Exploring Nova Scotia - Bay of Fundy - Burntcoat Head Park & Maintland

Last Sunday we went for a trip to Fundy Bay, specifically we drove from Dartmouth to Windsor, Nova Scotia, and then took the 215 along the Fundy Bay coast to Truro where we had dinner and headed home. Along the 215 we stopped in several spots including the Walton Lighthouse, Burntcoat Head Park and in the Maintland region to see the Tidal Bore. The Bay of Fundy is quite spectacular. It is known for the worlds highest tide. Twice a day the water recedes and pulls out 115 billion tonnes of water into the gulf of Maine. In Burntcoat Head Park it makes a height difference of 51 ft.
It was remarkable seeing that just a few hours before there was an island in the ocean, now it looked like a red moon landscape, with huge free standing blocks of land.
Because of the masses of water flooding back into the Bay of Fundy during high tide it actually reverses the flow of the rivers and pushes water up to 30 kilometres inland. When the ocean water hits the river water it creates a tidal bore, a wave that can be up to a meter high depending on the day. When we watched the tidal bore push inland near Maitland we actually couldn't see a wave but we watched the river fill up like a bathtub in 10 minutes. It was remarkable where there had been sandbanks were now 4ft-6ft of water and a full river. 

Our trip A-Dartmouth, B- Burntcoat Head Park, C - Tidal Bore Observation near Maitland, D- Truro.

all of this disappears underwater during hightide

view from the Walton lighthouse, this was almost low-tide

Burntcoat Head Park, that right there is a free-standing island... the water here comes up to the trees twice a day. 

Hermit Crab feeding frenzy, little tide survivors. 

Water was now starting to flow back into this crazy landscape.

Scott watched the tide swallow his feet, in 2 minutes he was standing completely in water.

beautiful little barnacles were everywhere, created a funny dot pattern on all the rocks

barnacles

lots of beautiful water patterns in the sand

the tide eats away at the land and created caves in the rock

At the Tidal Bore Observation deck near Maitland, to be able to go up on that little deck cost $2.50 a person, you could do that or hang out on the side of the river and have an equally great view for free. Silliness!

Zodiacs on there way out for tidal bore rafting. Note the size of the sandbank.

Same view as the hightide is flowing in, flow of the river is reversed and the sandbank is disappearing rapidly.