A 43-foot waterfall at Bohaker Cove and basalt lava cliffs give Delaps Cove Wilderness Trail a distinctive character: the cliffs can be seen from an observation platform. The trail system runs through forest along the wind-swept coast of the Bay of Fundy. If you’re looking for hotels for a trip to Annapolis County, you can start planning by deciding whether hiking trails, cycling, paddling routes or local history will be your main focus.
Hiking Trails and Coastal Landscapes
Delaps Cove Wilderness Trail includes the 2.2-kilometre Bohaker Trail loop and the 1.9-kilometre Charlies Trail. The Bohaker Trail takes about an hour to walk. The Shore Road Trail connects the two routes over 2.7 kilometres one way. The distances and estimated walking time provide a concrete basis for distinguishing between the trails when planning your day.
Delaps Cove Wilderness Trail passes through 130 acres of wooded forest. Along with the waterfall and coastal cliffs, visitors can see stone walls, foundations and lilac bushes in more remote sections. The trail also offers opportunities for birdwatching and photography. Different perspectives come to the fore along the same route: the coastal landscape, individual natural features and traces to discover along the way.
The Harvest Moon Trailway covers a different scale: it is about 115 kilometres long and connects communities in the Annapolis Valley between Annapolis Royal in Annapolis County and Grand Pré in Kings County. Much of the route consists of multi-use trails for hiking and cycling. The trailway officially opened in 2017; the historic route was known as the Dominion Atlantic Railway (CP). The route offers another focus for anyone looking to include longer stretches on foot or by bicycle in their trip.
The Upper Clements Trails system includes more than 16 kilometres of singletrack and doubletrack trails for non-motorized activities. Compared with the clearly measured loops at Delaps Cove, this figure describes a larger trail system without highlighting the lengths of individual routes. Which option you choose depends on whether you have a named route with an estimated walking time in mind or a more extensive multi-use trail system.
Wilderness Areas and Paddling Plans
The 180-hectare McGill Lake Wilderness Area protects a wetland with diverse plant communities and scattered forest habitats. It is located within the South Mountain Rolling Plain natural landscape in Annapolis County. Medway Wilderness Area is also relevant to paddling areas in the county: it protects many of them. There are five wilderness areas in Annapolis County in total; the province’s wilderness areas are considered important protected areas for Nova Scotia.
For planning on the water, Canoe Annapolis County provides information on 27 paddling routes. The guide includes information on trip planning, safety, equipment and wilderness ethics, as well as canoe and kayak services. It is supplemented by a photo album about paddling in earlier times. If you’d rather plan a cycling trip, the printed and online cycling guide, available free of charge, Bicycle Annapolis County – A Cyclist’s Guide to Outdoor Adventure, contains 22 colour-coded routes. The difficulty ratings range from easy to challenging. The two guides therefore focus on different things: paddling routes and planning on the one hand, and cycling routes and their difficulty ratings on the other.
Museum Locations in the County
You can also include local history in your travel plans by visiting specific museum locations. The Farm Museum is located at 570 Highway #1 Main Street in Lawrencetown, Nova Scotia. In Bridgetown, James House Museum is at 12 Queen Street. Middleton has two more locations: Macdonald Museum is at 21 School Street, and Middleton Railway Museum is at 61 School Street. The location details make it easy to distinguish between Lawrencetown, Bridgetown and Middleton if you’re interested in museums as a complement to nature and trails.
Discover More Destinations
Discover more destinations: Deep Brook, Annapolis Royal, Granville Ferry, Bridgetown, West Springhill, Shelburne County, Antigonish County, Colchester County.
For the overview of the wider region: Nova Scotia.
