MacInnis Brook Falls, Nova Scotia
The MacInnis Brook Falls trail is an easy in-and-out trail located near West Gore, Nova Scotia. This trail is great for hikers at any level as there is minimal elevation, and it could be considered more of a “stroll in the park” rather than a hike. The MacInnis Brook waterfall provides visitors with a beautiful scene in rural Nova Scotia, especially in the fall.
Important: As of March 2021, the owners of the private property, including MacInnis Brook Falls, have posted No Trespassing signs. Please be respectful of this decision.
Difficulty: Easy
Length: 0.6km (out and back)
Suggested Duration:Â 20-40 minutes
Signage:Â none
Facilities: none
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Key Features Of MacInnis Brook Falls
- Waterfall
- Trail alongside/crossing a brook
Before You Start Hiking MacInnis Brook Falls
Before you begin exploring MacInnis Brook Falls, there are a few things you should know.
First things first, there is no parking lot. Rather, there is space to park on the side of the road (42-194 Mines Road) near the front of the trailhead. Just be mindful of locals and avoid parking on someone’s private property.
The trailhead is easy to spot as it is a larger ATV trail (pictured below for reference). Begin following the ATV trail until you reach a turn off-trail on the left-hand side. While it may make sense to continue down the ATV trail, take a left and begin descending the slight hill. This trail will lead you down to the brook and, eventually, to the waterfall.
There are a few points where the trail appears to cut off. At this point, you can cross the brook on “rock bridges” (picture below for reference). This is important to note for those who may not have the best balance or are travelling with smaller children. You may get wet! We recommend appropriate footwear with good grip and waterproofing.
Depending on the time of the year, there are a few things to note.
The waterfall may dry out during the warmer months due to a lack of rain combined with the hotter temperatures of the summer months. For that reason, we think the best times of the year to visit are Spring and Fall. Snowshoeing to the falls in Wintertime would also be quite the experience!
If you do come out during the warmer months, bring insect repellent. The bugs can get quite annoying as visitors walk along the brook to the waterfall.
Lastly, there are various off-trails from the waterfall that you can go up and around the top of the waterfall.
Our Experience Hiking MacInnis Brook Falls
We went exploring MacInnis Brook Falls in October. The colours were beautiful, and many of the leaves had already fallen onto the trail. Still, the trail was quite easy to follow until we approached the break off-trail. We actually were not aware that we had to take the trail on the left-hand side and ended up continuing down the ATV trail.
When the ATV trail, we followed a smaller trail throughout the woods, which took us to the top of the waterfall. At this point, we realized we had gone the wrong way, though it was still a good view from the top.
We turned around and went back the way we came to see if we could find the actual trail. This was when we realized we had to go down the off-trail.
There is a slight hill that you will need to go down before reaching the brook. This hill is small, and there are trees around that you can hold onto if you need assistance or bring hiking poles!
The trail follows the brook and is easy to distinguish. It is not quite groomed. However, there are no large rocks or roots on this trail, making it easy for all levels of hikers.
There were a few points on the hike where the trail seemed to disappear, so we opted to use the rock bridges (there are various rock bridges along the brook) to cross to the other side.
We found the rocks to be large and easy to cross. Even when they were wet, it was not overly slippery. We still recommend taking precautions if the rocks appear loose or too slick to cross. While the brook is shallow, we do not want anyone to hurt themselves.
After a quick stroll along the brook, we reached the breathtaking waterfall. We heard that the waterfall tends to dry up often, but we were fortunate to see that it was flowing.
After taking in the view for a few minutes, we decided to do a little off-trail hiking to the top of the waterfall.
We crossed the brook and climbed up to the top of the waterfall, which offered another beautiful view of the falls. If you decide to go exploring, be careful of slippery rocks and not get too close to the edge of the waterfall.
It started to rain on us as we made our way back home to Halifax. While this is a short and easy trail, there are a few other trails around, such as Empire Trails and Rawdon Goldmines Falls trail, that you could add to your itinerary to make for a full day of hiking fun.
Checklists And Recommended Gear
The following is our recommended gear list for Bayer Lake Loop.
- Water Bottle
- Hiking Shoes – Women’s // Men’s
- Camera/Phone to take photos
- Snacks and/or lunch
- Sunscreen
- Hat
- Insect Repellent
- Cascade Hiking Poles
- Atlantick Tick Removal Tool Kit
- Swimwear (seasonal)
