2 Best Sights in Amherst, The Eastern Shore and Northern Nova Scotia

On the Glooscap Trail, 35 km (22 miles) southwest of Amherst and 70 km (43 miles) northeast of Cape Chignecto, Joggins is famous for Coal Age fossils that were embedded in sandstone, then uncovered through erosion caused by Fundy's surging tides. You can spy them outside, in the sea cliffs, or inside the center. Also a UNESCO World Heritage Site, this striking museum has a large, well-curated collection of specimens dating back some 300 million years, along with interesting displays outlining the region's geological and archaeological history. The admission fee includes a half-hour guided beach tour; two-hour guided cliffs tours take place daily in peak months; and an in-depth four-hour tour occurs on certain weekends in June, July, and August. Reservations are essential for the two-hour and four-hour tours. Bear in mind that the beach is reached by a steep slope and staircase, over boulders and watercourses.

Spanning the Nova Scotia–New Brunswick border and covering more than 20,000 acres, the Tantramar Marshes stretch from Amherst up to Sackville and are alive with incredible birdlife and other wildlife. The name comes from the French tintamarre (meaning din or hubbub) because of the racket made by vast flocks of wildfowl. The Tantramar is a migratory route for hundreds of thousands of birds and a breeding ground for more than 100 species.