Can you picture it?
That's how much water flows in and out of the Bay of Fundy, located between Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, twice a day, every day. Halifax is about a 75-minute drive from the Nova Scotia side of the bay, but I lived in the city for 12 years before I resolved to experience the phenomenon myself and, as they say in the tourism commercials, "take a walk on the ocean floor."
My chosen point of disembarkment was Medford Beach. I have no sense of direction, and Google Maps told me it was a relatively simple place to find. How's that for scientific process? Scientific or not, it worked, and after traversing highway, back country road, and a maze of pot-holes that had been designated a dirt road, I came out here:
There were cottages all along the cliff, and it was easy to walk along the manicured yards and find things like this:
There were also a number of wooden staircases leading down to the water's edge. Some were downright crumbling, some maintained to perfection. For whatever reason, I found myself on the former but managed to make my way to the shoreline.
You can see in the shot above just how high the water gets, and that there was a half mile or more between me at the water's edge and the cliff-face. Here's yet another video to which I have no claim to copyright, but which illustrates the extent of the tides in 30 seconds much better than all the typing in the world that I could do.
Also, be warned that I had a few scary moments out there when my shoes got stuck in the mud and I literally couldn't move one foot or the other. Luckily each time I was able to find firmer footing with my other foot and (slowly and carefully) pull myself out. More than once, I was pretty sure I was leaving my shoe behind. Speaking of shoes, don't wear your favorites, or flip flops. Try a pair of cheap rubber boots that you seriously wouldn't mind having to leave behind. Because even if they're not stuck in the mud, chances are they're not going back on your feet!
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