Eatonville Interpretative Centre - October 2007 - NS Tourism

Cape Chignecto Provincial Park’s new Eatonville Day Use area will provide visitors of all ages with two user-friendly trail systems and an entire day of relaxation and outdoor enjoyment.  There’s no rugged backcountry hiking required to reach some of the finest scenery in North America.

Visitors to the new Eatonville Day Use area enter via the West Apple River Road.   While it might seem like a long drive, the experience waiting at the top of the cliffs is well worth your effort.   At the main entrance you will find the newly opened Three Sisters Interpretive Centre, a renewable energy building that provides access to the trail system and will include information and interpretive displays on the historical and geological significance of the area.

Located approximately 20 kilometers from a conventional electrical grid, this side of Cape Chignecto Provincial Park is self-sustaining.  Powered by a series of solar panels, the 1600 square foot Three Sisters Interpretive Centre will have satellite communication and a point-of-purchase system.  Services available at the centre include registration, interpretation, washrooms, a retail area and boardroom facilities.

Three Sisters Look-off - October 2007 - NS Tourism

After leaving the centre, you can take one trail that will lead you in the direction of the famous Three Sisters, three magnificent sea stacks, engulfed in local folklore.  They have long been considered the iconic image of Cape Chignecto standing sentinel near the entrance to Eatonville Harbor.  This was once a thriving harbor during the Age of Sail where lumbering and shipbuilding flourished.  Today it is a picturesque tidal estuary, with scant remnants of its industrial heyday.

The second trail leads to Squally Point, the site of an actual raised beach that was created thousands of years ago when glaciers covered much of this area.  At about 40 meters above sea level, this spectacular wave cut terrace sits atop a sheer volcanic cliff.

Our new day-use park also offers rest and picnic areas along the trail system and several engineered viewing stations complete with interpretive information.   For reasons of safety and protection of the flora and fauna, visitors are asked to stay on the trail system.

Eatonville Hiking Trail