Miguasha National Park has a fourfold mission: to ensure the protection of this Quebec fossil site-renowned in the world of paleontology; to preserve it as an integral part of Quebec's natural heritage; to develop the site and its fossil treasures to the population in general; and to assist the development of paleontological research in Quebec.--Information courtesy of the Société des établissements de plein air du Québec (Sépaq)
With a total area of 87.3 hectares Miguasha National Park has some of the finest landscapes along the Gaspé coast. It lies on Miguasha Point below a mountainous rise and facing out to the Restigouche Estuary, close to where the river becomes Chaleur Bay.
The park covers less than a square kilometer over a narrow 2-kilometre-long strip that takes in the fossil-bearing cliff. Preserving the cliff is the primary mission of Miguasha Park. To protect the fossil-rich outcroppings, a preservation zone covers the cliff and the beach-two thirds of the park's surface area. The other third encompasses the recreation and service area.
Within the park boundaries, the forest is intermixed with brush and abandoned farm fields. It thus offers from one season to the next an ever-changing landscape of woods and open land, to the delight of visitors. This unique setting provides visitors with a chance to venture into the worlds of science and nature.
Miguasha National Park is within the municipalities of Nouvelle and Escuminac, in the MRC of Avignon, in the southwestern corner of the Baie-des-Chaleurs region. The park is 22 km from the town of Carleton, 235 km from Percé, 325 km from Gaspé, and 240 km from Rimouski.