Prince Edward Island is most known for its beautiful mile long sandy beaches, pristine golf courses and a particularly stubborn red-headed girl of Avonlea, but our Island also has some interesting natural occurrences that many don’t know about and if you are lucky you just might stumble upon a few of them on your PEI vacation.

Northern Lights

Something many people don’t know about (even the locals) is that Prince Edward Island is a great place in Canada to experience the Northern Lights. Given our smaller population and very little light pollution… you might say we have an exclusive front-row seat to these natural light shows. To catch a glimpse of the beautiful events, head to a rural area where there is little light from the cities. You will see many Northern lights photos appearing along the Northern Coast of Prince Edward Island. Some noteworthy photos have come from Covehead Harbour and Cavendish Beach.  But have your camera ready with a fast lens, increasing your exposure will brighten the colours like in this photo.

Northern Lights

Irish Moss

Irish moss was once a booming industry for Prince Edward Island beginning in the 1930’s, and is something you can even catch a glimpse of today. Irish moss is farmed mostly in the Western part of Prince Edward Island and once and a while you can see it harvested much like it was in the old days. Farmers would harvest the moss using horse-drawn rakes to sweep the moss along the shoreline. Today, most of the harvesting is done by boat, but from time to time you can see farmers and their horses sweeping along the shoreline after a storm. Currently, over half of the world’s Irish moss still comes from PEI! Curious about what Irish moss is used for? You may be surprised to learn it’s in many items around your home.

Photo by Christine Lamothe

Singing Sands

Along the Points East Coastal Drive, in the small town of Souris, sits the famous Basin Head beach. Of all the beaches on Prince Edward Island, there is one thing in particular about the sand at this beach that is different from all the rest. It sings! Well… it doesn’t LITERALLY sing… the squeaking noises that happen when you run your feet through the sand are a phenomenon that scientists don’t fully understand yet.  Studies show that squeaking sand happens because the sand is very rounded and circular. Whatever the reason, you have to hear it to believe it!

Basin Head | ©Tourism PEI / Sander Meurs

Basin Head

Meeting of the Tides

Prince Edward Island is surrounded by both the Northumberland Strait on the southern shores, and the Gulf of St Lawrence on the northern shores. The two tides meet at both North Cape and East Point and create a thin line of waves as they play with each other. The best time to catch this wonderful phenomenon is at high tide, and if you want an especially good view, take a tour of the East Point Lighthouse, and watch the tides collide from the very top!

Meeting of the Tides at North Cape, Photo by Visuals of Dev

Meeting of the Tides at East Point, Photo by East Point Lighthouse