Pelee Island, ON August 9, 2011—Traveling from Baltimore, you can get to Pelee Island, Ontario in a day’s drive to Sandusky, Ohio and either taking the popular MV Jiimaan ferry over Lake Erie or flying in with Griffin Flying Service. With the ferry, if you are taking your car over — especially on a weekend — be sure to make reservations way in advance. By “advanced,” that means as soon as they open their booking for the season around April 1. If you’re sans car, you can buy tickets at the last minute. If you have your own boat or plane, that’ll work too. In any event, be sure to carry your U.S. passport.
When you arrive, you’ll immediately feel the tensions of the urban hustle and bustle disappear. Dress is invariably casual — though you don’t really see people walking around in swimsuits.
A conveniently located place to stay, with a number of options such as RV camping, jacuzzi rooms, etc., is the Anchor Wheel Inn. It has its own restaurant and continental breakfast in the morning.
A sophisticated, adult option for lodging on the other side of the island is Wavecrest B & B. Both sides face the lake and you’ll enjoy secluded beach access.
Restaurants on Pelee Island are of the casual sports or tiki bar type. A lighter exception is the simple, fresh, and affordable baked goods at Conorlee’s Bakery. They’re a relaxed island bakery, opening at 8:30 am and not at the crack of dawn like a mainland bakery. They have nice savory offerings good for breakfast or lunch, along with cookies and simple pastries. Some evenings, they open to serve pizza.
Where Conorlee Bakery really puts on its “dress clothes”, so to speak, are at the monthly Wine Dinners. Quick to sell out, they’re held at the Pelee Island Winery.
You’ll find innovative uses of their fresh local produce and fish, all perfectly selected to match several Pelee Island Winery wines during the course of the evening. People sit at picnic tables and you get to meet mostly local people, family-style. Here was the menu for the dinner I attended:
Friday July 29th
1st Course
A crisp piece of “Pissaladiere”, a thin piece of pizza crust with caramelized onions and tapenade.
2nd Course
Summer squash soup with tomato basil broth, topped with Romano and dill crostini.
3rd Course
Melon Sorbet
4th Course
Roast Pickerel Filet with a warm almond, orange and basil vinaigrette served with basmati rice and grilled vegetable medley.
5th Course
Pineapple Tatin with minted Chantilly
Pelee Winery, which hosts many of these events, usually has fun live music in the background. When you come during normal business hours, there are tasting tours and a patio where you can buy or bring food to grill on their grills. It’s like having a community back yard, where you can get to know the close-knit islanders and “cottagers”. Now that we can order some wine in Maryland, check out the Pelee Island Winery store, available for shipping!
Well, at least ask them. According to The Baltimore Sun, wineries must submit an application, pay $200 per year to the state and post a $1,000 bond to ship to residences in Maryland.
I was able to see even further into the island community with the first annual Pelee Island Chili-Cookoff — the southernmost Canadian food contest. My role was pretty much as cheerleader to Stoneman’s chili team, their name being a tribute to the Easter Island-like stone men that local children have created on the beach. The event was open to the public for tasting and very popular.
Stoneman’s — like the late Princess Diana — won the hearts of the people, the People’s Choice award.
With the close-knit community, it’s amazing how quickly you become boosters for you new friends. Stoneman’s “secret” ingredient (not so secret after we had a couple of beers) was prime tenderloin and it was hot and delicious. Another excellent chili that got the shaft in my humble opinion was by Will He Chili, made with venison, rabbit, chicken, and duck. The winner selected was Scudder Beach Bar & Grill, who prepared a mild chili with green peppers. Chacun a son gout!
When not eating or drinking on the island, visit the Pelee Art Works. It’s a shop featuring the art and crafts made by islanders, as well as an art classroom in the off-season. One example of the treasures found there is the jewelry made from the glass of consumed beverages left on the beach by Rancy Pfeiffer.
Pelee Island also has bike rentals, a local history museum, nature trails, fishing excursions, and pheasant hunting in the Fall.
If you fall in love with the island and want to forge a more permanent connection, consider joining the private Pelee Club.
Founded by esteemed businessmen such as Robert Todd Lincoln, Barney Kroger, and Marshall Fields, the club maintains a clubhouse with residential rooms, a full time cook, lush grounds, a covered bridge looking bowling alley, and other leisure pursuits.
It takes a Renaissance woman to cover the cool, shocking, tasty, and thought- provoking things in the Baltimore region and beyond. Tamar is a Kentucky Colonel, a beauty pageant winner, and has managed several Southern rock and alt-country bands. She also has a column online, as well as articles of interest to the military. Read more Out and About Baltimore in The Washington Times Communities.
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