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Cabot Loop: Route Directions

0.0 Start by riding out of Cabot Park.

The Oyster Barn Restaurant, overlooking Malpeque Harbor, is on the left in 300 meters. Soon after on the right is the Cabot Beach Motel, followed by The Galley, a sparsely stocked convenience store.

2.3 Turn left, staying on the paved road. (Route 105, a dirt road, continues straight.)
2.7 Turn right onto Malpeque Road, following the sign to Kensington.

Fields of potatoes, decorated with pink and white blossoms in mid summer, slope to the shores of Darnley Basin.

4.0 Continue straight onto Route 20 South.

At this intersection, Princetown United Church of Canada is on the left and Malpeque Community Hall is on the right.

4.1 Malpeque Country Garden Cottages and Overnight Units are on the left, followed by Malpeque Bed and Breakfast.
5.9 Turn right onto the Hamilton road, Route 104.

Ride gently downhill toward the water for over a kilometer, after which the land is slightly rolling - just enough contour to enhance its beauty.

12.6 Turn right onto Route 106, the Clermont Road.
14.4 Cross a bridge over the Indian River and climb the moderate hill on the other side.
17.2 Watch for a sign, Welcome to New Annan. It signals a turn coming up quickly.
17.3 Turn left onto Old Station Road.

The first section of this road is dirt.

18.6 Turn left onto Confederation Trail.

If you reach a T intersection at Route 2, a busy road, you have missed Confederation Trail by less than 200 meters. You could cycle into Kensington on Route 2, but the trail is quieter and safer, so backtrack.

Soon Confederation Trail crosses Old Summerside Road, which doesn't appear on some newer maps. If you turn left, Old Summerside Road provides a paved alternative to the trail for the next kilometer or so, but then the road ends at a barricade where you must get back on the trail.

As you approach the town, you will pass Kensington Water Gardens on the right, a popular tourist attraction.

21.6 Stop at the Old Kensington Station.

Shortly before the station, a locomotive and rail car are displayed on a short section of track. The former railway station and nearby buildings now house a PEI Tourist Information Office, blacksmith shop, craft gallery, and more.

One block up Imperial Street, to the left of the rail car display, is the Stationhouse B & B. It was the original railway station, built in 1875 and moved when the "new" station was built. Other lodging in Kensington is a few blocks from the town center on Route 6 toward Cavendish.

There is a grocery store across from Old Kensington Station on the corner of Broadway and Commercial Street, to the right at kilometer 21.7. If you need a real supermarket, turn right at 21.7 instead of left; then take Route 2 toward Charlottetown and you will soon come to a Save-Easy.

21.7 Turn left onto Broadway, one of Kensington's main streets.
21.9 Turn right onto Pleasant Street, immediately after St. Marks Holy Family Parish Church.
22.3 Turn left at a stop sign onto Woodleigh Drive, Route 101.
26.0 Continue straight on Route 101 through Black Horse Corner, a crossroad with routes 104 and 103. Notice the odd little statue on the right before the crossroad.
27.0 Turn right onto Route 234 East, Burlington Road, towards Long River.
29.6 The Burlington Amusement Park is on the right - of interest mainly to miniature golf enthusiasts and families with children.
32.2 Turn right at a stop sign to stay on Route 234.
32.5 Turn left, again staying on Route 234.

The Kitchen Witch Restaurant is on the left. We didn't eat there, but we heard an unsolicited rave review from one of the regulars. Soon after this turn, the road rises very gradually but then steepens for a few hundred meters.

33.0 Near the top of the hill, Loch View Farm is on the left, with a cottage for rent. The views from here are stunning.
35.3 Turn left at a stop sign and T intersection onto Route 20.

Looking ahead from the stop sign, you can see the dunes of P.E.I. National Park in the distance across New London Bay.

36.0 Turn right onto Paynter Road.

This is a marvelous little detour, a "jughandle" that will take you to the shore of French River and then back to Route 20.

37.3 Check out the gallery of Tony Diodati on the left. He calls it the gallery with a view - and how true it is! We enjoyed his watercolors as well as the setting, and we very nearly bought a print we couldn't afford. Now we regret that we didn't do it.

There is a picturesque fishing wharf below the road to the right, just past the gallery.

38.1 Turn right at a T intersection back onto Route 20.

Enjoy the view of fields rolling down to the head of French River and the village beyond.

39.4 Turn right in French River onto Route 263, the River Road; Route 20 continues straight.

Soon after the turn there is another wharf on the right and Wharf Housekeeping Units on the left. Climb a 400-meter hill from the wharf area.

40.8 Turn right at a T onto Cape Road, and ride down a moderate hill to a lighthouse and a good beach. On the way down hill, the Beach House is on the right, a small, older inn with a row of 100-year-old Linden trees framing views to the sea below.
42.3 Cape Road ends at an informal parking area, soon after the paving gives way to clay and sand. From here it is a short walk to the beach and lighthouse. Then backtrack. On the way back up the hill, notice a small pioneer cemetery on the right.
43.8 Continuing straight on Cape Road, pass the River Road on the left. The surface of Cape Road is rough chipseal at first.
44.7 Detour to Cape Tryon. You might try riding down an inconspicuous dirt lane on the right, with no sign, that looks almost like a private drive. It comes just after the rough paving ends, only a few meters past a sign on the left for the Wild Goose Lodge.
46.2 Turn right at the stop sign, back onto Route 20, and enjoy a scenic downhill.
47.1 Pass the Lucy Maud Montgomery Heritage Museum on the right, and just ahead on the left, the Ann of Green Gables Museum. Both these museums are in homes with strong historical connections to Lucy Maud Montgomery and her books - with artifacts, gift shops, tours, and other activities.

Beds of Lavender B&B is on the left, across the street from the Heritage Museum.

Stay on Route 20 for another 12 kilometers. The road will be deeply rolling at first, with some challenging climbs and rewarding downhills. There is traffic on this part of Route 20 during peak season, so ride cautiously, staying to the right and getting off the pavement whenever you stop.

As you ride along on Route 20 you will notice several side roads toward the shore, any of which would be a tempting detour. We couldn't try them all!

53.1 Enter Prince County.
54.6 Continue straight on Route 20, passing Lower Darnley Road to Proffit's Point on the right.

We love Prince Edward Island, but no place is perfect, and Profitt's Point makes the point. Once-beautiful bluffs above the beach are now lined with row upon row of huge RVs and trailers. A barricade adorned with No Trespassing signs blocks access to the beach. There is an "olde time" general store, arcade, movie theater, billiard hall, and so on. When we suggest that you "continue straight on Route 20," bypassing Lower Darnley Road and Proffit's Point, we mean it.

56.5 Seabreeze B&B is on the left.
57.7 Cross a wooden plank bridge over the Darnley River. You are entering Malpeque.
59.1 Turn right at the T intersection.

This is the center of Malpeque. On the left shortly before the T intersection is the Keir Memorial Museum, and on the right at the turn is the Princetown United Church. Notice the striking war memorial on the lawn of the church. From here, you are backtracking to Cabot Park.

60.4 Turn left following the sign to Cabot Park.
60.9 Turn right on King Street, staying on the pavement and following signs to Cabot Park and Malpeque Harbor.
62.3 Arrive at Cabot Park, the end of the ride.