Long Lake Provincial Park (Nova Scotia) - Location and Access Points

Location and Access Points

Long Lake Provincial Park is bordered by the Old Sambro Road on the east, Northwest Arm Drive on the NE, Watershed Commission lands bisected by the St. Margaret's Bay Rd. on the north (The only entrance to the park which currently has a parking lot, is located off this road, close to its intersection with the Prospect Rd.) and the Prospect Road on the west. It can be viewed from:

• the Northwest Arm Drive between the Spryfield exit on the St. Margeret's Bay Rd., and the Drive's termination on the Old Sambro Rd.,
• the Old Sambro Rd. between the Northwest Arm Drive and its intersection with Leblin Drive and
• from the Prospect Road, for a brief section just beyond Exhibition Park.

About 20 entrances to the park can be identified, including:

• several along the St. Margaret's Bay Rd. (including from the parking lot near the Prospect Rd. exit),
• 4 or 5 off the Northwest Arm Drive, most notably the old road across from Cowie Hill subdivision, which goes past Withrod Lake to some of the more popular swimming spots on Long Lake,
• two paths going in opposite directions from the grassy area at the dam at the end of Dentith Rd.,
• The Old Prospect Rd., from the Old Sambro Rd. to Goodwood - good access at each end,
• the other Goodwood entrance, whose path leads to Harrietsfield, past the Spruce Hill Lake. Actually getting to Harrietsfield via this pathway is not easy because most access to Harrietsfield is blocked by private property.
• the road which goes from Harrietsfield to the Spruce Hill Lake dam
• 2 or 3 paths which terminate on private property in Harrietsfield, and
• an old road going from the Exhibition Park to the Pipeline Trail. (see below), and

Although there is room along the roadside at a few of the more frequently used entrances for 2 to 4 vehicles, the only parking lot is currently the one built by the Water Commission. The management plan proposes another parking lot be built off the Old Sambro Rd, and there is discussion with the city to use a portion of the Exhibition Park lands as a parking lot mainly for the park, with concomitant restoration of the major park access point there as well.

The northern portion of Long Lake Provincial Park (north of Long Lake itself) and the adjacent Water Commission lands between the park's boundaries and the St. Margaret's Bay Rd., is home to a network of narrow single-track mountain bike trails (unofficially dubbed "Wrandees" by some bikers) that is noteworthy for its challenging terrain, bike-wise. Many of the trails are organized into a series of loops (approximately 6 miles of trail) that can be ridden a number of ways. Most trails are unmarked. Although this area of the park represents less than 5% of its total area, it and an adjacent narrow strip of land at the NW end of the park (which contains a small waterfall and a popular swimming spot) receives over 90% of the park's total usage.