Northumberland Strait
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The Northumberland Strait (French: détroit de Northumberland) is a strait in the southern part of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence in eastern North America. It separates the Canadian province of Prince Edward Island from the mainland provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia.
The western boundary of the strait is delineated by a line running between North Cape, Prince Edward Island and Point Escuminac, New Brunswick while the eastern boundary is delineated by a line running between East Point, Prince Edward Island and Chéticamp, Nova Scotia.
The strait's shallow depths lend to warm water temperatures in summer months, with some areas reaching 25 °C. Consequently the strait is reportedly home to the warmest ocean water temperatures in Canada, and some of the warmest ocean water temperatures on the Atlantic coast north of Virginia. The strait has been a rich fishing ground, having some of the best landings through the 1980's up until the early 1990's , but through 2006 fishermen have reported much lower than average lobster catches and increased rates of pollution. Another possible cause for the decreased fishing rates have been the effects that the Confederation Bridge has dealt to the currents in the straight. During the winter months between December and April, sea ice covers the entire strait and Gulf of St. Lawrence.
While the shores of Cape Breton Island and eastern peninsular Nova Scotia are dominated by granite, sedimentary rocks along the central and western parts of the strait, as well as the entire south shore of Prince Edward Island, consist of sandstone, lending to beautiful sandy beaches with minimal coastal development. These are some of the most prized and warmest beaches in Atlantic Canada. The largest island in the strait is Pictou Island.
Major communities on the strait include the cities of Charlottetown and Summerside, Prince Edward Island as well as the towns of Souris, Prince Edward Island, Pictou, Nova Scotia, and Shediac, New Brunswick.
A ferry service crosses the 23-kilometre (12–nautical mile) wide eastern part of the strait between Wood Islands, Prince Edward Island and Caribou, Nova Scotia.
The narrowest part of the strait, the 13-kilometre (7–nautical mile) wide Abegweit Passage in the western part of the strait between Borden-Carleton, Prince Edward Island and Cape Tormentine, New Brunswick, is now spanned by the Confederation Bridge.
The strait hosts two seasonal ferry services: Northumberland Ferries Limited operates a passenger/vehicle service between Caribou, Nova Scotia and Wood Islands, Prince Edward Island, a separate passenger-only ferry service also operates from Caribou to Pictou Island. The other passenger/vehicle service is located between Souris, Prince Edward Island and Iles de la Madeleine, Quebec. Both services are located at the eastern end of the strait.
There was a ferry service between Borden-Carleton, Prince Edward Island and Cape Tormentime, New Brunswick until May 31, [[1997]. It was one of Canada's busiest ferry services and was operated by Marine Atlantic across Abegweit Passage. This service has been replaced by the Confederation Bridge.
