Some of P.E.I.'s most alluring spots to read outdoors
Cody MacKay | CBC News | Posted: July 2, 2018 10:00 AM | Last Updated: July 2, 2018
'If you don't get lured in by the sailboats in the harbour, you might just finish a chapter or two'
Cross your fingers that nice weather holds — it's the perfect time of year to grab your favourite book, kick it in the sun or shade and just read.
While pretty much anywhere under a tree on P.E.I. is a perfect place to flip through your favourite book, Jinny Greaves says few places on the Island can trump the beach.
"Everyone should have a book at the beach," said Greaves, executive director of the P.E.I. Literacy Alliance. "Relaxing under your umbrella, making sure you're nice and comfortable. You could do that for hours."
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Whether at the beach, in the sun, or under a tree somewhere on P.E.I., being outside provides a special kind of reading experience that you can only get when you ditch the living room couch.
"You want to be outside and you want to relax and escape, that's what reading is for a lot of people," she said.
"Even on your deck, you can sit outside, grab an hour — maybe get a little sun, maybe just some fresh air — and read a book."
Victoria Park, Dead Man's Pond, UPEI prime spots
When in Charlottetown, the green space of Victoria Park may be the go-to spot to thumb through that book you've been meaning to read — or even pen your own novella.
"On the woodsy side of Victoria Park, there is a bench on its own that faces the water," said Mo Duffy Cobb, with the P.E.I. Writers Guild.
"This is a wonderful place to watch the world go by. If you don't get lured in by the sailboats in the harbour, you might just finish a chapter or two."
Further in the trees lies a spot that's prime for blanket reading, Cobb added. Next to Dead Man's Pond, your only interruptions "will be dragon flies."
If you're the occasional construction near the park hampers your concentration, there are a few other options around Charlottetown too.
Cobb recommends the stairs of the Confederation Centre of the Arts — near the art gallery — to grab a cold-brew coffee and read.
Other spots downtown include the gazebo at Confederation Landing Park, she said, which provides a "personal shady space on a warm day" as well as in and around the Charlottetown Yacht Club.
But if you live more toward the north end of the city, the open grounds of UPEI are always a nice choice, Cobb said.
Places to read across P.E.I.
For spots outside the capital, Cobb recommended quite a few to check out.
- Victoria-by-the-Sea, beachside at low tide.
- Brudenell River, in front of the kayak club.
- New London, from the deck of the Sou'West Restaurant.
- Egmont Bay, by the cliffs.
- Souris, the picnic table outside the lobster roll shack.
- Kinkora, the "lush greenery of potato farms in August."