The Island Walk
Prince Edward Island | Come back different
BBC – August 18, 2022 By Carolyn B Heller A Canadian’s quest to design a pilgrimage-inspired path around Prince Edward Island is now the Island Walk, a 700km walking and cycling route. Pink and purple lupins swayed along Prince Edward Island’s Highway 101, where I’d just walked out of the town of Kensington. It was …
Dates: May 2022Days Walked: 31 Why does anyone decide to step away from their life for a month and walk 700kms? A time-out? An opportunity for reflection? A spiritual pilgrimage? Slow tourism? For me, all were reasons. Two weeks into the pandemic my middle son who lived with significant disabilities died from complications of non-COVID …
I returned home in June 2021 from Toronto where I received a single left lung transplant. I was in Toronto from September 24, 2020, through June 9, 2021. I bought an e-bike and rode various trails in Nova Scotia to raise funds for Canadian Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation thru their Hope Breathes Here program. My most …
Anyone who has ever done a long distance walk knows how easy it is to plan. Basically you just plan to get to your starting point….and that’s it! You know that for the next 30 days or so all you have to do is get up and start walking…..and nowhere is the infrastructure better than …
My 250 km Island Walk adventure didn’t start when I arrived in Charlottetown last October 2021. It began 8 years earlier when I set out from the town of St Jean Pied de Port to start the Camino Frances, the first of many caminos. I had hoped to walk again in the spring of 2020 …
On September 3rd, 2021, I began The Island Walk, travelling the spectacular beaches and charming byways of Prince Edward Island. On October 3, I completed 714 kilometres. The tad more distance than the official 700km route was due to a slight detour, specifically a visit to Lennon House in Rustico. I raised funds during my …
Prince Edward Island’s answer to the famed Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route in Spain, the Island Walk is a lesser known (for now) 700-kilometre journey that circumnavigates the island. CANADIAN GEOGRAPHIC – April 1, 2022By Darcy Rhyno Anxious and frustrated. It’s not exactly the state of mind I was aiming for as I start out …
While Islanders will be watching fishermen set their lobster traps this May, there will be new activity to see along PEI’s coastline this year. From Charlottetown to Miminegash, Seacow Pond to Gaspereaux, Islanders will be seeing hikers (and cyclists) on red dirt roads, secondary roads and the Confederation Trail. These long-distance trail enthusiasts will be …
Submitted by Pauline Suppa Having walked the Portuguese Camino from Lisbon, Portugal to Santiago, Spain in 2019, my sister and I developed a real craving for long distance walks. We made plans to walk the Camino Frances in 2020 then sadly Covid 19 reared its ugly head so we turned our planning to 2021. Throughout the …
Submitted by Susan Doucette How the journey began. 2021 marked our 15th wedding anniversary. As we were travelling across Canada my husband Bob, told me that he would like to go back to PEI and cycle all around the Island. When he first mentioned this I thought he was a bit crazy because we know …
Submitted by Bryson Guptill Yes, we were the first four who did the Island Walk. Nora, Marian, Danny and me. Lots of people thought we were crazy – walk for a month? In October? Will anything be open? Well, we did it, and it was wonderful. So many great ocean views. So many interesting back …
Submitted by Bernie Brunino I needed to get out of the house. The on again / off again Covid restrictions were really taking their toll. The hiking plans that I’d laboured over in the early stages of the pandemic went for naught when health uncertainty in Europe just didn’t give me the comfy feeling I …
Submitted by Alasdair Veitch I got the idea of coming to PEI to do the Island Walk after hearing an interview on CBC radio. I checked out the web page after the interview, joined the Facebook group, and ordered the guide. I have done many long-distance expedition hikes (up to 53 days and nights) and …
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC – October 6, 2021By Heather Greenwood Davis In the fall of 2019, Bryson Guptill hiked 435 miles of Prince Edward Island over 31 days. The island resident traversed green hills and farmland, chatted with strangers along red-dirt roads, and watched herons and cormorants swoop along the coast. That trek with three friends sprouted an idea …
A GPS will help you pinpoint your location. GPS apps on your phone are also helpful. There is a GPS pin on the upper left corner of the Island Walk map.
Hiking poles are not required, but some walkers like using them for stability.
Yes, please see our Hiking Basics page for more information.
You will meet people in towns and villages along the way. You may also meet some walkers or cyclists on the Confederation Trail.
Large and small groups can be accommodated, but care should be taken when walking on the shoulder of public roads.
Yes, if your children are accustomed to walking.
Dogs on leash are permitted everywhere except on beaches in the National Park.
Submitted by Karen MacLeod-Wilkie Phil Cousineau* describes pilgrimage as a powerful metaphor “for any journey with the purpose of finding something that matters deeply to the traveler.” When I completed the Camino de Santiago in the fall of 2016, it revealed something that mattered deeply to me – an old dream to become an author. …
Submitted by Bryson Guptill, Island Walk Ambassador After months of thinking, designing, and coordinating, directional signs for the Island Walk are now popping up all over the Island. The signs are being installed by highway crews from the PEI Department of Transportation and they conform all with all applicable signage laws and regulations. In addition …
Sporting Intentions is celebrating the grand opening of their new location at 190 Minna Jane Drive, Charlottetown, PE, this October 2020 and we wanted to celebrate with them by sharing the top 5 hiking gear products that you can pick up at Sporting Intentions!
