Seaside Adjunct Kejimkujik National Park

See Kejimkujik National Park for the mainland park.

Kejimkujik Seaside is a division of Kejimkujik National Park and National Historic Site found in south-western Nova Scotia. It was classified as a National Park in 1988. Hurricane Juan damaged parts of the park in 2003.

Location
The Seaside Adjunct of Kejimkujik is located about 90 minutes south of the main park. And around two hours from Halifax, Nova Scotia (179 km). To enter the park people must travel on Nova Scotia Route 103 south to Port Joli, Nova Scotia. Once in the town there is a large sign the says Kejimkujik National Park Seaside Adjunct . After taking left at the sign visitors will travel shortly on a paved road which quickly becomes unpaved, the road is about 7 km long and takes about 20 minutes to fully drive. Before entering the park you must pay a small entrance fee for a permit allowing you legally into the park.

Geography
The northern side of the park is on top of a hills looking down over some small coves. It is wooded and is similar to many coastal regions of Canada. Coming down the hill is barrens filled with tons of berries and wildflowers and a large variety of insects. The park ends on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean. The terrain here varies from rocky rugged shores to white sandy beaches. Much of the water around the adjunct has a turquoise hue, this is because the white sand on the northern coasts crushed white granite which is carried out to sea by the surf. Several small isles and rocks litter the coastline, making for prime locations to find birds and seals.

The shoreline of the adjunct makes for unusually spectacular fog. Fog tends to roll on and off the shoreline several times every hour. It may be possible to take a picture of a rock face in clear blue skies only 20 meters away and by the time you climb it 5 minutes later it may be shrouded by fog. The fog is one of the major attractions of the park.

Fauna
The adjunct is home of several distinct species of birds, animals, and insects some of which are endangered species.

The barrens of the park are home to huge amounts of wildflowers which attract many bees, grasshoppers, butterflies and other insects. On the shore there are several lookouts overlooking rocks which are known to be the home to grey and harbour seals. These seals are usually visible to guests unless they are scared by an oncoming boat. The seals can usually be seen in colonies in numbers of 20+. Most of the time they are found on the rocks and islands farthest from shore and binoculars are generally required to see them fully.

The beach on the north known as St. Catherines River Beach is home to several endangered kinds of birds most notablly the piping plover. The birds tends to nest on the beach between early April to mid August and the beach is closed to visitors at this time.

Though the park is in black bear country bears are rarely seen and usually only come to the park to feast on the berries or insects.

Flora
The adjunct is home to many different kinds of berries and flowers. Some notable species inclue the Arethusa, or Dragon's Mouth which bloom in small bogs in the park from June to August. And Calapogon's which bloom from mid-June to August.

Visiting
Tourists may take one of two trails down to the shoreline of the Adjunct the first is 2.2 km long and the second more scenic route is nearly 6.5 km and is more difficult to hikers.

The park contains several lookouts overlooking the shore and many of the creatures that make the park their home and can be a good picnic area as long as people clean up their trash. The shores are white and sandy and warm to the feet, swimming however is extremly dangerous and not reccomended due to strong currents and undertows. There is an outhouse along the shorter trail for visitors so they can enjoy their time in the park without walking all the way back to use the bathroom.