Another big Old Home Week event is the Gold Cup and Saucer horse race that takes place every year at Charlottetown Driving Park. There are races all day long in addition to the “main event” race, and we decided we would check some out in the afternoon. But before racing, we eat, and today’s lunch destination would be bar1911 which is along the Confederation Trail, right across the trail from Red Island Cider company.
We had some snacks and a craft brew at bar1911 before making our way to Red Shores Charlottetown.
The day before race day, Jon reached out to my mom to get some picks for each race since she’s owned standardbred race horses in the past and knows a thing or two about racing, unlike either Jon or I. We made it to the track for the start of the 7th race of the afternoon and bet five dollars to win on her choice, Pictonian I Am. We were ecstatic when he won and we got $14.50 for our $5.00 bet.
We decided mom knew what she was doing so we bet five on her pick in the 8th race, Jays Little Spark. She let us know after we had placed the bet that this choice was based on her liking the name of the horse and not any other scientific criteria. Despite this, the horse won and we were up a few more dollars! Unfortunately her next pick didn’t win but we continued betting her choices and were up a few bucks in the end so it was a fun way to spend the afternoon.
We decided not to stick around for the evening races and walked back downtown via the Confederation Trail. We didn’t have dinner reservations but managed to snag a spot at the Merchantman. When considering what to have for our last dinner in PEI, we decided oysters, chowder, and a bottle of Benjamin Bridge Tidal Bay were the perfect way to bid farewell to the Island. Everything was absolutely delicious, and we even had our first wild oysters of the trip! It’s hard to say which of the chowders we had over the course of our trip was best, but we can definitely say the Merchantman’s version is excellent. The dill pesto on top was a particularly nice touch.
After dinner we went back to our Airbnb to watch the Blue Jays game and rest before an early morning the next day, which would be our last in PEI!
Below is a map of our walking for the day.
