Eric Stendal

Date: Tuesday, 15 September 2026

City / Region: Brackley Beach & PEI

Weather: 18° very sunny and very pleasant today.

Morning Summary

Woke up this morning to a beautiful view of the sun coming up over the waters of McCallum Creek where we are staying.

Coffee and tea were prepared and general plans for the day are being discussed. Shelley prepared some egg and cheese on toast (she had peanut butter and toast).

We think we’ll make our way to the beach near us and perhaps work our way out east to East Point to see what’s around.

Afternoon Summary

We made the drive from Brackley Beach to East Point. Our routing took us along the Gulf Shore Parkway which stretches along the northern part of the island; sand dunes and the Gulf of St. Lawrence on one side and bike paths and sprawling land on the other. This is part of the Prince Edward Island National Park.

We pulled over in one of the rest areas and got out to stretch our legs and grab a photo or two. The wind was strong but it created some fantastic wave action for us. Several people were enjoying their walk along the sandy beach.

Near St. Peter’s Bay, Shelley thought this would make a good photo – the blue of the water with the large patches of grassy plains with a white church thrown in for good measure. It was taken through the car window, but we captured it as best as we could from the side of the road.

Arriving at the East Point Lighthouse we couldn’t believe how nice it was. Honestly I was expecting a simple lighthouse of some kind with a park thrown in beside. Instead, we were met with a beautiful lighthouse full of prideful history and volunteers. A resplendent gift shop and the climb within the lighthouse was very interesting.

On one of the levels within the lighthouse, I read the following:

At the Eastpoint lighthouse. The three tides, Gulf of St. Lawrence, Northumberland Street and the Atlantic Ocean, converge at Eastpoint, and are visible by the turbulent waters and wave pattern. These colliding tides make it a Haven for fish to feed and attract numerous birds, whales, and seals.

There are three reefs located off Eastpoint. These reefs contribute to the areas reputation as a challenging navigation area due to the meeting of the Atlantic Ocean, Northumberland Street, and Gulf of St. Lawrence tides. The Eastpoint lighthouse serves as a visual aid for reference and navigation of the treacherous reefs.

Evening Summary

Laundry, relaxing with some wine (and some Canadian Whisky). There’s a story for that whisky.

I found a bottle of this 18-yr peat version of the Glen Breton Dark at the store here. I went back to purchase another bottle. The box out front was empty as they keep them in the back of the store. The cashier went back with the empty box to find the bottle that belonged to it. After about five minutes, she returned from the back of the store and put the empty box back on the shelf. However, she had in her hands another box from the back and that was the one she was going to sell me.

I noticed how much dust had settled on this box. It has been in the back for a loooooong time. I can’t believe my luck in being able to obtain another bottle of this whisky. It was even cheaper than at the distillery!

So now we’re back at the cottage, and supper is about to be prepared. BBQ chicken breasts with corn on the cob; butter and salt ‘n peppah. The corn was insanely delicious – very sweet – best we’ve had all year.

Daily Highlights

• Our best moment was our ‘funny moment’ (see below).
• The volunteer in charge of the lighthouse at East Point was hilarious. Shelley listened in to him making up a fictional story about a previous keeper of the lighthouse who had an affair with another keeper’s wife; and that it ended in murder. The young group were enthralled with this story. They left the lighthouse and as the volunteer and Shelley were watching them linger on the grass, Shelley turned to him and said, “You should tell them that the bodies are buried under them…”. The volunteer, addressing the group, said, “Oh, and not to cause you more angst, but you’re actually standing on the location of where the bodies were buried.” The group accepted this with shock and wonder as they headed back to their van.
• Our biggest surprise was discovering that East Point was as robust a location as it was. I incorrectly assumed it was going to be just an old lighthouse on a barren strip of land. We were wrong!
• See above regarding the confluence of the three parts of water and the effect this causes for weather, tides, navigation and such. Very cool.

Logistics

• We drove from Brackley Beach to East Point – the furthermost eastern location of PEI.
• We spent some money in the gift shop; sweatshirts, taffy, postcards, stickers for the grandkids….
• We anticipate heading up to North Cape today – a longer drive but we have the day to do it.

Closing Thoughts

This was another relaxing day of some driving, exploration, and relaxing at the cottage. BBQ’ing some chicken was nice to do. The sunset was quick and the dew was starting to set on everything just as it got dark.