We left Cymbria, PEI on a rainy, cloudy day and headed to Truro, Nova Scotia.  We had to go back across the Confederation Bridge but had to pay this time.  I wasn’t sure what to expect about paying but I pulled into to the “wide vehicle” lane and there was a guy in the window that told me how much and asked how I was paying.  I said credit card and he stuck a card reader on a stick out his window at me and all I had to do was wave my card at the reader and the deal was done.  Technology!  Wonder how they did it and how much the traffic backed up before that.  BTW the fee was $50 US.

The rain was heavy at times and lasted all day as drove down through New Brunswick, crossing the border into Nova Scotia and then to our RV park in Maitland on the Shubenacadie River.  People shorten it to Shubie!   The rain slacked as we arrived and made it easier to get hooked up. 

A few details are necessary here and it may be confusing, but bear with me.  The Bay of Fundy has the highest tides in the world and, as the tide rises twice a day, the push of the water is funneled into the smaller Minas Basin and then into the smaller Cobequid Bay.  This becomes like a dead end for the flow, but it has to go somewhere.  If you check the map attached, you will clearly see this funnel affect.  So, it enters the rivers off the bay and literally forces the flow of the water in the rivers backward.  It is a fast, visible phenomenon.  I had always wanted to see this, so I had put a visit here on our agenda from the beginning of our planning. 

This leading edge of the incoming flow is called the tidal bore.  The Shubie River is at the end of the line and is the main point of this conflict.  At low tide the river is almost empty with a slow flow of water out to the bay.  But during the rising tide and because the river is so shallow with lots of sand bars, the bore bashes into the sand bar and creates large standing waves.  Standing because they are not caused by water flowing over rocks but by the water being forced up on the sand bars. 

The full tidal levels typically rise 40-ish feet every 6 hours.  At king tides and at full moon tides, the full rise can be over 50 feet.  The calculation equates to 160 billion tons of water being pushed into the bay twice a day!  And this rise against the conflicting sand bars can create standing waves on the river from 5 -15 feet.  And that is where the fun starts! 

The first thing we did after getting set up was to go visit one of the Tidal Bore Interpretive Centers.  This was located on a small river near the bay.  It is relatively narrow, and the tidal bore is clearly visible as the tide starts to rise.  The center hostess explained a lot about what to expect and she even gave everyone a heads up as the flow began.  It wasn’t a high flow, but you could definitely get the picture of what a tidal bore was.   And very soon the flow was all the tide coming in and the river level was rising very fast.   From first visual sighting until the river was full, was 25 minutes. 

She also said that we should see the tides at another location called Burntcoat Head Park, so we put that in our agenda for the next day.

Burntcoat Park is on the bay itself so there is no tidal bore.  But here the highest tide ever recorded was seen.  At low tide the “ocean” floor is exposed, and you are allowed to walk out on the sand and rocks (and mud!).  But you are warned to heed the tide warnings and clear the floor when the tide starts to come back in.  The hostess at the tidal bore center told us about what time to go for the best low tide, and that was our plan. 

When we arrived, and first saw the whole scene along the shore, it was amazing.  And the walk down to the floor wasn’t as bad as it might appear.  People were walking all over and taking photos.  But within a short time, you could see the tide coming in.  Rocks and sand bars were disappearing.  So, we cleared out as instructed.  But we planned to come back in a few hours to see the difference at high tide.

To fill in some time, we decided to check in with our river rafting company for the adventure tomorrow (more about this) and to go see the tidal bore coming in on the Shubie River at a viewing platform well above the river.   I must say that waiting for the bore to come in is, well, boring!  But then it starts.  And because of the volume of water, things get exciting and happen fast!

After a few hours we went back to Burntcoat Park and if you check the photos, you can see the difference.  The tide that day was 42 feet!  We actually decided to come back one more time at low tide to get some comparative photos to show the difference better.  FYI – the tide on September 19^th is with a full moon and they are expecting tides at about 50 feet at Burntcoat Park.

Finally, the next day, we headed out for our river rafting adventure.  We were told a specific time to be there to get ready, get on the river, and get to the tidal bore area for the rafting to start.  We were told to wear old clothes and come prepared to get wet.  Gail and I put on old T-shirts and long pants with beach shoes.  They gave us a waterproof (?) jacket and a Type 1 life jacket!  Then we walked down the stairs and across the low water sand/mud to the boats.  There were 8 in our group (2 from England, a couple from Pennsylvania and a couple from Calgary) and most were about our age.  Our driver was Toby from New Zealand!  There were two other boats as well.

We headed out on a smooth river outbound flow to an area where they do mud slides.  I mean you jump into the mud and slide down into the mud!  We decided not to participate.  Mainly because it was the first thing and then, even trying to rinse off in the river, you would be covered the rest of the day.  And we had signed up for the 4-hour tour!  The mud sliding looked fun for the kids (and Joe from Pennsylvania from our boat) but I’m glad we passed.

Then it was on to meet the bore!  We went to the mouth of the river where there was a huge sand bar waiting too.  We pulled up on the sand bar and got out to hear about what was going to happen.  As we listened, I realized that my feet were getting wet!  We moved up higher on the sand bar and still our feet were getting wet.  Then the tidal bore was seen coming at us and we were standing in the direct path!  It started easily and in seconds we were being pushed back and we bailed out to get back on the boats. 

The tide comes in rising at 2” per minute!  A lot of water was coming in very fast.  We made it in time and watched as whirlpools were formed and the sand bars disappeared!  Just like that.

Then the standing waves started to form, and Toby headed right for them.  That’s when the getting wet part also started.  He would head for the largest waves and hit them square on the bow on purpose!  The water hit the people in the front of the boat first, but we all got wet with muddy, brown, cold water!  And the boat would fill up with water almost to the gunnels.  A big 3” hole in the transom allowed the water to drain out but we all still got wet.  And did I mention that the water was cold!  But it was so much fun.  As the water level rose on the river, the standing waves diminished and reformed further upstream.  Toby did a great job of finding them and keeping us wet!  I could go on but, in reality, this went on for about 3 hours. 

One side comment here.  Toward the end of the ride, we were up the river well past their office and were greeted by bald eagles soaring over the river!  A beautiful sight.

Back at the office, we were dropped off but now the water was so high were almost to the stairs!  We made it up and headed straight to dry, clean clothes and a HOT shower!  Everything was very well organized.  And we had a great time. 

The next morning, we were off for another park along the Bay of Fundy shore.  There were more tidal scenes to come.