Truro (Nova Scotia) - Truro (Nova Scotia)

Truro is a city in Nova Scotia with a population of around 12,000 (2016). Although you can find East Berlin and West Berlin on Nova Scotia’s South Shore, it is Truro where you will fido six large sections of the Berlin Wall.

Understand

St. John the Evangelist Anglican Church

The area around Truro was called "Wagobagitik" by the local Mi’kmaq inhabitants. The name has been interpreted as meaning "end of the water's flow" or “the bay runs far up”, in reference to the world’s highest tides rising up from the Bay of Fundy. Acadian settlers arrived in the early 1700s, and called it "Cobequid". After the Acadians were expelled in the mid-18th century, Scots-Irish settlers named the town after Truro in Cornwall, England.

Truro boomed after the construction of the Nova Scotia Railway between Halifax and Pictou in 1858, and of the Intercolonial Railway in 1872 and its connection to the Annapolis Valley’s Dominion Atlantic Railway at the turn of the 20th century. The Truro Woolen Mills, a major employer, became Stanfield’s underwear.

Get in

By car: Truro is

  • 170 km (110 mi) east of Moncton, New Brunswick along the Trans-Canada Highway (#2 in NB, #104 in NS)
  • 300 km (190 mi) south of Sydney, Nova Scotia along the Trans-Canada Highway (#104)
  • 100 km (62 mi) north of Halifax along the Veterans' Memorial Highway (#102).

By train:Via Rail's The Ocean service stops in Truro en route from Montreal through Moncton to Halifax three times a week.

By bus:Maritime Bus offers service from Truro north to Sydney, east to Halifax, west to Charlottetown, Moncton and on to Quebec City and Montreal.

By air: the nearest airports are in Halifax (Nova Scotia), and Moncton (New Brunswick).

Get around

45°21′18″N 63°17′49″W
Map of Truro (Nova Scotia)

Subways, light rail, bus rapid transit... Truro has none of those. Make your way on foot, by car or by bike.

See

  • 1 Downtown. Truro’s historic downtown offers shops and dining along Inglis Place. 
  • 2 Colchester Historeum, 29 Young St, ☏ 1 902-895-6284. June-August: M-F 10AM–5PM, Sa 10AM–4PM; September-May: Tu-F 10AM–noon & 1PM–4PM. A museum, housing a variety of local artifacts and stories. Adult $5, youth and student $4, senior $1, family (up to 3 children) $10. 
  • 3 Marigold Cultural Centre, 605 Prince St, ☏ 1 902-897-4004. M-Th 9AM-5PM, F 9AM-4PM, 1½ hours prior to a performance. Experience local music and theatre. Also an art gallery and local sports heritage museum. (updated Nov 2017)
  • 4 Millbrook Cultural and Heritage Centre, 65 Treaty Trail, Millbrook, ☏ 1 902-843-3493. "Closing October 31st and opening again in the Spring". explore Nova Scotia’s Mi’kmaw First Nation heritage and culture, and the legends of Glooscap. A 12-m (40-foot) statue of Glooscap, the creator, welcomes you to the centre. Adult $6.00, child (age 6-17) $3.50, child (under 5) free, senior (65 and older) $5.00, family (2 adults and children under 18) $15.00, Millbrook Band Members free. (updated Nov 2017)
  • 5 [dead link]Truro Raceway, 73 Ryland Ave, ☏ 1 902-893-9222, ✉. Nova Scotia’s largest harness racing facility, with a regular live racing schedule. 
Jacob's Ladder, Victoria Park
  • Berlin Wall. Six large sections of the Berlin Wall have been installed along the Cobequid Trail, on the Agricultural Campus of Dalhousie University. (updated May 2019)

Do

  • 1 Victoria Park, 29 Park Rd, ☏ 1 902-893-6078, ✉. 400 ha (1000 acres) of forest, two waterfalls, hiking and biking trails, a playground, spray park, large outdoor pool and waterslide. Climb the 175 steps of Jacob's Ladder, a wooden staircase that takes you up the side of the gorge to a view of a waterfall. Free. (updated Nov 2017)
  • Tidal Bore Rafting, 12215 Highway 215, Urbania (35 km S of Truro), ☏ 1 902 400-0104. content=Experience the highest tides in the world by riding on the tidal bore wave in a raft. Exhilarating fun, even when the moon isn't full. 2-hr tour: adult $70, child $63. (updated Jul 2020)
  • The Truro Winter Long John Festival in early February is the focus of the town's winter events (curling, snowshoeing, sledge hockey, skating, pickleball).
  • 2 Truro Golf Club, 86 Golf St, ☏ 1 902-893-4650. A semi-private golf course, open to the public. (updated Nov 2017)

Buy

Truro has the usual big-box chains.

  • 1 Truro Farmers Market, 15 Young St, ☏ 1 902-843-4004, ✉. Sa 8AM-1PM. local foods and handmade goods every Saturday morning (updated Nov 2017)
  • 2 Masstown Market, 10622 Nova Scotia Trunk 2, Masstown, ☏ 1 902-662-2816, toll-free: 1 866-273-0614, ✉. Summer 8AM-9PM, fall and winter 9AM-9PM. A quarter-hour drive west of Truro, with an onsite bakery, deli, dairy bar, fish market, farm market, fish and chip boat, and restaurant that serves up local homemade meals. A lighthouse showcases the best of the Bay of Fundy and provides a great view from the top. In the summer, there is a corn maze and fun farm. 
  • 3 Stanfield’s Factory Outlet, 115 Esplanade St. Some of the best underwear made in Canada, for men and women. 

Eat

Drink

Sleep

Nearby

Stewiacke

Stewiacke is 30 km south of Truro on Highway 102. Its claim to fame is being on the 45th parallel, halfway between the Equator and the North Pole.

  • 6 Mastodon Ridge, 87 Main St W, ☏ 1 902-639-2345, ✉. A replica of a mastodon signifies the discovery of the remains of a juvenile mastodon in a nearby quarry. There's also mini golf, a snack stand, and the Winding River Art Gallery. 
  • 7 Shubenacadie Provincial Wildlife Park, 149 Creighton Rd, Shubenacadie, ✉. Shubenacadie (pronounced "Shoo-ben-ack-a-dee") Wildlife Park is home to 26 species of mammals, 65 species of birds, a wetland centre, scenic trails and a 10-ha picnic park. 

Go next

West to the Bay of Fundy, northwest to New Brunswick, east to Antigonish and Cape Breton, or south to Halifax.

Routes through Truro
Moncton ← Amherst ← W VIA Rail Ocean icon.png E → Halifax → END
Moncton ← Springhill ← Oxford ← W Nova Scotia Highway 104 (TCH).svg E → New Glasgow → Antigonish
END ← N Nova Scotia 102.svg S → Jct Nova Scotia 118.svgS → Bedford → Halifax
Amherst ← Parrsboro ← N Nova Scotia 2.svg S → Bedford → Halifax
ENDS at Nova Scotia Highway 104 (TCH).svg ← Oxford ← W Nova Scotia 4.svg E → New Glasgow → Antigonish
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