I visited Joggins on a Sunday afternoon. I had made reservations for the 2 pm tour weeks in advance. After about 6 hours of driving from the province of Québec (plus an hour time difference), I arrived on time. The visitor center is a lot smaller than Miguasha's, and it seems to be less well funded too: Joggins is owned by a foundation, it is not a provincial or national park.

It turned out that only 2 other people (Americans) were joining me on the tour. I first had a look at the indoor exhibit by myself. You mainly see prints of ferns and the trunks of something that looked like bamboo. All plants and animals from this period have in common that they were very large.

The Bay of Fundy, where the cliffs lie, has the highest tidal range in the world. At high tide, the difference can be up to 16 meters, and the beach and cliffs are not accessible. Fortunately, I was there at a time when the water was receding: the high tide was at 11 o'clock, and the low tide will be at 5 o'clock. And even then you still have a few hours left before it gets too dangerous. Visitors are warned about the high tide, but they are not physically banned. The beach is always open, but the water sometimes reaches the higher parts of the stairs leading from the visitor center to the beach. The tidal times as they are expected on a given day can be found on the official Joggins website.

The daily pounding of the tide is also the reason that fossils are so easily found here: a new piece is uncovered every day. In the past, coal was also mined here, the remains of which you can still see. The cliffs themselves are crumbling so quickly that many houses on the coast have already become uninhabitable. Also, stones fall down regularly if you walk directly along the cliff.

The guide showed us what to look for to find fossils on the beach. Actually, it is mainly looking for black patterns on the stones, that is the coal that is still in it. It is not difficult to find small 'leaves'. She brought examples of the most common species that occur here, but you don't often find them of that quality yourself. Still, it was nice to stroll on the beach for a while, because it is full of stones in all colors and shapes.

In some cases, entire tree trunks have also been fossilized. On the cliff, you see them horizontally, on the beach in the shape of a tree stump. In the hollow parts of these tree stumps, fossils of animals (amphibians and reptiles) have been found.

As this was only a day after the visit to the similar Miguasha,  you’re of course going to compare the two. The indoor exhibition is better in Miguasha, but the part outside and especially the beach is a lot more interesting at Joggins. You can actually find fossils among the rocks, and also the Bay of Fundy with its great tidal range is fascinating.  Admission costs 10 CAD (7.60 EUR) for access and a half-hour tour with a guide, but you can also go to the beach without a guide and then it’s free.