Hopewell Rocks (in New Brunswick, Canada) is home to the Highest Change in Tides the World and is a Spectacular Place to Visit! Where else can you kayak under an incredibly huge arch; paddle all around really cool flowerpot shaped rocks, and then a few hours later, walk the ocean floor in the same spot!
The Bay of Fundy, Hopewell Rocks & the Home of the World’s Highest Tides
Hopewell Rocks was one of our family’s most memorable stops on our trip through Canada. Just imagine, a tide that can change over 50 feet! That’s the height of a 4-5 story building! And there are two high tides and two low tides everyday! That’s insane! I knew we had to see this amazing phenomenon for ourselves.
Visiting Hopewell Rocks
The first thing you need to know about visiting Hopewell Rocks is that you will want to see both the high and low tides. Seeing these two extremes is extremely impressive. It’s hard to wrap your head around how much the water level here really changes. It’s just something you have to see to fully appreciate. So when you begin planning your trip, check out the tide charts first.
Hopewell Rocks Tidal Chart Information
Next, you will want to determine if you need to stay overnight in order to see both the high and low tides. Your entry ticket for Hopewell Rocks is good for 2 days which means that you can return at anytime during that period to view the tides. The time span between the high and low tides is 6 hours and 13 minutes. This means that you can walk on the ocean floor for at least 3 hours before the official low tide time and 3 hours after. The tidal changes during a new moon and a full moon are the highest, but all in all, it’s impressive anytime you could chose to visit. On average the tides here rise and fall about 39 feet but they can also rise as high as 53 feet! That’s incredible!
Start Your Hopewell Rocks Adventure at the Interpretive Center
When you first arrive at Hopewell Rocks, you will begin your adventure at the Park’s Interpretive Center. Here you will have the chance to learn all about the Bay of Fundy’s geology, tides and wildlife. I really enjoyed the diagrams here that help you visualize just how much the tides change in this area.
At the Interpretive Center you can also find a café, gift shop and restrooms. Hopewell Rocks is a self-directed park. Here you can wander the beaches and around the formations at your own pace and explore where ever you want to go. There are several rangers stationed throughout this park to help answer any questions you may have. They also are there to help keep the visitors safe and informed as the tides start to rise.
After leaving the Interpretive Center, your next stop will be the famous Hopewell Rocks. To get there you will walk about 15 minutes down a scenic path to the observation point at the rocks. Most people walk to this point, but there is a shuttle available (for a small fee) if needed.
Hopewell Rocks at High Tide
For our visit to Hopewell Rocks, we arrived at high tide in the late afternoon. During high tide you will only be able to observe the flowerpots rock formations and arch from the observation platform. We lucked out that there were kayakers paddling around the formations when we were there. It was a lot of fun to watch them!
It’s hard to imagine that in just a few hours, all of this water will be gone and we will be able to walk on this ocean floor!
I really enjoyed seeing the high tide first. It made our first visit to Hopewell Rocks kind of short, but it left our family filled with anticipation about what it might look like the next time we came back.
Staying Overnight at Fundy National Park
Our family decided to stay overnight so that we could see both the high and low tides more conveniently. We chose to stay in Fundy National Park and absolutely loved it! By staying in this park it meant that we could go hiking on some of Fundy National Park’s gorgeous trails while we waited for the tides to change. Fundy National Park is a 40 minute drive from Hopewell Rocks so the distance might be a downside for you. But we stayed in the Fundy Highland Chalets there and absolutely loved it! Also, check out my post on Dickson Falls Trail. This trail alone was why I made sure Fundy National Park was on our list of places we had to see!
Read More Here About Fundy National Park
Hopewell Rocks at Low Tide
The next morning our family returned to experience low tide at Hopewell Rocks. This was incredible! It was hard to imagine that just the night before people were kayaking in water higher than our heads!
Photo Tip: This is a great family photo spot under this incredible arch, standing on the ocean floor!
Travel Tip: Hopewell Rocks can get very crowded. Peak tourist season is mid-June to August. To avoid the crowds consider visiting at the end of May/beginning of June or in September/beginning of October. Also, please note that this park is only open from the end of May until mid October. Another way to beat the crowds is to visit early in the morning or in the late afternoon/evening.
Now it was time to explore!
The Beach/ Ocean Floor
I can’t begin to tell you how ecstatic my boys were to look for sea creatures on the ocean floor. There were little crustaceans everywhere! You really had to watch where you stepped so you didn’t hurt the little guys.
Exploring Tip: The further away from the observation area you walk, the less people you will be near. Just don’t walk to far and forget to pay attention to the rising tide.
Also, take a moment to notice the really cool seaweed clinging to the rocks. I’ve never really thought much about seaweed before but these were really cool!
My youngest son, when admiring the seaweed, accidently discovered that if you put a little pressure on one of the green sacs, it squirts water! He thought that was hysterical!
Sea Caves and Crevices
Just down the beach, not to far from the flowerpot formations, are lots of little crevices to explore. This was a ton of fun and we all had a great time exploring these little nooks and crannies that had been carved out by the water.
Don’t Forget to Watch Your Time
We had a blast exploring the beach here, but don’t forget to keep an eye on the time and not wander too far down the beach when the tides are rising. During operating hours there are staff members to help let people know that they need to be heading off the beach, but it’s a good idea to watch the time yourself as well. Here at Hopewell Rocks the tides rise at 6 to 8 vertical feet per hour. During a high “spring” tide, the water can flood up to 12 vertical feet per hour! You definitely don’t want to get caught out on the beaches at the wrong spot when the tides are coming in this fast.
So, Why Does This Happen?
The extreme tidal range here in the Bay of Fundy at Hopewell Rocks has to do with the size of the bay itself. Around the world, the gravitational pull of the moon and the sun on the Earth cause the periodic rise and fall of the sea. We know this as high and low tide. In most places in the world, this averages about 3 feet or less. Here, the Bay of Fundy happens to be the right size to match the natural gravitational push and pull cycle of the moon that causes the tides. The result is this incredibly huge tidal change everyday!
What Type of Shoes Should You Wear to Best Explore?
This is a question that I wondered about when planning our trip to Hopewell Rocks. As you can see from the pictures, our family chose to wear water shoes. These worked o.k. and they were really easy to clean but I wish that we all had had water shoes with toe protection for exploring the beach. (These water shoes are my favorite.) The rocks here can get really slippery and it’s easy to stub your toe while exploring. You could also wear an old pair of tennis shoes. This would work fine but just know that they will get really muddy and possibly wet. Luckily, there is a shoe cleaner at the top of the observation area for everyone to use to clean their shoes. This was wonderful and it really helped us not track a ton of mud into our car afterwards.
So are you Ready to Go and Explore the Highest Tides in the World?
Hopewell Rocks, it truly is an amazing experience that we will never forget and I hope you love it as much as we did!
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