Charlottetown is connected with the outside world by several lines of steamers, including those of the Charlotte- town Steam Navigation Cc., running to Pictou and Point du Chene. It is the terminus of the Plant Line from Boston, and a port of call of the Quebec Steamship Co.’s Steamer ‘‘Campaaa,’’ running from Montreal to Pictou.
Tracadie, Stanhope, Cove Head and Brackley Beach are almost due north from Charlottetown, and about fifteen miles away. These resorts are grouped within a few miles of each other and are all delightful places offering the full list of attractions enumerated and some additional. At Tracadie is the Acadia Hotel and the Tracadie golf links. From here, too, the Acadian settlemenis ca.. t2 reached in a day’s excursion. At Brackley Beach is Shaw’s Hotel, at Cove Head is the Cliff House. At Stanhope is the summer residence of Alex. McDonald, of Cincinnati, the Standard Oil magnate. Rustico is further to the west and the Seaside Hotel is located here. This is reached by coach from Charlottetown, or by train to Hunter River.
Winter communication is one of the most engrossing questions with the Islanders. For years they have been agitating for tunnel connection with the mainland, but no practical step has been taken in that direction yet. Navigation across the Straits of Northumberland to the mainland is rendered difficult by the drift ice from the Arctic, which obstructs the passage.
Our illustrations show both tne ucw way and the old way of reaching the Island in winter. Until recently a great deal of the travel was in ice boats crossing between the Capes, Traverse and Tormentine, a distance of nine miles. The standard ice boat is eighteen feet long and five feet wide. It has a double keel, which serves for runners. The crew are hardy, courageous men, and the passengers work their passage. Each man is strapped to the boat, and starting out from the shore they shove the boat over the humimocks and hollows of the hard ice. Occasionally one of the party drops into an air hole, but the strap saves him. Then the boat is at length launched in the channel of the Straits and the oars do the work until the hard ice of the other shore is reached. If there is much ‘‘lolly’ (a sort of slush which frequently floats in the water to the depth of several feet) the difficulties of the journey are greatly increased.
It takes from three and a half to six or seven hours to cross, and on the coldest day crews and passengers arrive at their destination dripping witn perspiration.