Most visitors to Prince Edward Island spend much of their time on the North Shore exploring the national park and enjoying the beaches for which the island is justly famous. But take a 30-minute drive east of Charlottetown and you’ll find out why the Point Prim area and its unique attractions make for one of P.E.I.’s best day trips.
Most people make the drive to the tip of Point Prim, jutting into Hillsborough Bay, to photograph and climb the oldest lighthouse on the island. Built in 1845, it is one of only three circular brick lighthouses in Canada, (although white shingles cover the bricks today). Unlike many of Atlantic Canada’s lighthouses, Point Prim is a designated heritage site under the aegis of Parks Canada, which means it’s properly maintained. Aside from being one of the prettiest lighthouses on the island, Point Prim is one of the few that allows visitors to climb to the top. Once inside, you can blow an old-fashioned foghorn. The entrance fee is a modest $6 for adults and includes a guided tour on request.
The former lightkeeper’s cottage is now a gift shop that sells P.E.I. handicrafts, all having a nautical theme. If you are feeling flush, you can spend $150 to buy a $20 Canadian coin that was minted for the 150th anniversary of the province’s entry into Confederation and features the lighthouse.
Your next stop should be the Point Prim Chowder House, which has been serving up local seafood and more for decades. While its seafood chowder is famous, this is the only restaurant in the world where you can taste Pinette River oysters. Co-owner Paul Lavender explains why they are so popular, “Considered wild, these oysters grow naturally on the riverbed. They are unique in both taste and texture, which is why we have many repeat customers who come from far and wide to enjoy them at the Point Prim Chowder House.” Place your order at a service window and enjoy your meal on the outdoor terrace which has a great view of the lighthouse. If it’s a bit chilly, you can eat inside.
Your next stop on Point Prim should be at Hannah’s Bottle Village, which is a labour of love by Gar Gillis to raise money for the IWK Children’s Hospital in Halifax. Started in 2002 with a church dedicated to his grandson, there are now about a dozen different miniature buildings including a school, general store, sports complex, and lighthouse. It is a photogenic treat to explore this place, both inside and out. There is no admission fee, but each building has an IWK donation box and recently Mr. Gillis passed the $100,000 mark in donations.
Also nearby is Lord Selkirk Provincial Park, 10 kilometres west from the entrance to Point Prim Road. Most Canadians learned in school about the Selkirk Settlers who founded the Red River Colony in the future province of Manitoba in 1811. They were Scots who were displaced from their land in the infamous Highland Clearances, when property owners evicted thousands of tenant farmers from the lands they had tended for centuries, in favour of raising sheep. What most don’t know is that Lord Selkirk had already brought three boatloads of Scots to P.E.I. in 1803, where they settled on lands once occupied by Acadians before they were expelled by the British in 1758. A visit to this place tells the story of both groups.
The starting point is the replica of a typical Scottish croft house which contains many interesting artifacts found around the former Acadian village. These include a French coin dated 1680.
Outside interpretive panels tell the story of Lord Selkirk, who, although a noble, felt deeply disturbed by the eviction of crofters from their homes in favour of sheep. He used his wealth to buy land in what was already the post-Acadian settlement of Belfast and paid for the transportation of 800 displaced Highlanders to start new lives here. The descendants of these Scots include two Fathers of Confederation and many other prominent Prince Edward Islanders. The upshot was that this event revived interest in the island as a destination for immigrants.
The final stop on this day trip should be at the Sir Andrew MacPhail Homestead in nearby Orwell. MacPhail was one of P.E.I.’s most distinguished citizens, earning a worldwide reputation for his skills as a physician, agriculturist and novelist. His 1939 semi-autobiographical novel The Master’s Wife tells the story of life in rural P.E.I. in the late 19th century. J.M. Bumstead in The Peoples of Canada: A Post-Confederation History called it “A classic of Canadian social history.” Learn more about this polymath on a guided tour and then stroll through the MacPhail Woods Forestry Project, 57 hectares of deciduous trees that are alive with birdsong. Finally, return to the house for afternoon tea or a light snack in as bucolic a setting as you’ll find anywhere.
pointprimlighthouse.com
chowderhouse.online
facebook.com/HannahsBottleVillagePEI
macphailhomestead.ca
