Panuke Lake Nature Reserve is located along the shores of Panuke Lake, Hants County, on lands owned by Bowater Mersey Paper Company Limited. The reserve protects an old-growth eastern hemlock-red spruce forest, a remnant of a once-common forest type in Nova Scotia.

The reserve is located in the South Mountain Rolling Plain Natural Landscape.

The old-growth portion of the reserve is approximately 47 hectares in size, and is surrounded by a buffer zone of 104 hectares. Because of the extreme present-day rarity of this forest type, access is limited, and requires permission of Bowater Mersey and the Nova Scotia Environment and Labour, Protected Areas Branch. Guided walks are given by Protected Areas Branch staff from time to time.