Carters Beach — Attraction in Port Mouton

Parking is tight and EXTREMELY limited. One of the local residents on the road in has a sign up advertising a flat rate fee all day parking. One of the other local residents has signs up asking people not to block their driveway; which in my mind is common courtesy and kind of a general driving rule but apparently it's happened to them often enough that they need a sign forbidding it. You may end up walking a LOT further than you anticipate just to get to the beach, so be prepared. The walk into is not accessible. You have to be independently mobile. There are a couple of wide rocks set as steps and that is that. Near the parking lot there is an out-house - we didn't use it, but it's there if you must. Once at the beach, it's tempting to stop as soon as you see the water. The beautiful white sand, the gentle shoreline - you just want to put your stuff down and get into it. walk a bit, you won't be unhappy. There is a stream of water that flows over the sand out to sea and it is a GREAT place for little kids to play. The beach goes on past the stream and the water "seems" warmer over there. plus, it doesn't get as crowded at the far end... ...

Carter's Beach is my favourite beach in the province and has recently become a protected area, so you are not allowed to take anything off the beach. I used to see lots of sand dollars, but saw no dead ones at all on this last trip. The fine green grass that grows on the sand dunes is being replanted by volunteers and part of the beach near the dunes is roped off to keep people off of the dunes. That said, we still saw people on the dunes. One of the volunteers explained that this grass will die if stepped on and if we lose the sand dunes, we can lose the species that stay behind them, such as seabirds, insects and small animals. It is imperative that people stay away from the dunes!

There are some parking spots, but people park along the narrow road, which makes it dangerous for anyone having a medical emergency. It has two portable outhouses at present. The environmentalists and citizens' group are promoting a "pack it in, pack it out" program, so there are no garbage cans on site on purpose. They recommend that you only visit for part of the day, so that the beach is not...

Getting there takes a bit. There is very limited parking. Steven let us park in his driveway. He, his wife, and their little dog are truly friendly people. From parking, it's a good 10 minute walk to the beach. There are no change rooms. Only 2 port-a-potties (1 with a broken lock), for bathroom and changing, coming onto the beach, it is quite packed, but there was lots of room to set up camp. The sand is white, endless, and hot. Beautiful beach. The odd thing, was that everyone was standing at the waters edge. It was like a scene out of Jaws, where the beach was packed, but nobody was swimming. It was hard to figure out....until...you tried to swim. This was the coldest water I was ever in, and I live in Cape Breton. It's not the type of cold that you get used to....it's the type of cold that the longer you are in it, the more your body cramps up...it actually hurt. So if you are going to the beach for sun and sand, this is definitely the beach....if you are going to swim, don't waste your gas or time....the locals say that it never...