The Shubenacadie tidal bore is one of the many unique features in Nova Scotia, and one that you definitely don't want to miss. Starting in Maitland Nova Scotia, it travels up the Shubenacadie river system about three hours after low tide at Burncoat Head. The incoming water interacts with the various mud banks on the river bottom creating standing waves which can be in excess of 18ft high. The turbulent water stirs up the mud and sand giving the river a delicious chocolate look.
Although the tidal bore travels quite a ways upstream, and creates quite a few amazing sets of waves the biggest set can usually be found in a narrow section of the river affectionately called The Killer K. It is roughly a kilometre long narrow section just below a large basin. As the water is squeezed it speeds up and creates some amazing waves. This amazing feature is positioned between the two observation platforms, so the only way to see it or better yet experience it is to go Tidal Bore Rafting.
Early this last spring, shortly after the initial thaw, and before the rafts were out on the water a group of experienced sea kayakers and I headed out to run the tidal bore. Below is a 8 min cut of the 20 min ride through the Killer K. The entire tidal bore experience is over three hours long. For a sense of scale the camera is mounted on top of my head, about 5 feet off the water, the boats you see are about 17 feet long. That means these waves are big!
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