North to Prince Edward Island

cmac

My wife and I are planning a trip to PEI from central Oklahoma via Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, and Quebec mid to late September this year.  Our longest trip so far has been from OK to Niagara Falls, CA, so this will be another ~400 miles longer.

Any tips or tricks we should be aware of?  We will probably take the bridge to PEI instead of the ferry or if allowed take one over to PEI and the other back to CA if allowed.

On the way home we will loop around south thru DC and VA to see my sister and sights in DC and in Arlington and then loop around south and probably take I-40 back to Okie land.

Any tips on going thru Troy, NY from west to east on I-90 to US 7 on into VT?  I'm not real keen about pulling the T@B thru a major metro area.

I know we need to watch our travel dates since some campgrounds in ME, CA, and PEI close in early to mid September.

John

pingnc

We would be interested in any input on your trip.  We are planning on PEI Aug 23rd, Stanhope.

rfuss928

This is an approximate map of our Atlantic tour last summer.  We have visited NB, NS, and PEI several times before.  This trip we decided to follow the St. Lawrence river back to NY.

I-90 to US7 through Troy NY will not be a problem.  I have taken that route several times with the T@B in tow.

We have used both the ferry and the bridge to PEI.  You only pay to leave the island.  The bridge is a lower toll than the ferry.

Your additional mileage estimate from Niagara Falls seems quite low.  It's 400 miles from NF to VT!

Have Fun!!!

ScottG

I've spent a lot of time covering northern New England and Atlantic Canada in various ways. In fact, I spent a week in Stanhope last August. For a place that really doesn't have all that much going on, PEI sure knows how to turn on the charm. (I've even taken up reading the Anne of Green Gables series since returning home...)

The good news is you don't need a lot of tips and tricks--the driving and the living are both pretty easy in those parts, just take your time and enjoy the ride.  :-)

Freshaire

This seems like a popular trip.  I am headed to Cape Breton and PEI as soon as I can get my Tab from my mechanic who is working on the bearings.  I'm traveling from Virginia and wondering what advice former travelers would give regarding Rt 1 through Maine vs. I -95.  I normally avoid 95 like the plague, but there don't seem to be a whole lot of routes north.

@cmac, I live outside of Charlottesville, Va, if you are going to be in my area, give me a shout.  If I am around and not traveling west at the time, you are welcome to boondock on my property.  At a minimum, I can guide you to some great places to visit.

ScottG

US Rt. 1 certainly is pretty, but it passes through the center of just about every town on the Maine coast. Lots of lights and stop signs--not to mention traffic in the high season--until you get above Belfast and maybe even Ellsworth.

I-95 would certainly be quicker and simpler. You can take it all the way to the NB border at Houlton, or get off in Bangor and follow ME Rt. 9 to the border in Calais. Either route will take you across NB in about the same time. (The route via Calais, however, will take past Fundy National Park and other Bay of Fundy attractions if those are of interest to you.)

cmac

Thank you for the responses, keep 'em coming.  This is our first big post retirement trip, I retired July, 2016 and Cheryl retires this month after 33 years of teaching.  The primary reason to go to the Northeast is to see the fall foliage colors in VT and ME and Cheryl has always wanted to go to PEI because that is where Anne of Green Gables series was filmed - so we'll be doing that tour.

I agree I was short on the additional mileage.  I found rfuss's map very interesting.  Bob, you may have just expanded our mileage!

Is French or English the predominate language in Quebec and PEI or are both spoken?  When we were in Alberta, CA, north of Glacier Nat'l Park,in the early 90's french was spoken and we did have some problems ordering food in the restaurants, but it all worked out.

Will be interesting crossing the borders this time.  When we went to Niagara Falls, crossing into CA was very simple.  Crossing back into the US entry we waited for hours until our turn came then we had to open the T@B for the Inspector but he did not touch anything - I really think he just wanted to see inside the hatch and trailer because he had a lot of questions related to the trailer.  I bet the folks behind us in line were cussin' us.

By the way, if you get to Northern New York State, be sure to check out Old Fort Niagara.  The stone fort is very interesting and the history of the area is interesting in how many times the Fort changed ownership between the English, French, and Americans and the purpose of the Fort and the deceptions involved.  The facilities the soldiers bunked in will make you appreciate your T@B beds even more!

Thanks for letting me ramble.

John

Sharon_is_SAM

Don’t forget your passport!

Freshaire

Thanks @ScottG.  I'm driving far enough without adding lots of stop lights and stop signs.  Guess it is 95 for me.  : )

rfuss928

Our route followed coastal roads as often as possible.  Google maps does not allow enough way points to keep the map exactly on our path or to include several other areas visited.  It doesn't even include the portion from home near Rochester to our cabin in Eagle Bay.  The trip was 5000 miles start to finish.

We really had no plans or reservations for any part of the trip.  We left home knowing we were going to spend a few days in Bar Harbor.  While there we decided to visit NS and PEI again.  Once settled near Baddeck NS, during a conversation with a fellow camper, we learned about the Gaspe' Peninsula.  I had always wanted to follow the St Lawrence river to the Atlantic, so a new general direction was set.  What started out as a two to three week trip turned into nearly five weeks.

The point being, no tips or tricks were needed.  Simply a sense of adventure, curiosity, flexibility and adaptability.

As you cross NY I would recommend staying south of I-90 and visiting the Finger Lakes region and then further north into the Adirondack Park.

Once we were in Quebec, all signage became strictly French.  Most folks we met were bi-lingual - we are not.  We had no problems.

The Niagara Falls boarder is one of the busiest crossings between US/CA.  You will not experience any such delays in these areas.

Have fun!!

Bob

cmac

Bob, thanks for the additional info.  Interesting about the French signage.  We may need to get a French/English conversion app for our phone.  We do have passports for when we went to Niagara Falls, CA and they remain current.

You hit on another point near and dear to me:  I was an accountant for 38 years and everything I did was determined by other people's deadlines.  Sooooo, I refuse to make reservations when we travel unless it is absolutely necessary.  When we went to Niagara Falls we traveled one day at a time and had no problem finding a place to stay on a "walk-in" basis

I'm thinking our trip may turn into 3, 4, 5 weeks, or whenever the funds get low but we tend to live pretty frugally on the road, but fuel prices are supposed to be up this summer.  The current exchange rate is:  $1.00 US = $1.29 CA so that may help a bit.

This is exciting, thanks to everyone for sharing your experiences and comments.

Does anyone else like the planning part of their trips/adventures?

John

rkj__

With regards to Quebec, the official language is French. As mentioned, all signage will be in French. So, you will need to know a few words like: 

Directions: North, south, east, west. Road, highway. Full (if you use a full service gas station).  You can always go for a “drive” with Google street view to look at a few sample road signs. Traffic lights are often stacked horizontally instead of vertically. 

In the big cities like Montreal and Quebec, most people you will interact with will be bilingual to some extent. However, moving away from the big cities, most areas are very French. 

New Brunswick is bilingual, so you will find pockets of French there as well. 

NHCraig

Used to work in Albany, NY - the Albany-Troy area isn't really a "major metro" area, but it does get its share of rush hour traffic, so if you can avoid early morning and late afternoon, it's an easier drive.  Once through Troy, Route 7 turns into an ordinary two-lane state highway fairly quickly.  You have several options for crossing southern VT, all of them involve a little bit of climbing crossing the crest of the Green Mtns, but it's not bad.  Had no trouble bringing mine home from Rutland (and crossing the highest of the passes) with my four-cylinder Forester.  Sounds like a great trip, one I hope to do in the next year or so.  Enjoy!

Luckyj

Did not went thrue all the post, but campground should be open u til the fist weekend of october in Quebec, new Brunswick and PEI.  This is our thanks giving weekend.  Last busy weekend should be labor day weekend.

do not think you were planning for it, but quebec north shore (tadousac) is very nice in the fall, whale watching small cruise in hard shell zodiac or larger boat, and Charlevoix, Baie-St-Paul La Malbaie, Ile au coudre are also very nice country.  G8 will be in La Mabaie qc in a few weeks.  Might give you an idea of the area.

have fun.

cmac

Luckyj: thanks for the info.  Whale watching sounds interesting.  Good to know about the thanksgiving holiday.
John