Shutter Therapy in North Rustico

North Rustico, for those not familiar with this beautiful part of the world, is on the northern shore of Prince Edward Island, Canada.  It is a fishing village situated around a small natural harbor along the Gulf of Saint Lawrence.  North Rustico is a small community full of big charm. The beautiful scenery and variety of subjects make it a shutterbug’s paradise.
North Rustico has a proud tradition of living with the sea and fishing is the primary industry.  The harbor is home to about 40 fishing vessels.


Lobster is the main catch.  Countless lobster traps are neatly stacked along the wharf.  The fall lobster fishing season opened in early August.



Brightly-colored buoys are used to mark the submerged lobster traps.  While they certainly make for interesting, colorful photos, they actually serve to uniquely identify each fisherman’s traps.



It appears these lobster traps are also color-coded with strands of bright orange rope.


North Rustico boasts a lovely boardwalk called the Seawalk Promenade.  It follows along Harbourview Drive from the community wharf to the harbor.  A fine shelter and comfortable benches are placed along the walking trail.

On the far end of the Seawalk Promenade, at the tip of the harbor, is the North Rustico Harbour Lighthouse.  This quaint, square tower, built in 1876, is pretty as a postcard.

The lighthouse marks the right end of the North Rustico Beach which is part of the Prince Edward Island National Park.  There are long stretches of sandy beach, dramatic red cliffs, and wind-sculpted dunes.
It’s the perfect place to enjoy the antics of the shorebirds as they forage for food along the beach.
A flock of industrious sandpipers are joined by a Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis) .
This cute, chubby bird is a Semipalmated Plover (Charadrius semipalmatus).
As if the ample bird population doesn’t provide enough challenging subjects, the abundant Island sandstone is just begging to be stacked into a cairn for a photo.

More Info

Although we’ve all had our wings clipped due to the COVID-19 situation, you can still dream about future travel destinations.
To learn more about North Rustico, Prince Edward Island (PEI), Canada check out this page on the PEI Tourism website.
Parks Canada manages the PEI National Park at North Rustico.  See their website for more info.

Today’s Takeaways

1. Use a camera to help immerse yourself in the diversity and beauty of your surroundings.
2. Let the challenge of composing the perfect shot soothe and calm you.
3. There is joy in creating and sharing beautiful images.