferry, and its even closer than Panmure: Northumberland Park

A new favourite place to go is Kerras Jeffery's Back Road Folk Art. He supplied me with a lot of salvaged stuff for the house, like sinks, doors, a window, even the antique birch hardwood flooring for the house. He is a talented folk craftsman and I have a feeling I'll be getting more from him over time. If you like his work, I would suggest getting something soon. He is getting pretty famous: Back Road Folk Art

And we always visit Carter. He lives in Hunter River so I really appreciate all of the trips he has made to the River over the past 10 months. He has a website that I really enjoy. He is a talents photographer and gets to showcase some of his work at PEI Heritage Buildings. Check it out regularly.

So that's is a little bit of what the Island means to me. 14 days and counting!