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The highest tides on planet Earth occur near Wolfville, in Nova Scotia's Minas
Basin.
The water level at high tide can be as much as 16 meters (52.5 feet) higher than
at low tide.
Small Atlantic tides drive the Bay of Fundy/Gulf of Maine system near resonance
to produce the huge tides.
High tides happen every 12 hours and 25 minutes ( or nearly an hour later each
day) because of the changing position of the Moon in its orbit around the Earth.
Near mid-tide at Cape Split, one may hear the "voice of the Moon" in
the form of the roar emitted by turbulent tidal currents.
At mid-tide, the flow in Minas Cannel north of Blomidon equals the combined flow
of all the rivers and streams on Earth!
Nova Scotia bends when the tide comes in! As 14 billion tonnes (14 cubic kilometers)
of sea water flow into Minas Basin twice daily, the Nova Scotia countryside actually
tilts slightly under the immense load!
In mid-summer, crustaceans in the intertidal mudflats provide a crucial source
of food for the hundreds of thousands of migrating shorebirds.
The waters of the Minas Basin appear muddy, because the strong tidal currents
cause erosion of the red soils along the shoreline and this soil is suspended in
the water.
When the tide is coming in, tidal bores (which look like a wave travelling against
the flow of the river) surge up several rivers which flow into the Minas Basin.
Some great tidal bores can be seen on the St. Croix, Meander, Shubenacadie, Maccan
and the Salmon Rivers.
From a brochure by the Nova Scotia Marketing Agency
Text written by Dr. Roy Bishop
Note: The greatest difference between high and low tide ever recorded was at Burntcoat
Head, Nova Scotia at 16.27 metres (or 53.38 feet) in the Bay of Fundy's Minas Basin.
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