Confederation Trail is the name for a 470 kilometre recreational

rail trail A rail trail is a shared-use path on railway right of way. Rail trails are typically constructed after a railway has been abandoned and the track has been removed, but may also share the right of way with active railways, light rail, or streetc ...

system in the

Canadian province Within the geographical areas of Canada, the ten provinces and three territories are sub-national administrative divisions under the jurisdiction of the Canadian Constitution. In the 1867 Canadian Confederation, three provinces of British Nor ...

Prince Edward Island Prince Edward Island (PEI; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is the smallest province in terms of land area and population, but the most densely populated. The island has several nicknames: "Garden of the Gulf", ...

. It was developed in the 1990s, following the December 31, 1989, abandonment of all

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a p ...

lines in the province by

Canadian National Railway The Canadian National Railway Company (french: Compagnie des chemins de fer nationaux du Canada) is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States. CN i ...

(CN).

Description and history

Comprising almost the total mileage of the historic

Prince Edward Island Railway The Prince Edward Island Railway (PEIR) was a historic Canadian railway in Prince Edward Island (PEI). The railway ran tip-to-tip on the island, from Tignish in the west to Elmira in the east, with major spurs serving Borden-Carleton's train fe ...

, development of the Confederation Trail was encouraged by a rails to trails advocacy group founded at a meeting held on August 3, 1989, in Charlottetown. Rails-to-Trails P.E.I, (no
Island Trails
worked with local communities and individuals across the Island culminating in the decision by the provincial government to purchase the entire railway right-of-way from CN in 1994 after CN had removed all track. The vision of a multiuse linear park from one end of the Island to the other was embraced by the provincial government which manages operations through the Parks Division of Tourism while the Properties Section of the Department of Transportation handles all matters pertaining to the use of the trail other than public use as a biking or hiking trail. In addition to provincial government employees, the development of the Confederation Trail was assisted by the

Trans Canada Trail The Trans Canada Trail, officially named The Great Trail between September 2016 and June 2021, is a cross- Canada system of greenways, waterways, and roadways that stretches from the Atlantic to the Pacific to the Arctic oceans. The trail exten ...

foundation, and by various community groups, volunteers, and

Canadian Forces } The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; french: Forces armées canadiennes, ''FAC'') are the unified military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air elements referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army, and Royal Canadian Air Force. ...

engineers who have volunteered in reconstructing abandoned railway bridges for recreational trail use across Canada in the past decade. Since its completion from

Tignish Tignish is a Canadian town located in Prince County, Prince Edward Island. It is located approximately northwest of the city of Summerside, and northwest of the city of Charlottetown. It has a population of 719. The name "Tignish" is derive ...

to Elmira in 2000, the Confederation Trail has proven a popular recreational trail for residents and tourists. Given its railway heritage, the trail has little to no grades and is well drained. Stone dust has been placed over the traditional railway crushed rock ballast, giving a surface suitable for walking/running, and biking. Horses are not allowed on the trail. The Confederation Trail remains a non-motorized trail for most of the year except during the winter when the PEI Snowmobile Association leases the trail from December 1 to March 31 each year for snowmobile use by permit holders; the Association provides grooming for snowmobiling. The entire trail system is marked with kilometre posts and directional and interpretive signage, as well as benches, picnic table shelters, and scenic look-offs throughout. The trail winds through Prince Edward Island's scenic agricultural and forested landscapes and is frequently crossed by public roads. Although highly unlikely in Prince Edward Island's case, the concept of "rails to trails" is based on the premise that abandoned rail corridors should be preserved as recreational trails in order to "rail bank" these transportation arteries should the need for a future conversion back to rail usage arise. Prince Edward Island will likely not see this occur as the connection to the North American rail network was removed on May 31, 1997, when the ferry system to the mainland that had been used for carrying rail traffic was replaced with the

Confederation Bridge The Confederation Bridge (french: Pont de la Confédération) is a box girder bridge carrying the Trans-Canada Highway across the Abegweit Passage of the Northumberland Strait, linking the province of Prince Edward Island with the province of ...

. Confederation Trail is a geocaching hotspot with over 1600 geocache sites along the route.

Currently completed

the Confederation Trail has several major routes: Main trail *Tignish to O'Leary (45 km easy to moderate) *O'Leary to Wellington (45 km easy to moderate) *Wellington to Hunter River (65 km moderate to hard) *Hunter River to Morell (65 km moderate to hard) *Morell to Elmira (54 km moderate) Branch trails *Emerald to Borden-Carleton (18 km easy) *Cardigan Junction to Montague (10 km easy) *Royalty Junction to Charlottetown (8 km easy) *Mt. Stewart to Georgetown (39 km moderate) *New Harmony Junction to Souris (8 km easy) *Stratford to Murray Harbour (80 km moderate) A large part of the railway right-of-way in the Stratford to Murray Harbour branch had been leased to local landowners in the early 1990s by CN prior to provincial ownership. The lease expired in 2015 when full trail development began on these remaining sections, including the rebuilding of several bridges.

References

Confederation Trail - Island Trails Coalition

Confederation Trail - Prince Edward Island visitors guide

Confederation Trail - official website

Confederation Trail Map - PDF document (1.8 MB)
{{Authority control Rail trails in Prince Edward Island Trans Canada Trail Bike paths in Prince Edward Island