Bay of Fundy's longest driftwood beach part of Mi'kmaq legend

There is a Mi’kmaq legend that tells of a meeting requested by all the animals living in the Bay of Fundy: a meeting with Kluskap!

The animals living at the mouth of the bay said the water levels were getting higher, flooding the fields and swelling the brooks and streams. The animals living in the upper bay were saying, “There is no water in the bay - it’s too dry!”

Upon investigating, Kluskap found the dam of Kopit (Beaver) across the bay. Kluskap told Kopit what was happening on both sides of the dam and asked him to remove it. Kopit said that what happened to the other animals was of no concern to him. Kluskap said that it was of concern to him and that he had promised to correct it.

Kluskap enlisted the help of Putup (Whale) to take down the dam. When Putup did so the tidal water levels in the Bay of Fundy returned to normal as did the way of life for all animals.

In the upper Bay of Fundy near Advocate, Nova Scotia, there is a 4 km stretch of beach that
collects driftwood from all over the world. The unique occurrence of ocean currents and the
world’s highest tides continually deposit vast amounts of driftwood on this beach. To this day,
this debris is known as the remains of Kopit’s broken dam.

Legend & image: shared with permission from Gerald Gloade, Mi'kmawey Debert Cultural Centre