Harvee Holidays: Nous Voici !

Our intention to do a dump at our site before leaving came to a smoldering end. Another first for me now in my 31st year of RVing. Unbelievable! When gauging where to line up on our site, we attached the sewer hose while I backed up Harvee Too and left the engine running while I checked. Bad decision. The sewer hose melted touching the muffler exhaust pipe!😖

First stop was at Canadian Tire in town at 8:00 to buy a new sewer hose. We were only 72 km from the Confederation Bridge to P.E.I. The bridge opened in 1997 which was the year Jean and I visited P.E.I.. The curved 12.9 km bridge is the longest in the world crossing ice-covered water. Construction took four years using more than 5000 local workers. The posted speed limit of 80 kph can be adjusted according to weather conditions.

We stopped in Carleton for tourist information and pictures, then continued to Souris, another 133 km. We were pressed for time because I had not allowed for reduced speed limits through the numerous small towns along the Trans Canada hwy. We arrived at the ferry terminal with one minute to spare at 11:44. (They suggested you arrive 75 minutes before sailing time.)

We boarded almost immediately after checking in. The crossing to Iles de la Madeleine is 134 km and takes approximately 5 hours. We left 15 minutes ahead of the scheduled 1:00 departure and our sailing time was 4 1/2 hours in mostly overcast skies and a brief period of rain. The Gulf of St. Lawrence was relatively calm.

The ferry, the MV Madeleine II was launched in 2017, owned and operated by a Spanish company and purchased by the Canadian government in 2021. It carries up to 1,500 passengers and 450 cars.