PEI Island Walk - September 29, 2024 Day 23 Howe Bay to Montague

Nailed it! A very peaceful day walking 36.1 kms over 7h 9min walking time at an average pace of 5.0 kms per hour. The walking pace was slower than the first 2 days at 5.2 kms...2 main reasons 

- I am simply tired having walked 103 kms in the last 3 days. ☺️  

- Mental confidence and physical ability must be in sync. Today I felt great about walking...thought I had a chance to complete  the long walk to Montague.  However my legs & feet (see below) weren’t happy campers. Much like Day 1 my left calf was cramping up...with massaging, early slow pace it eased up within the first km. 

My legs were simply not driving forward well...they were being very lazy...”I’m tired...I’m sore etc” Well after a bit of a talking to they gradually improved throughout the day.  

The walk had a nice balanced mixture of busy highway, country road , PEI red mud road and Confederation Trail walking. Perfect! However NOTHING happened today...no 😱 stories, no 🐍 , no 🐝 ,no 🐕 and no fellow🚶‍♂️. NADA so everyone get’s a blogpost story break 🤔...mostly pictures for today! Plus I am pooped!

Stats

Original Plan (Red), 2023/2024 Actual (Blue)

Walking Days: Original Planned 24, 2023/2024 Actual 23

Total Kms Walked:  Original Planned 703, 2023/2024 Actual 685

Shuttle Rides: Original Planned 17, 2023/2024 Actual 26

Elevation Gains/Losses: 155m (157m)

Walking Time: 7h 9m

Kms per hour Walking: 5.0 kms per hour

% Come on get a Wiggle on Days (>40 km): Original Planned 7, 2023/2024 Actual 4

***Important note had to modify Shuttle Rides as yesterday’s blogpost incorrectly had Actual 25 when it should have been 24. So VERY sorry if this has caused reader anxiety 😉

Day 3 reached Montague

Montague (Green Arrow)

I received a number of encouraging messages after the Sep 27 blogpost “Pinch me...we are here!” They are always most welcome and appreciated. One in particular deserves special mention. I will not identify who sent me the message as that seems unfair...will only say that C*l a former System Architect, author of several books and a dedicated golfer (however 😰 he has never had a hole in one ☺️) sent me this:

" OMG. You're at it again. Someday there's going to be a "Guy Arbez Extraordinary Determination" award, handed out annually by the Governor General. Of course, I'll recommend it be renamed to the "Guy Arbez Daring and Daft Deeds" award.

Nonetheless, well done, sir."

Made me laugh 🤣 big time!

Last night Dawn and I tried a different restaurant for supper. driving straight to the Fiddling Fisherman Lookout in Souris (pronounced Souree...similar to mouse in French) after the Howe Bay pickup. A beautiful location overlooking the bay with a wide ranging menu.

I wanted  a change and ordered the Maple and Bacon pizza1 Absolutely delicious and even went crazy and had a ginger ale...infrequently have soft drinks anymore but the sugar rush was badly needed.

After dinner we decided to go for a walk along a superb boardwalk in Souris along the bay. I  had walked this boardwalk a few times while recuperating in 2023 from the raw oyster issue. Now for something different...Dawn walked the boardwalk alone for 30 minutes or so...I could not budge myself and stayed in the car!!! 

The foot with the blister was really sore. Somehow when walking you know there is pain somewhere but one sets that aside to reach the day’s endpoint. Once finished the body simply says “Enough buddy...now you will feel it!”

Today’s Walk

Before setting out for the day footcare is essential. Clearly this won’t win any best nursing care awards however it effectively did the job  covering the pesky blister problem! I normally rely on Dr Paulo for this stuff. Why is the tape so wrinkly? Is there really a way to avoid this considering the placement? I am open to any suggestions.

Got off to another early 8:15 start...merci beaucoup Dawn! An absolutely perfect day weather wise...not too hot...some cloud cover and light winds. Some pictures on the first major 24 km leg to Montague.

Great way to start 😊 So much better than a busy highway!

Not sure what crop this is? Yellow flowers

Typical PEI Farmland 

Curious llamas...they came right up the fence

Great rest stop...however it came at 10 km so much too early

So many churches in PEI...every denomination

So many cemeteries...many have a very old section dating 150+ years

That’s the life!

Around 1:15 or so I reached Cardigan...I had already committed to walking on to Montague instead of stopping here.

Cardigan WP # 26

Great lunch spot!

Another delicious packed lunch...Greg note the bar 🤣

And then to my great surprise...as I had not read up on the walk today...the entire last 12 km section between Cardigan and Montague was on the Confederation Trail. No cars! Felt so very peaceful!

A wasp nest?

The longest walking trail in the World!

Harbour at Montague

Well everyplace has to have some kind of monument!

On to tomorrow and the final 21 kms to Gaspereaux to complete the entire PEI Island Walk. I will candidly admit it’s been a real struggle to get to this point...it sure will be a great feeling to get it done! I may even have a beer to celebrate!