My Backyard: Destinations
REGIONAL HIGHLIGHTS: Canada
By Mark Schatzker
Aug 1, 2005, 13:13

Best Water Town
Halifax, Nova Scotia

Perched on the edge of a province with more than 4,000 miles of ocean coastline, no Canadian town boasts a better aquatic location.

Still Life: Halifax’s historic waterfront. Photo courtesy of Nova Scotia Tourism, Culture and Hertiage

The sea kayaking in Halifax is some of the best in the world, thanks to its close proximity to not one, but two coasts. Just outside the front door, the wild Atlantic coast, with its thousands of tiny deserted islands, is an adventurer’s paradise. The Fundy coast, meanwhile, is legendary for its 600-foot sheer cliffs and 45-foot tides—the highest in the world—and is a mere hour by car.

But there’s more to life in Halifax than sea kayaking. Incredible sailing, scuba diving, whale watching and, yes, surfing are never more than an hour away, tops. And if you get sick of saltwater in your eyes—like that’s even possible—head inland where the water’s sweet. Feel like a lake-to-lake paddling expedition? Get your canoe over to Kejimkujik National Park. Crave whitewater? Check out the rapids on the Mersey River. Want to cast dry flies for rolling Atlantic salmon? Head northeast to the Margaree River. Of course, maybe all you really want is to take a dip. Perfect, because the waters of the Northumberland Strait are the warmest you’ll find north of the Carolinas. Life in this laid-back, fun-loving college town—which has more bars per capita than anywhere in Canada— is refreshingly simple. If you go: 800-565-0000; www.halifaxinfo.com .

Wildest River: Tatshenshini River, Yukon and British Columbia
More than 150 miles of roiling Class II water wind through sub-Arctic tundra, stunted aspen forest, glaciers—which
calve off into massive icebergs that cruise downstream—and the mighty St. Elias Mountains, all with the company of grizzly bears, moose, wolves, eagles and dall sheep. 604-660-2421; www.gov.bc.ca/bcparks.

Tallest Waterfall: Alfred Creek Falls, British Columbia
Think Niagara Falls is tall? At 167-feet, it’s a pint-sized midget compared to the jaw-droppingly gargantuan Alfred Creek Falls, near the Powell River, whose curtain of water plummets more than 2,200 feet.

Best Water Park: World Waterpark, West Edmonton Mall, Alberta
This 5-acre aqua complex serves up 20 wet and wild rides, including a zip-line, a wave pool and 11 waterslides, three of which are rated “extreme.” Oh, it’s also indoors. And climate controlled. 800-661-8890;
www.westedmall.com.

Best Beach: Wasaga Beach, Georgian Bay, Ontario
This is the largest freshwater beach in the world, every inch of which is covered in light-blond granules as soft as talcum powder. 800-668-2746; www.ontarioparks.com/english/wasa.html .

Biggest Island: Manitoulin Island, Lake Huron
Not only is Manitoulin Island the largest freshwater island in the world, it houses the world’s largest lake on a freshwater island. www.manitoulin-island.com .

Best Fishing Spot: Quarryville Pool, Miramichi River, New Brunswick
Aside from big fish, the famous Atlantic salmon rivers of the East are notorious for one thing: private water. But one of the best pools on the Miramichi—the best Atlantic salmon river in the world—just happens to be public, which means you don’t have to be a cigar-chomping stockbroker from New York to wet your line. 800-561-0123; www.tourismnewbrunswick.ca .

Best-Named Rapids: Lucifer’s Anus, Gatineau River, Quebec
A Class V boat-munching monster of a hole that truly lives up to its handle.

Most Arctic Sea Life: The Floe Edge, Baffin Island
This spot, where the frozen sea ice gives way to open ocean, is the place to be, whether you’re a polar bear, seal, narwhal or a person who just wants to catch a glimpse of one. www.baffinisland.ca .

Top Dive Spot: Browning Pass, Port Hardy, British Columbia
This place didn’t make it into Jacques Cousteau’s top-three list because of the tasty croissants. Expect the finest in cold-water psychedelia—anemones, soft corals, udibranchs, urchins, crabs and starfish—where every square inch is its own microcosm of marine life. 800-435-5622; www.hellobc.com .

Best Hot Springs: Upper Hot Springs, Banff National Park
Banff is beautiful. Soaking in natural hot springs in a luxurious 1930s bathhouse with a view of Mount Rundle is exquisite. 403-762-8421; www.parkscanada.ca .

Best Surfing: Long Beach, Vancouver Island, British Columbia
If there’s a wave in the North Pacific, it’ll find its way to Long Beach, which, thanks to its killer exposure, gets reliably good swells winter, spring, summer and fall. (As high as 12 feet in the winter.) www.hellobc.com .

Best Whale Watching: Saguenay St. Lawrence Marine Park, Quebec
Cetaceans just can’t resist the all-you-can-eat shellfish feast to be found in the St. Lawrence, which attracts heavy hitters like the blue whale (the biggest) and finback whale (second biggest), as well as minkes, belugas and humpbacks. 418-649-8192; www.parkscanada.ca .

Biggest Water Issue: Melting Glaciers
The Columbia Icefields, the largest nonpolar glacier in the world, is melting faster than anyone ever expected, which means the chronically parched but oil-rich province of Alberta could turn into a giant dustbowl. How’s that for environmental irony?