Highway 105 in
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland".
Most of the population are native Eng ...
represents the
Cape Breton Island
Cape Breton Island (french: link=no, île du Cap-Breton, formerly '; gd, Ceap Breatainn or '; mic, Unamaꞌki) is an island on the Atlantic coast of North America and part of the province of Nova Scotia, Canada.
The island accounts for 18. ...
leg of the
Trans-Canada Highway
The Trans-Canada Highway ( French: ; abbreviated as the TCH or T-Can) is a transcontinental federal–provincial highway system that travels through all ten provinces of Canada, from the Pacific Ocean on the west coast to the Atlantic Ocean o ...
. It runs from the Port Hastings Rotary just east of the
Canso Causeway
The Canso Causeway (''Cabhsair Chanso'' in Gaelic) is a rock-fill causeway crossing the Strait of Canso, connecting Cape Breton Island by road to the Nova Scotia peninsula. Its crest thickness is , carrying the two vehicle traffic lanes of th ...
in
Port Hastings
Port Hastings is a unincorporated settlement on Cape Breton Island, within the Municipality of the County of Inverness, Canada. The population in 2021 was 90.
The community is located at the eastern end of the Canso Causeway on Cape Breton Isla ...
to the
Marine Atlantic
Marine Atlantic Inc. (french: Marine Atlantique) is an independent Canadian federal Crown corporation which is mandated to operate ferry services between the provinces of Newfoundland and Labrador and Nova Scotia.
Marine Atlantic's corporate hea ...
ferry terminal in
North Sydney, representing a distance of .
In 2010, the provincial government named the entire highway Mabel and Alexander Graham Bell Way in honour of
Mabel Gardiner Hubbard
Mabel Gardiner Hubbard (November 25, 1857 – January 3, 1923) was an American businesswoman, and the daughter of Boston lawyer Gardiner Green Hubbard. As the wife of Alexander Graham Bell, inventor of the first practical telephone, she took th ...
and her husband
Alexander Graham Bell
Alexander Graham Bell (, born Alexander Bell; March 3, 1847 – August 2, 1922) was a Scottish-born inventor, scientist and engineer who is credited with patenting the first practical telephone. He also co-founded the American Telephone and Te ...
, who resided and are buried at
Beinn Bhreagh
( ) is the name of the former estate of Alexander Graham Bell, in Victoria County, Nova Scotia. It refers to a peninsula jutting into Cape Breton Island's scenic Bras d'Or Lake approximately southeast of the village of Baddeck, forming th ...
near
Baddeck
Baddeck () is a village in northeastern Nova Scotia, Canada. It is situated in the centre of Cape Breton, approximately 6 km east of where the Baddeck River empties into Bras d'Or Lake.
Local governance is provided by the rural municipality ...
.
Route description
The highway travels northeast from Port Hastings along the base of a group of mountains known as "The Big Ridge" to
Whycocomagh. It then follows the north shore of
Bras d'Or Lake
Bras d'Or Lake (Mi'kmaq language, Mi'kmawi'simk: Pitupaq) is an irregular estuary in the centre of Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia, Canada. It has a connection to the open sea, and is tidal. It also has inflows of fresh water from rivers, ma ...
, bypassing
Baddeck
Baddeck () is a village in northeastern Nova Scotia, Canada. It is situated in the centre of Cape Breton, approximately 6 km east of where the Baddeck River empties into Bras d'Or Lake.
Local governance is provided by the rural municipality ...
on a short
Super two
A super two, super two-lane highway or wide two-lane is a two-lane surface road built to highway standards with wide lanes and other safety features normally present on a freeway with more lanes, typically including partial control of access, o ...
controlled access segment. Still running in a general northeast direction, at
St. Anns the highway begins ascending the west slope of
Kelly's Mountain
Kellys Mountain is a mountain located in Victoria County, Nova Scotia, Canada. The Trans-Canada Highway winds its way up the mountain via Route 105. It is known for both its scenic view from the top and its steep slope on both sides of the mount ...
on the Cape Dauphin Peninsula. Highway 105 descends the east slope of Kelly's Mountain using a series of sharp turns including a 180°
hairpin turn
A hairpin turn (also hairpin bend or hairpin corner) is a bend in a road with a very acute inner angle, making it necessary for an oncoming vehicle to turn about 180° to continue on the road. It is named for its resemblance to a bent metal hai ...
at
New Harris Forks before crossing the Great Bras d'Or Channel of
Bras d'Or Lake
Bras d'Or Lake (Mi'kmaq language, Mi'kmawi'simk: Pitupaq) is an irregular estuary in the centre of Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia, Canada. It has a connection to the open sea, and is tidal. It also has inflows of fresh water from rivers, ma ...
on the
Seal Island Bridge
The Seal Island Bridge is a bridge located in Victoria County, Nova Scotia. It is the third longest bridge span in the province.
The bridge is a through arch design and crosses the Great Bras d'Or channel of Bras d'Or Lake, connecting Bou ...
. The road crosses
Boularderie Island Boularderie Island (pronounced "bull-awn-dree") is an island separating the Cabot Strait from Bras d'Or Lake on the eastern coast of Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, Canada. It takes its name from Louis-Simon le Poupet de la Boularderie, who was g ...
using another short
Super two
A super two, super two-lane highway or wide two-lane is a two-lane surface road built to highway standards with wide lanes and other safety features normally present on a freeway with more lanes, typically including partial control of access, o ...
controlled access segment and then runs southeast as an uncontrolled access road through the villages of
Bras d'Or and
Florence
Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...
. Highway 105 regains controlled access for the final to its eastern terminus at the
Marine Atlantic
Marine Atlantic Inc. (french: Marine Atlantique) is an independent Canadian federal Crown corporation which is mandated to operate ferry services between the provinces of Newfoundland and Labrador and Nova Scotia.
Marine Atlantic's corporate hea ...
ferry terminal in
North Sydney where travellers can continue to
Newfoundland
Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...
.
With some minor exceptions noted above, the highway is two lanes and uncontrolled access. In addition, there are two intersections controlled by
traffic light
Traffic lights, traffic signals, or stoplights – known also as robots in South Africa are signalling devices positioned at intersection (road), road intersections, pedestrian crossings, and other locations in order to control flows of traf ...
s in Florence.
The
Cabot Trail
The Cabot Trail is a scenic highway on Cape Breton Island in Nova Scotia, Canada. It is a loop around the northern tip of the island, passing along and through the Cape Breton Highlands and the Cape Breton Highlands National Park.
It is named ...
, which is usually used to describe a different road, is signed along a portion of Highway 105 between
Nyanza and
St. Anns so that the signed route forms a loop.
History
Highway 105 is descended from the former
Trunk 5, which no longer exists; Highway 105 follows the old Trunk 5 alignment, using present Routes
205
Year 205 ( CCV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Aurelius and Geta (or, less frequently, year 958 '' Ab urbe condita' ...
,
305 and roads named after it to serve areas bypassed by Highway 105. The 105 name was applied in 1970.
Trunk 5 was a provincial trunk road in Victoria County and the Cape Breton Regional Municipality between
Boularderie East and
Millville Boularderie on Boularderie Island in Nova Scotia. The route, known as Millville Highway, was the main highway before Nova Scotia Highway 105 opened. It originally extended from Sydney River to Port Hawkesbury. It is now commonly known as Old Route 5.
Exit list
References
External links
*
{{NS Roads and Highways
105
Nova Scotia 105
Limited-access roads in Canada
105
105
105