About forty English-speaking families live on Entry Island. This is a real paradise for nature lovers. The highest peak in Les Îles de la Madeleine, Big Hill, is on this island. The view from the top is magnificent, and you will be able to look out over the whole archipelago. However, we ask that you please respect private property while you are walking here. The only two places accessible for bird watching are the Ivan Quinn path and the community pasture. The only wooded area on the island is close to the school. You might stop there to see if there might be some interesting surprises, since this is usually a good site during the spring and fall migration periods.
Entry Island is the only inhabited island in the archipelago that is not linked to the others by sand dunes. To get there, you have to take a ferry or an excursion boat. We strongly recommend the boat excursion, as that will take you around the Island to visit the different sea bird colonies. Most of these colonies, except the one at La Cormorandière, are difficult to observe from the cliffs. The Tourist Information Office has details on the excursions available to you.
Marine species present include the Black-legged Kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla), the Great Cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo), the Double-crested Cormorant (Phalacrocorax auritus), the Razorbill (Alca torda) and the Black Guillemot (Cepphus grylle). Terrestrial species are fewer in number and limited mainly to a few species of migrating warblers, buntings and flycatchers. If you are lucky, you might see some plovers, Whimbrels (Numenius phaeopus) and Buff-breasted Sandpipers (Tryngites subruficollis) in the grassy meadows on the hillsides.
When you leave the wharf, follow the gravelled Main Road as far as its intersection with Post Office Road. From there, follow the signs leading to the beginning of Ivan Quinn trail, which leads to Big Hill and the community pasture. This is posted with blue trail markers. Please note that there are animals loose in the pasture, and there is also an electric fence around it.
To get to the school, you take Main Road and then School Road.