St. Margarets Bay is a

bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a Gulf (geography), gulf, sea, sound (geography), sound, or bight (geogra ...

located on the Atlantic coast of Nova Scotia, Canada on the border of Halifax County ( Halifax Regional Municipality) and Lunenburg County ( Municipality of the District of Chester).

Description

Opening south directly onto the Atlantic, the bay's eastern shore is formed by the Chebucto Peninsula and its western shore by the

Aspotogan Peninsula The Aspotogan Peninsula () is a peninsula in the eastern part of Lunenburg County, Nova Scotia, Lunenburg County, Nova Scotia, separating St. Margarets Bay, Nova Scotia, St. Margarets Bay in the east from Mahone Bay in the west. The peninsula was ...

, while the head of the bay (the northern shore) is the main part of the Nova Scotia peninsula. The bay's shoreline is mostly rocky, although the head of the bay offers several sandy beaches at Queensland, Black Point and Cleveland; another sandy beach exists on the western shore of the bay at Bayswater and there is a small sandy beach along the eastern shore on Micou's Island. St. Margarets Bay is a cruising destination for sailing yachts as its picturesque shorelines offer protection in many natural harbours, as well as anchorages in coves and near small islands.

Communities

Eastern Shore

Along the Chebucto Peninsula (from south to north): * Peggys Cove * Indian Harbour * Hackett's Cove * Glen Margaret * Seabright * French Village * Glen Haven * Tantallon * Whynacht's Point *

Upper Tantallon Upper Tantallon (pronounced 'tan-TAL-en') is a suburban community that extends from the Hammonds Plains Road (Nova Scotia Route 213, Route 213) to the crossroads of Nova Scotia Trunk 3, Trunk 3 and Nova Scotia Route 333, Route 333 within the Halifa ...

Northern Shore

Along the head of the bay (from east to west): * Allen Heights * Todd's Island * Head of St. Margarets Bay * Mason's Point * Boutilier's Point * Ingramport * Black Point * Queensland * Hubbards

Western Shore

Along the

(from north to south): * Fox Point * Mill Cove * Birchy Head * The Lodge * Northwest Cove * Southwest Cove * Aspotogan *

Bayswater Bayswater is an area within the City of Westminster in West London. It is a built-up district with a population density of 17,500 per square kilometre, and is located between Kensington Gardens to the south, Paddington to the north-east, and ...

Islands

St. Margarets Bay contains numerous islands, particularly along its eastern shore. These islands were historically used by the

Mi'kmaq Nation The Mi'kmaq Nation (formerly the Aroostook Band of Micmac) is a federally recognized tribe of Mi'kmaq people, based in Aroostook County, Maine. Their autonym is Ulustuk. Of the 28 bands of Mi'kmaq people, the Mi'kmaq Nation is the only one in the ...

and some contain burial sites. The bay's larger islands are listed below: * Southwest Island * Horse Island * Shut-in Island * Croucher Island * Owls Head Island (connected to the mainland by a small bridge) * Moser's Island * Micou's Island

Swissair 111

The Swissair Flight 111 Memorial is located at The Whalesback, a promontory approximately 1 km northwest of Peggys Cove. It is one of two memorials built to commemorate the victims of the Swissair Flight 111 disaster, which crashed into St. Margarets Bay on 2 September 1998. The crash site is roughly equidistant between the Whalesback Memorial and another memorial at

Bayswater, Nova Scotia Bayswater is a community in the Canadian province of Nova Scotia, located in the Chester Municipal District on the Aspotogan Peninsula in Lunenburg County on the Lighthouse Route (Nova Scotia Route 329). The community is home to Bayswater Beach ...

, located on the

on the western shore of the bay, opposite Peggys Cove. The monument reads in English and French: "In memory of the 229 men, women and children aboard Swissair Flight 111 who perished off these shores September 2nd, 1998. They have been joined to the sea, and the sky. May they rest in peace." The site of the crash and the two monuments form a triangle. The three notches on the monument at Whalesback represent the numerals 111. The sight line from the three grooves in the stone points to the crash site, while the markings on the facing stone point to the memorial at Bayswater. The memorial wall at Bayswater lists the names of the passengers and crew. The facing stone points to the crash site.

War Plan Red

In the period between World War I and World War II the US military drew up a series of Colour Coded War Plans based on likely global threats.

War Plan Red War Plan Red, also known as the Atlantic Strategic War Plan, was one of the color-coded war plans created by the United States Department of War during the interwar period of 1919–1939, covering scenarios related to a hypothetical war with th ...

denoted a planned attack against the British Empire and by extension War Plan Crimson which called for an invasion of Canada. The plan involved an attack on many fronts starting with a seabourne invasion of Halifax and Canada's Maritime provinces via St. Margarets Bay.

External links

Google Map-based guide to all of the islands in the Bay, including photos and ownership information.

Peggy's Cove Coastal Region
St. Margaret's Bay Regional Tourism Development Association

References

Nautical chart #4386 ''St. Margarets Bay'', published by Canadian Hydrographic Service, 2004 {{coord, 44, 35, N, 64, 00, W, name=St. Margarets Bay, display=title, type:waterbody_scale:250000_region:CA-NS Bays of Nova Scotia Landforms of Halifax, Nova Scotia Landforms of Lunenburg County, Nova Scotia Landforms of Halifax County, Nova Scotia