Getting Oriented

Nova Scotia is all but surrounded by water, save for the narrow stretch of land that links it to the rest of Canada. Secondary highways hug the coastline and meander through historic, small towns, while "100-series" arterial highways offer the fastest travel routes. Halifax, the capital, sits on the eastern coast, roughly in the middle of the province's mainland. Southwest of the city, the South Shore runs all the way to Yarmouth. The Annapolis Valley, beside the Bay of Fundy, is the eastern spine of Nova Scotia. The central and northern areas lie beside Northumberland Strait (on a fine day you can see across to PEI); while the northernmost region, Cape Breton Island, is connected to the remainder of the province by a 1.6-km (1-mi) causeway.