Island Nature Trust tours offer adventure into remote parts of P.E.I.

P.E.I.'s Island Nature Trust is sharing some of the thousands of acres of protected area it manages.

A new program titled Passport to Nature is being offered by the trust this summer, which takes people on guided tours in remote areas some may not feel comfortable navigating alone, according to Julie-Lynn Zahavich, stewardship coordinator with the trust.

"We wanted to give people an opportunity to have a guided experience in some of our natural areas," she said.

"There are some really interesting spots that people have asked about before, so we kind of used those suggestions and put this collection together based on what people were interested in."

The passport itself contains information on a series of events the trust has organized for this summer and fall, Zahavich said.

"It's got a list of events and directions to them. Then it's also got these instructions, so you read through and sort of choose your own adventure."

Events well attended so far

The booklet is available on the Island Nature Trust website and lists upcoming activities such as wildflower and bird walks. Each event is admission by donation and has its own suggested donation amount.

There were three tours held in June, Zahavich said, which went really well. A wildflower walk near Alberton was also well attended, she said, and those who participated got to see many flowers including P.E.I.'s provincial flower — the Lady's Slipper.

On Thursday morning participants got to see some of the largest hemlocks in the province.

"It's like a hemlock grove and it's not something that people experience all the time because we don't have a lot of hemlocks on the Island anymore," she said.

To register for upcoming events, call or email Island Nature Trust. Zahavich said some popular events have a waiting list.

The next event scheduled in the passport is a walk to St. Peters Island on Aug. 8.

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