Everything you need to know to experience the best of Cape Breton Highlands National Park in 2026

Ingonish Beach is the only beach with lifeguards on duty during peak summer months.

Yes! Cape Breton Highlands National Park has outfitted both Warren Lake and Freshwater Lake with a Mobi-Mat® as well as a Mobi-chair® Floating Beach Wheelchair that beach visitors may use onsite.

• Ingonish Beach and Freshwater Lake are located next to the Ingonish Beach Campground and offers both ocean and lake swimming.
• Broad Cove Beach at the Broad Cove Campground is a sandy ocean beach at the foot campground. You can swim in the ocean then rinse off in the neighbouring brook.
• Mkwesaqtuk/Cap-Rouge Campground offers campground guests access to a rocky ocean beach.
• Corney Brook Campground offers campers access to a pebbly beach for ocean swimming.

Yes – leashed dogs are permitted on both non-lifeguarded beaches and supervised (lifeguarded) beaches within Cape Breton Highlands National Park BUT dogs are not permitted within the flagged swimming area(s) that are monitored by lifeguards.

Please plan ahead – do not leave pets unattended in vehicles, particularly during warm weather and be sure to clean up after your pet and dispose of waste appropriately. This will help ensure a safe and enjoyable experience for all visitors and pets as well as to protect the native wildlife that live in the park along with sensitive park ecosystems.

Shortest trail
Green Cove Trail is just 0.2 km (0.7 mile) long which makes it a popular “leg stretcher trail”. Located halfway between Ingonish and Neil’s Harbour, watch for park signage for the trailhead that is located at a look-off along the Cabot Trail.

Longest trail
Mary Ann Falls Trail offers a moderate 13.9 km (8.6 mile) hike that leads to a scenic waterfall and a historic swimming spot within the park. This remote location is best enjoyed with caution.

If you are looking for the ultimate hiking adventures, the three most challenging trails located within Cape Breton Highlands National Park are:

• Fishing Cove Trail
• Aspy Trail
• Franey Trail

Skyline Trail and Middle Head Trail are the park’s busiest hiking trails while the Bog Trail, Green Cove Trail, and Acadian Trail are also highly visited trails, as well.

For the experienced hikers that are seeking a more challenging hike with rewarding views, Franey Trail remains a popular choice for hikers visiting Cape Breton Highlands National Park.

Two great options in the Cheticamp area, both offering a quieter, gentle yet rewarding hike with coastal views and rich cultural connections, include:

• Le Buttereau Trail (1.6 km (1 mile) loop) and Le Chemin du Buttereau Trail (4.6 km (2.9 mile)) offer an easy, family-friendly 6.2 km (3.9 mile) combined (loop + return) hike that would take about 1.5–2 hours to complete. Hikers can enjoy beautiful views of Grand Falaise looking back toward the Highlands plateau, as well as scenic coastal views of the Gulf of St. Lawrence.
• Vieux Chemin du Cap-Rouge Trail is an easy, gentle climb suitable for more visitors that follow a historic section of the original Cabot Trail. The trail is approximately a 9 km (5.6 mile) (return) hike that should take about 2–3 hours to complete. Continuous ocean views accompany much of the hike, with a final look-off offering spectacular views of Presqu’île and the Gulf of St. Lawrence.

Broad Cove Mountain Trail in Ingonish is known as the “mini Franey” as it offers up similar views but is not as high up. The trail is approximately 2.3 km (1.4 mile) return hike that may take someone prepared for a short, scenic climb about an hour to complete with a big coastal payoff at the top.

• Acadian Trail: that view! You’ll climb 365 metres above the Chéticamp River and be rewarded with panoramic views.
• Mica Hill Trail: the only trail that passes through three types of forest – Acadian, boreal and taiga, discover the outcrops of quartz and mica.
• Lone Shieling Trail: touch a billion-year-old rock in the retaining wall near the stone replica of a Scottish crofter’s hut.
• Jack Pine Trail: You can vist the top of the Still Brook Falls from this trail… or visit the bottom of the falls from Black Brook Beach at low tide.
• Salmon Pools Trail: a leisurely hike through Acadian forest alongside the Chéticamp River where you can watch for Atlantic Salmon in the river’s deeper, natural pools.
• Mary Ann Falls Trail: This revitalized trail, now exclusively for hiking, leads to the breathtaking Mary Ann Falls, a cascading waterfall and one of the park’s most beloved historic swimming spots.
• Le vieux chemin du Cap-Rouge Trail: Following the route of the original Cabot Trail, discover traces of a former Acadian settlement before the spectacular look-off.
• Corney Brook Trail: Acadian forest box river canyon that leads to a waterfall.
• Fishing Cove Trail: a more challenging hike, the trail starts at the top of the mountain and brings you 6 km down to sea level to the site that was once home to a Scottish fishing village.
• Aspy Trail: the trail follows along the Aspy fault, a dormant fault line and, located just beyond the trail’s parking area at the end of the Beulach Ban Falls Road, you can visit one of the park’s most popular waterfalls, Beulach Ban Falls.
• Broad Cove Mountain Trail: steep, short climb leads you to incredible panoramic views at the top.
• Clyburn Valley Trail: easy, family friend trail that follows the Clyburn River through hardwood trees, huge boulders, meadows, apple trees and the remnants of an old gold mine.

You will find beaches – salt water or fresh water – when you explore the following trails in Cape Breton Highlands National Park:

• Warren Lake Trail
• Freshwater Lake Trail
• Neils Brook Beach
• Mary Ann Falls Trail
• Jack Pine Trail is located near Black Brook Beach with views overlooking it.

Yes! Five trails have a waterfall on or near the trail, including:

• Jack Pine Trail gives you access to Still Brook Falls, a 6 m (20 ft) tall waterfall which can also be accessed from Black Brook Beach
• Corney Brook Trail brings you to Corney Brook Falls, a 9 m (30 ft) tall waterfall
• Mary Ann Falls Trail brings you to Mary Ann Falls, a 6 m (20 ft) tall waterfall
• MacIntosh Brook Trail has MacIntosh Brook Falls, a 10 m (35 ft) tall waterfall
• Aspy Trail trailhead parking lot is shared with Beulach Ban Falls, a 21 m (69 ft) tall waterfall

Learn more about the waterfalls on Cape Breton Highlands National Park’s website.

Yes – two Cape Breton Highlands National Park trails are wheelchair accessible:

• Bog Trail
• Freshwater Lake Trail

Yes! Leashed dogs are permitted on most trails in Cape Breton Highlands National Park however, dogs are not permitted on the Skyline Trail.

Please plan ahead – do not leave pets unattended in vehicles, particularly during warm weather and be sure to clean up after your pet and dispose of waste appropriately to help ensure a safe and enjoyable experience for all visitors and pets as well as to protect the native wildlife that call the park home as well as the park’s sensitive ecosystems.

Mm-kwas-sock-took

Mkwesaqtuk is a Mi’kmaq word describing a place that changes to red, referring to the coastal area that Acadians would later call Cap-Rouge, on the western side of Cape Breton Highlands National Park.

Once you’ve experienced a spectacular sunset over the Gulf of St. Lawrence from this area, you’ll understand the origin of the name.

Four campgrounds offer wheelchair accessible places to stay, amenties and facilities:

Ingonish Beach Campground

• Accessible washroom and shower facilities

Broad Cove Campground

• Two accessible tent sites with electrical hook-ups and two accessible campsites with 3-way hook-ups
• One accessible oTENTik
• Accessible washroom and shower facilities.

Chéticamp Campground

• Two accessible tent sites with electrical hook-ups and one accessible campsite with 3-way hook-up
• One accessible oTENTik
• Wheelchair accessible kitchen shelter and unisex washroom and shower facilities.

Mkwesaqtuk/Cap-Rouge Campground

• One accessible oTENTik
• One accessible Tiny cabin
• Wheelchair accessible washroom and shower facilities, activity building, and kitchen shelters.

Exclusive to Parks Canada, an oTENTik is a roofed glamping structure with weatherproof canvas walls and roof that are supported by a sturdy frame. oTENTik accommodations are built on a raised wooden platform and offer space for up to six people to sleep comfortably inside. Inside an oTENTik you will find bunks with mattresses and there may even be amenities such as electricity, heating, and some basic furniture items.

Guests are required to provide all the camping essentials such as pillows and bedding, personal items, cooking equipment, etc.

Yes, campgrounds in the Cape Breton Highlands National Park are pet friendly. Dogs are welcome at campsites and must remain on a leash at all times.

Please note that dogs are not permitted in any of the campgrounds’ roofed places to stay such as oTENTik accommodations and cabins.

You are required to clean up after your pet and dispose of waste appropriately to help ensure a safe and enjoyable experience for all visitors, pets, wildlife, and to protect the park’s ecosystems.

Please plan ahead if you are travelling with pets – never leave them unattended in your vehicle, especially during warm weather.

Yes – three campgrounds offer ‘first come, first served’ campsites:

• Corney Brook Campground
• MacIntosh Brook Campground
• Big Intervale Campground

Please note: Camping is not permitted outside of designated campgrounds including look-offs, beaches, parking lots, etc.