Pictou County Atlas
Terrain Features: Hill
A hill is a natural elevation of the land, smaller than a mountain but still a distinct terrain feature that shapes landscapes, influences settlement, and is carefully recorded in geography and mapping. In Pictou County, Nova Scotia, hills are part of the inland terrain that contrasts with the county’s well-known coastal features such as capes, points, and headlands.
These uplands are often forested, forming part of the county’s rural landscape and influencing land use patterns. Historically, hills provided vantage points for surveying and settlement, while their slopes were used for farming, woodlots, and later recreational trails.
Note: Not all Terrain Features have official place names. Even there are many hills located throughout Pictou County, very few have names included in the Canadian Geographic Names Database., if you know of some with local names that we have missed, then we encourage you to share that information with us so we can add the info to the atlas.
Terrain Features Sub Categories: Beach, Cape, Head, Hill, Island (Islet), Mount (Mountain), Patch, Point, Reef (Rocks / Shoal), Spit, Valley, Vegetation
Click here to return to the Pictou County Place Names Atlas
Some official place names in the Pictou County Atlas related to Hills include:
Durham Hill
The rural community of Durham is located west of Sylvester. It was named after the Earl of Durham (Governor-General of of British North America) in 1838., and was previously known as West River.
Green Hill
Green Hill is an elevated terrain feature of about 199 metres (653 feet) above sea level located in the community of Greenhill. The Greenhill Lookoff Museum was located here before the Province purchased it in 1959 and opened Greenhill Provincial Park. It was created in 1930 and operated by Cliff Ross, and considered by many locals to a notable Pictou County landmark. The museum was initially a tourist attraction with observation decks and a telescope, offering panoramic views of the surrounding landscape.
Tanner Hill
Tanner Hill is an elevated terrain feature of about 134 metres (440 feet) above sea level located just north of the Trans canada Highway in the communities of Limerock, Central West River, and Greenhill.
Drug Brook Hill
Drug Brook Hill is a prominent elevated feature located in the community of Trafalgar, west of the Stellarton Trafalgar Road (NS HWY 374), north east of Drug Brook Lake and north west of Black Lake.
Beech Hill
Beech Hill is a small elevated area in the community of Heathbell.
The Keppoch
Tthe Keppoch is a large upland mountainous geography located in both Pictou and Antigonish Counties. The area is well known for as a highland recreation area serving northeastern Nova Scotia with year‑round activities including hiking, biking, skiing fishing and hunting. The range is part of Nova Scotia’s mixed metamorphic and sedimentary uplands shaped by glacial action; soils and bedrock produce rolling ridges, wetlands and small headwater streams typical of the Northumberland Shore hinterland. It is a mixed Acadian forest containing both coniferous and deciduous stands with wetland pockets and managed woodlots in surrounding private and conserved lands.
Campbell Hill
Campbell Hill is a small rural community located south of the Scotsburn Road near the base of Campbell Hill (an elevated terrain feature in this area).