700-km Island Walk draws interest from hikers, cyclists and nature lovers
CBC
Dan and Carole Hunt have chosen P.E.I. to kick off their retirement this summer not by lying under a beach umbrella with a juicy novel and cold drink, but by walking — and running — 700 kilometres around the Island's perimeter.
The couple from Sudbury, Ont., are among visitors from Canada and around the world coming to experience the Island Walk.
"We're both very active and we're not people who go sit on the beach for a week at a time. So that's the appeal," Carole Hunt said in an interview with Island Morning host Mitch Cormier.
"This will give us the opportunity to spend more time, you know, see everything that we want to see and not be rushed."
The Island Walk, modelled on the Camino de Santiago in Spain, includes parts of the Confederation Trail, beaches, red dirt roads and paths along the ocean. It uses some secondary roads, but not main highways such as the Trans-Canada.
It was created in 2020 but COVID-19 prevented many people from experiencing it.
This summer is different, said Bryson Guptill, chair of the Island Walk committee. The Island Walk has been featured in international media, including National Geographic and Travel and Leisure magazine, and word is spreading.
"This year we got a lot of inquiries early on, even back in February and March," Guptill said. "A lot of those people have indicated they want to do the walk in 2022 so we're expecting people to start as early as May 1."
Some have indicated they plan to cycle the trail, or ride an electric bicycle.
Gene Oickle of Cole Harbour, N.S., is planning to walk the western part of the trail in June. He did the Camino in 2016 and has done other long-distance walks across Europe. But he wanted to stay closer to home this time because of COVID-19.
"I think it's a good way to ease back into it," he said.
"I might lose a little weight, helps me reduce my stress a little bit and then a bit of a physical and mental challenge, as well. I get that sense of accomplishment, achievement of a goal and spending a lot of time in nature, you know, disconnect from some of the technology."
The Hunts plan to do a combination of running and walking over the course of 21 days. Carole admitted it sounded a little "crazy" at first.
"Being together, doing stuff together is always a good thing. I was just a little concerned about, you know, the 50- to 55-kilometre days would be quite challenging, but I'm up for a challenge and looking forward to it."
Gregor Chisholm was a nine-year-old in Saint John when the Toronto Blue Jays won the World Series in 1992, and it had a profound impact on his choice of career.
Leaping out of a plane more than 4,200 metres in the air, Simon-Pierre Bouchard can’t control his excitement as he opens his parachute and wonders if everyone has gotten into place.
The Hudson's Bay Company vanished in June, when the last of its stores ceased operations, but its presence in Winnipeg might never be fully erased.
At a Prince Albert public library branch, the usual quiet is replaced with the sound of children laughing and lining up for autographs as Prince Albert Raiders players settle in for an evening of reading.
When a fire broke out at the Charlottetown Farmers’ Market in the early hours of Christmas Day, John Bell was among the first on scene.
For the first time in 20 years, Edmonton’s police chief is a local hire.
One of the most popular hot springs in northeastern B.C. appears to be cooling off — or at the very least feeling that way — according to First Nations researchers who have been taking the temperature of the popular spot off the Alaska Highway.
No longer do the waves of Lake Timmicaca lap against car bumpers.
Municipal councils across Essex County and in Chatham-Kent and Sarnia have spent this year’s budget season trying to keep tax increases manageable while battling inflation and soaring policing costs and weighing the immediate cost of repairing aging infrastructure against the long-term cost of holding off.
Construction on Marda Loop’s main streets project may have quieted down, but redevelopment work continues at several locations along 34th Avenue. This time, the focus is on preserving the street’s history.
As both the provincial and federal governments hone in on mining opportunities in northern Ontario, supporting local industries and building safer highways are top of mind for regional leaders this year.
Tucked inside Toronto’s leafy, quiet and private residential neighbourhoods are facades that tell the story of another time in the city’s urban planning history.
Ontario’s two main opposition parties will try to turn the page on what was a difficult year, with one rebuilding after an underwhelming leadership vote result and another searching for a new person to take the party helm.