Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Alps]

In the early stages of planning a trip up to PEI and Newfie.  I can see there are a lot of gravel routes on PEI and certain main routes.  I also see there's basically one road on Newfoundland that goes anywhere.  Does anyone know of anything interesting from a roadgeek perspective to see on the islands?  What routes (gravel or paved) should I be sure to travel?  I'll be going in summer with dates flexible, so snow or mud should not be issues.

[Crewdawg]

only place that I have been is the air port  was a refuel stop on way to the desert.

[njroadhorse]

Well, the Trans-Canada highway does pass right through Charlottetown, and I believe terminates on the island.

[froggie]

Passes through Charlottetown, but not through downtown.  Terminates at the Woods Island ferry terminal (the terminal back to Nova Scotia).

Steve:  I've been thinking of doing a post on what Meaghan and I saw on PEI...we were there on vacation a few weeks ago.  That post may answer some of your roadgeek-related questions.

That said, if you plan on going during the summer...and especially anytime between mid-July and mid-August...I *HIGHLY* recommend making reservations for wherever you want to stay.

[Sykotyk]

I've been on Prince Edward Island and drove out to Glace Bay/Sydney, NS.

On PEI, there's the obvious (Confederations Bridge), and the Trans-Canada route. Montague is a nice little town in eastern PEI, quaint.

Sydney has their beltway. Next time up there I'm going to see the Cape Breton highlands, didn't last time.

Sykotyk

[oscar]

I spent a week in Newfoundland in 2003.  Some tips:

(1)  The TCH isn't all there is in NL.  The most interesting detour is the Viking Trail, through Gros Morne National Park to various Viking-related historic sites at the northern tip of Newfoundland island.  A short but pretty mandatory detour from St. John's is to Cape Spear, easternmost point in North America.  Also a variety of colourfully-signed scenic loops from the TCH, one of which will take you to the town of Dildo (I bought a hat there).  Another will take you to the jumping-off point to the French possession of St. Pierre et Miquelon (I couldn't do that due to lack of time).

(2)  I got to NL from Nova Scotia via an overnight ferry from Sydney NS to Argentia NL, which takes you almost to St. John's and avoids a lot of backtracking over the TCH.  It's possible to do the triangular route from Sydney to Argentia to Channel Port aux Basques (western tip of Newfoundland, with frequent ferry service to Nova Scotia) in reverse, but that might mean a long, boring trip from Argentia to NS in the daytime.  Play around with the ferry schedules and see what works best for you.  When I went, NS-Argentia ferry service ran only three days a week in the summer, so I suggest you make that reservation first and plan the rest of your trip around it. 

(3)  In Nova Scotia, the Cabot Trail is an extremely scenic loop off the TCH you should definitely work into your schedule if at all possible. 

(4)  If your car requires premium fuel, there will be some long stretches where only regular unleaded will be available (like through Gros Morne National Park), so bring some octane booster. 

(5)  Do not underestimate how long it takes to get around Newfoundland.  The roads are only a little worse than other provinces, with plenty of 90km/h and 100km/h limits (nothing posted at 110km/h I can recall).  But just the raw distances will chew up a lot of time. 

For my trip photos from NL and elsewhere in the Maritimes, see http://www.alaskaroads.com/photos-Newfoundland.htm

[froggie]

When I went, NS-Argentia ferry service ran only three days a week in the summer, so I suggest you make that reservation first and plan the rest of your trip around it.

According to the 2009 MapArt atlases, the ferry to Argentia still runs 3 days a week, from late June through late September.

Based on the ferry website and current prices, plan to pay about C$100 (plus taxes on top of that) for the Port aux Basques ferry, and about C$250 (plus taxes) for the Argentia ferry.

[Alps]

When I went, NS-Argentia ferry service ran only three days a week in the summer, so I suggest you make that reservation first and plan the rest of your trip around it.

According to the 2009 MapArt atlases, the ferry to Argentia still runs 3 days a week, from late June through late September.

Based on the ferry website and current prices, plan to pay about C$100 (plus taxes on top of that) for the Port aux Basques ferry, and about C$250 (plus taxes) for the Argentia ferry.

When I checked the ferry website I saw prices much cheaper than that.  I remember the long (Argentia) ferry was about $80-$85 for a vehicle.  Even if driver is charged separately, that's only half the $250.

[froggie]

Yes, the driver is charged separately.  According to the Argentia ferry rates page, it's $167.25 for the vehicle, and $80.50 per driver/passenger.

[Alps]

Ah I see now, I wasn't reading closely enough.  Seems like it's more cost-effective to rent a car on the island for a day or two than to attempt to bring your own, which may be what they're driving at (pardon the pun).