Eastern Kings County
Welcome to the tour of Eastern Kings County. We will follow
the Bays and Dunes section of your official highway map of Prince
Edward Island. If you don't have a map and other tourist information,
you can
order
visitor information online or send us an
e-mail
and we’ll have them mailed to you. Please include your full
name and address.
At the eastern end of P.E.I., Bays and Dunes is a land of
superlative sunrises and seemingly forgotten beaches, some of
the best on the Island. We're going to begin our tour at Cardigan.
The harbour is
home to a small fishing fleet and numerous pleasure craft. Although
some large summer homes were built in this area, most of the
countryside is dotted with small farms, mixed hardwood lots,
and wildflowers which grow along the roadsides.
Proceeding east on the Kings Byway Drive (Rte 311), a right
turn will take you past the small village of Newport. A 1 km
(0.6 mile) sidetrip will take you to the wharf and general store.
Mussel leases dot Cardigan Bay. Back on the main road, a late
summer drive reveals the bounty of forage crops rolled into
large round bales.
One of P.E.I.'s old
one-room
school houses rests forlornly by the side of the road at DeGros
Marsh. Turning north and west past Launching, we are treated to
a view of Boughton Bay, and 1.3 km further along one of eastern
P.E.I.'s most
decorative
farmhouses can be seen. In this area you'll see small woodlots
and
fields of oats
and
potatoes.
The Kings Byway Drive takes a right turn onto Rte 4 and proceeds
northeast for 3.2 km. Just before turning right onto Rte 310 you
can stop near the Boughton River bridge and take in the sights
of the small village of Bridgetown.
The important roles of fishing and farming are in evidence,
with lobster boats
and traps being
prepared for the season and tidy farmhouses and bright red
barns inland.
A side trip here (right turn) will take you to the secluded
beach at
Spry
Cove. At 1.9 km from the turnoff, a
great
view of the cove, with its sandbar and saltmarsh will tempt
you to stay for a walk. Nearby, crafty Spry Pointers have built
some
cozy birdhouses
to attract tree swallows, mosquito- eaters supreme! The end of
the road (literally) is just 4.3 km from the turnoff, and gives
access to the beach. (Return to the main road by the reverse route.)
Back on the Drive we pass through the village of Howe Bay.
Most bays on the eastern end of P.E.I. are protected by large
sandbars at their entrance and Howe Bay is no exception. Deeper
channels in the middle allow the passage of fishing boats. Occasional
dairy farms featuring black and white Holsteins or brown and white
Ayrshires may be seen in this region.
Like many other places in Atlantic Canada, Islanders often
like to paint their houses in bright, cheerful
hues although many still opt for more earthy
tones.
Eglington Bay and Bay Fortune are next on the list of many
bays on this route. This is a favourite area for summer cottages
and
canoeing.
The
backwaters
are home to cormorants and herons. Here you can get a good view
from the Fortune River Bridge and a
nearby
Edwardian house built in the grand style.
At Rollo Bay West turn right onto Hwy 2 and proceed northeast.
The views of the
fields
and bays fall away to the ocean, and there's a fortuitously
placed picnic and photo stop just 2 km from your last turn. Stop
here to enjoy lunch, fresh air, and great scenery! If you're visiting
us in late summer, bring your binoculars because the sandbars
and saltmarshes are stopping places for lots of shorebirds, such
as sanderlings, yellowlegs, plovers and sandpipers. Shortly past
Rollo Bay, you'll get your
first
glimpse of Souris and Colville Bay.
