You can’t beat the west coast of Cape Breton Island for finding places to watch the sun set. I got to enjoy three sunsets during my stay in Pleasant Bay, during the first week of October, 2016. The slideshow gives you an idea of what you’ll find at the end of the day, in several locations — and I’ll give you more details below.
Location
The Cabot Trail makes a loop around Cape Breton Island, but I’d recommend being on the west side of the island — anywhere from Pleasant Bay to Chéticamp — at the end of your day. Pleasant Bay Road (near town) offers some great viewing locations, as does the area around the Corney Brook Campground. The Skyline Trail would be pretty great, too, if you don’t mind hiking back in the dark.
My Visit
On my first night in Cape Breton National Park, I raced across the island, and arrived in Pleasant Bay with just minutes to spare.
I drove up Pleasant Bay Road (a dead-end dirt road that heads north from town)…
… and found this view of the coastline. It was too cloudy for a great sunset, but I didn’t have that problem on the following two nights.
On my second night, I ended up about halfway between Chéticamp and Pleasant Bay. One turnout offered this nice view, looking north…
… but I kept exploring until I found this spot at the Corney Brook Campground…
… and watched the sun sink into the water.
It was pretty dark by the time I got back to Pleasant Bay, but the trees still made a nice silhouette against the final light of the day.
My final day was exhausting, and I almost didn’t go out to look for a nice shot at sunset. I didn’t end up far from Pleasant Bay…
… and I didn’t need to go any farther than the hill, just south of town. Here, a look-off provides a nice view of Pleasant Bay and the coastal mountains to the north. I couldn’t see the big orange ball from here…
… but the colors were nice and soft as the day came to an end.
Drivelapse Video
Here’s a look at the drive from Pleasant Bay to Chéticamp:
The Bottom Line
You’ll find some great places to watch the sun set as you drive the Cabot Trail on the western side of Cape Breton National Park.
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