[citation needed] Burntcoat Head, located on the "Noel Shore" along the south side of the Minas Basin, is the location of the highest tidal range ever recorded, exceeding 16-metre (52 ft) (during a spring tide only) and has one of the highest average tidal ranges every day.

The water in Minas Basin is a dense and nearly opaque reddish brown due to large amounts of suspended silt which are continually churned by tidal currents.

[citation needed] Historically, the north and southern sides of the basin were connected by a succession of ferries, which operated for more than 200 years, from Acadian times to 1941.

Provincial parks [7] at Anthony (near Truro), Five Islands, and Cape Blomidon allow visitors to enjoy and explore the Minas Basin.

Mi'kmaq tradition ties the god Glooscap in with significant geographical features such as Cape Blomidon and Five Islands.

Champlain bestowed the name Port of Mines onto the nearby Advocate Harbour to reflect the seams of copper ore at Cape d'Or.

[citation needed] During the Acadian era, virtually all inhabitants lived in distributed clusters or villages, with no single place dominating.

[citation needed] The communities around the Minas Basin were sustained by fishing, logging, farming, mining, boat building and shipbuilding.

[11] The tidal water also provided a means of transporting commodities such as lumber, apples and gypsum and powered Tide mills at locations such as Canning, Hantsport and Walton.

These fossils include various shells (brachiopods, molluscs), sponges, trees, fish, amphibians, reptiles, and dinosaurs.

Minerals include a variety zeolites from the basalt cliffs at Cape Split, the area around Parrsboro, Five Islands and Cap D'Or.

These include Nova Scotia's provincial mineral stilbite, as well as heulandite, analcime, chabazite, gmelinite, natrolite and thomsonite.