One of the things that I enjoy most about our long trips is that we have the time to mix in visits to some lesser known areas amongst our visits to more popular locations. Oftentimes, these off-the-beaten-path areas turn out to be some of our favourite experiences! Our time on the west-coast of Nova Scotia was relaxing and full of exploration.
Below you’ll find plenty of ideas for your own trip, including:
Things To Do
If you’re driving the coastal loop around Nova Scotia, consider taking some time to hang out on the west coast. Here are some of the highlights:
Brier Island & The Dibgy Neck
We took a day to drive out onto the long, skinny peninsula known as the “Digby Neck”. At the end of the neck, you can board the first ferry which takes you the short distance to Long Island. As you drive along Long Island, stop to do the 2.5km trail to view Balancing Rock. At the end of the Island, you can then board a second ferry to reach Brier Island. The whole trip takes a couple of hours each way, depending on how well you time the ferries. It’s a nice drive and a chance to visit some small, maritime towns. We followed the directions at the bottom of this contact page to guide our visit.
Whale Watching
Whale watching is an experience that we found was offered at many of the places we visited in Atlantic Canada from about mid-June through September. We chose to do our whale excursion from Brier Island because we were too early in some of the other places and because it seemed like an adventure in itself just to get to Brier Island! The boat ride was longer than the kids would have liked (about 4 hours in our case), but our patience was rewarded with seeing two whales!
Cape Forchu
Another lighthouse! In this area, we decided to visit the unique, apple core-shaped lighthouse on Cape Forchu. We had a guided tour that allowed us to climb to the top of the lighthouse and admire the view. Afterwards, we enjoyed strolling the paths at the base of the lighthouse.
Annapolis Valley
We were lucky enough to spend a couple of days visiting family in the lush Annapolis Valley. For our kids, it was an opportunity to learn about family history. For others, it’s a great area for visiting wineries and local eateries. You can also check out Fort Anne and it’s neighbouring settlement Port Royal. Nature lovers will also want to visit Kejimkujik National Park. “Keji” as it affectionately called by locals is one of the nicest national parks in the maritimes.
Meteghan Playground
Here’s the inside scoop for those travelling with kids! If you’re anything like us, you’re always on the lookout for good places for your kids to play. Many times on our 2-month trip to Texas and back, we joked that our trip should be titled “playgrounds across America” because of all the playgrounds we visited everywhere we stopped. If you find yourself in north-west Nova Scotia, check out Meteghan Playground. It’s got character and the kids loved the nautical themes.
Places To Eat
TacOcaT (Digby)
It was late and we were exhausted and starving after our full-day excursion to Brier Island. This tiny restaurant called TacOcaT, located within the grounds of a small resort, emerged like an oasis. We arrived super late and were the only ones in the restaurant, but the food was delicious and they were so kind to host us around their closing time. If you like tacos as much as we do, this is the place to visit!
Lighthouse Cafe (Brier Island)
If you plan a day-long road trip out the Digby Neck to Brier Island, you can enjoy lunch at the Lighthouse Cafe right in Westport. We were glad for a place to eat traditional fish and chips before we boarded the boat for our whale watching tour. You could also try the Petit Passage Cafe before the first ferry (to Long Island) if you’re running a little later.
Where We Stayed
Mavillette Beach RV Park
We loved that the Mavillette Beach RV Park campsites directly overlook the Mavillette Beach Provincial Park! Every day we got to observe the remarkable tide changes as the beach would recede right up to the rocks, then reemerge into a sandy expanse that would go on and on. From the campground, you can walk to the nearby village of Cape St. Mary’s. We enjoyed a picnic at the scenic Cape St. Mary’s Lighthouse.
