Courtin Island, Malpeque Bay, PEI

It was getting late in the summer, and I hadn't been out to Courtin Island yet, so I started to look for a suitable day for a sail (Sea Pearl) or kayak paddle. In the end, things did line-up better for a paddling day (Aug 26).  For a safer and easier paddle, I decided to launch at the end of Beech Point Road.  The Beech Point Rd access worked out, but that's not the most pleasant place to launch a kayak – the little bay there is full of rotting seaweed that you have to walk through to get in the water.

Day track was 15.4 km

Courtin Islands

Once in the water, I headed around the north side of Little Courtin Island in calm waters. The Little Courtin Islands are small islands with mostly grass and shrub vegetation (i.e. no trees).  Little Courtin and Courtin Island belong mainly to the Island Nature Trust (INT). As I was going by Little Courtin Island, I saw a bald eagle on the ground, and it looks like he/she was on a nest. I didn't want to disturb the eagle, so I moved on.  Towards the NW end of Little Courtin, there were quite a few seagulls and terns hanging around in the water. 

Paddling towards the Courtin Islands

I made my first landfall on the east shore of Courtin Island to explore and to have a snack.  There were two leftover fire pits along this shoreline – either somebody having a nice hot lunch or some people are camping out here.  The next paddle was to the SW corner, where I went ashore to explore and have lunch.  As I was paddling, I saw a few bald eagles in the air – they seem to be following me.  An osprey was also circling. 

East side of Courtin I. with red cliffs towards the north

After a good walk in both directions, it was time to start paddling down the west shore towards the SE corner.  Along the way, I noticed a bald eagle family (mom, dad, and juvenile) all perched in the same tree – that was pretty special and exciting!  I did take a few pics from the kayak with my small Nikon W300. The eagles were pretty settled and didn't move as I approached -- as much as I could in the shallow water.

I had a last walk on the shore at the SE corner. You definitely want to stay on the beach in this area; the island's SE tip is just one huge poison ivy patch.  From here, it was a non-stop paddle (3.5 km) back to the access point and home.  

I think there was a pit stop in Kensington for some ice cream!

Passing Little Courtin Island on left

Courtin Island SE corner

Large poison ivy patch on SE tip of Courtin Island

Bald Eagle family (west side of Courtin I.)

Bird Island, Malpeque Bay, PEI

Bird Island with the Malpeque sandhills in the background

Bird Island is in Malpeque Bay, just to the east of Lennox Island and belongs to the Island Nature Trust (INT). Most of my PEI summers in the last 20 years have included a visit to Bird Island. This summer, on a beautiful August day, I paddled my Merganser kayak from Gillis Point and did a circumnavigation of Bird Island (10 km or so).

Day track was 10.4 km

Bird Island, GE view

My first stop was on the south shore for a walk, and I shot a few pics of the many erratic rocks along the shoreline.  From there, I paddled around to the east side of the island and took a tour inside the small lagoon.  It was pretty quiet today – no birds or ducks to be seen. This place is busier during the bird migration times (spring and fall).  My next stop was on the north side of the island for a break and a snack. On the north side, I did notice some poison ivy on the sandy shore bank.  Also, there were some ducks in the island’s larger pond (Duck Pond).  My next/last shore stop was at the SW corner of the island. From there, it’s a nice walk on the gravelled crescent west shoreline of the island with Lennox Island in sight. 

Then, it was the paddled across the channel back to Gillis Point and my car. Even though it’s only a 1.5 km crossing, this can sometimes be a tricky paddle depending on wind, chop, and current conditions. Today, the crossing back to the mainland was easy in reasonably calm waters. Paddling around Bird Island is always great, and it was a good test of my recent shoulder injury. The shoulder has come a long way since June -- I had to be careful, but 10 km of paddling was no problem. 

One of the many erratics

Another PEI island with Poison Ivy

Bird Island's shore

Heading back towards Gillis Point