Background
Anticosti, the largest island in Quebec, holds the most complete and best preserved palaeontological record of the first mass extinction of animal life, 447 to 437 million years ago. UNESCO says its fossils of marine life cover ten million years of Earth history, and that thousands of large bedding surfaces allow the study of shelled and sometimes soft-bodied animals that lived on the floor of a shallow tropical sea.
The island of 7,953 km² lies in the Gulf of St Lawrence; Jacques Cartier sailed past in 1534, Louis Jolliet was granted it in 1680 and built a fort, and it passed to Britain in 1763. Wikivoyage says the French chocolatier Henri Menier bought it in the late 19th century, built Port Menier and introduced deer, now more than 100,000 strong; access is by boat or plane from Havre-Saint-Pierre, Sept-Îles or Baie-Comeau, and there is no hospital, only a small clinic in Port Menier.
- 447–437 million years agoSea life is buried through the end-Ordovician extinction
- 1534Jacques Cartier sails along the shore
- 1680Louis Jolliet is granted the island
- Late 19th c.Henri Menier buys Anticosti and builds Port Menier
- 2023Inscribed as World Heritage
Find Your Way Around
The main parts of the site, in the order most visitors see them
- 1The Bedding SurfacesThousands of exposed sea floors from an ancient tropical sea.
- 2Port MenierThe only village, with a guided tour when the Nordik Express calls.
- 3Vauréal FallsNear Carleton Lighthouse, with cliffs for whale watching.
- 4The LighthousesSix around the island, and the wrecks of hundreds of ships.
- 5The DeerMore than 100,000 on an island 222 km long.
Know Before You Go
From Wikivoyage and the GoGo guides
Port Menier and the Falls
Not yet in a GoGo guide
- 09:00Port Menier90 minThe village Menier built.
- 11:00Vauréal Falls and the Fossil Shores5 hrsCliffs, falls and the ancient sea floor.
Best Time to Visit
Best months: Jul–Aug. Freezing days in Nov–Apr.
Typical highs
Climate: NASA POWER
Pair It With
Other World Heritage sites nearby, by distance
