Almost all of our province’s beaches are public, both on tidal and non-tidal waters.The only exception is if the adjacent landowner owns a pre-1867 water lot. Those are very rare, and almost all are located near the centres of established communities such as Dartmouth Cove, Bedford Basin, and the Northwest Arm.
Our lake and river bottoms are deemed to be provincial Crown Land. The boundary on non-tidal shorelines is the mean annual high water mark, on tidal shorelines it is the mean high tide mark. In practice, this may be difficult to establish, especially on marshy shorelines, but basically beaches are created by wave action, so their landbase must be underwater for at least a portion of the year, most often during the spring flood.
As for portages, it is a different story. Many pass through private property and landowners at times interfere with folks passing through. That is a real issue in Nova Scotia. However, the Nova Scotia Protection of Property Act (Section 15. (1) and 15 (2) allows unimpeded access to undeveloped lands by members of the public. This is generally not known, both by landowners and by paddlers. I do not believe that this provision has ever been tested in the courts.
It is likely best to develop good relations with private property owners, seek permission, thank them, remind them of any garbage you have picked up along your trip, and perhaps remind them of the above laws.
Let us know how your next expedition turns out, and particularly of any interactions with private property owners.
Dusan Soudek
Director of Environment
Canoe Kayak Nova Scotia
