Lighthouses Visited in 2000

First stop, a Lake Michigan lighthouse,

Wind Point Light in Racine, standing majestically at 108 feet tall.

      Then we drove up a hundred miles or so to Oshkosh, and on the way stopped at Fond du Lac, on Lake Winnebago, at this smaller, newer lighthouse, which was built in 1933, but is no longer in use today.

Little Sable Point Light

(Mears)

It was a terribly dreary, rainy day.  We couldn't go bicycling, so we went lighthouse exploring--four lighthouses in one day!  This one up at Mears was definitely worth the trip.  Although it is not open to the public and we didn't get to climb it, just climbing the dunes to reach it was enough exercise for us.  

It stands 107 feet tall, and is the original brick as it stood when completed in 1874.  It stands in handsome contrast to the tan colored sand dunes at Silver Lake State Park. It was such a neat scene--this picture doesn't do it justice.

Next we went down the road about 20 miles to Whitehall to see the White River Light Station and Museum.  We were especially looking forward to seeing the marine museum and a light that could be climbed but, alas, it was closed for the season until the end of May.

White River Lighthouse and Museum

Muskegan South Pier Light

Holland Harbor Lighthouse 

South Haven Pier Lighthouse

Painted bright red for visibility and sheathed in steel to protect from the elements is another active pier lighthouse just a few miles south of Holland.

 Grand Haven...

     Among the most striking of Michigan's pier lighthouses are those that mark the entrance to Grand Haven River.  Known as the Grand Haven South Pierhead Inner Light and Pier Light, they stand several hundred feet apart on a long stone pier.  They too have been sheathed in iron to protect them from the lake's destructive, storm-driven waves.

     In May Grand Haven State Park was the host of their annual Great Lakes Kite Festival.  The skies were full of large and small kites, all colorful and festive--a striking picture with the Grand Haven Pier Lighthouses in the background.

We left Michigan and drove down to Nappanee, Indiana .  Along the way we found two more lighthouses and walked out onto the piers.  They are both so similar--can you tell the difference?

The one on the left is in St. Joseph, Michigan.      On the right is in Michigan City, Indiana

More Wisconsin Lights

This eerie view is of a white lighthouse in the fog.  

A deadly shoal reaches nearly a mile from Rawley Point into Lake Michigan.  After several tragic shipwrecks a light was finally placed on the point to warn ships of the danger.

Rawley Point lighthouse was erected in 1894 and is the only one of its kind on the Great Lakes.  Standing at 113 feet, this soaring structure is the tallest octagonal skeletal light tower on the Great Lakes.   It is equipped with an unusually  powerful aeromarine beacon--the light can be seen by ships 28 miles away.

 It is surrounded by beautiful Point Beach State Park, which we were not able to appreciate that day because of the cool, rainy weather .

Cana Island Light

      Door County, Wisconsin, boasts nine active lighthouses.  We were not able to see them all in the two days we were there.   We plan to return to the Sturgeon Bay area and spend more time in the future.  These are two of the most interesting lights we saw...

    It was worth the walk over the shoals to see this beautiful 86-foot tower in its pristine island setting at Cana Island.

Eagle Bluff Light

     This lighthouse and museum are among the many attractions of Peninsula State Park.  We were able to tour the 43-foot tower and the two-story lighthouse keeper's dwelling.

Eagle Bluff

Minnesota

Split Rock Light

- A Superior Lighthouse -

This has to be one of the most spectacular lighthouses in America because of its lofty setting 120 feet above Lake Superior.  It is no longer an active aid to navigation, but rather a highly popular maritime museum.  Built in 1910, it owes its existence to a hurricanelike blizzard that struck the Great Lakes in November of 1905  This mighty storm drove more than thirty sizeable ore boats and freighters onto Lake Superior's rocky shores.  It served until 1969, when the Coast Guard decommissioned the lighthouse and handed it over to the state of Minnesota for use as a park and museum.

    Just twenty miles down the road is Two Harbors light, which remains an active aid to navigation, and also houses a Bed and Breakfast.

Two Harbors

Nearby is the Two Harbors East Breakwater Light, a spindly metal structure with a small lantern room only 25 feet above the water.  We walked out to it as a large ore freighter was coming in one evening.  

More of Our Great Lakes Lighthouse Tour...

Beginning at Bayfield, Wisconsin, at the Apostle Islands National Seashore...

There are five historic light towers in the Apostle Islands on Lake Superior, and together these excellently maintained structures comprise one of the nation's finest collections of lighthouses and form what is, in effect, an outdoor nautical/lighthouse museum. Several island cruises are available during the summer months, so we returned here to take in another one.

Raspberry Island Lighthouse

We departed Bayfield mid-morning, riding the Eagle Island shuttle. After an hour boat ride we arrived at the island and were given a guided tour of the restored light station. We ate our picnic lunch on the grounds and then returned to Bayfield by afternoon.

Ontonagon Lighthouse has yet to be fully restored; yet the members of the Coast Guard Auxiliary were very proud of their light and gave us a lengthy tour of the old lightkeeper's home and light, which is now located on private property.

Au Sable Light Station

By far one of the most interesting lights on the Great Lakes is this remote light at Grand Marais, MI. It is so isolated that we took a half day just to find it. First we had to drive 12 miles on a gravel/dirt road outside of town to a primitive campground. Then we walked 1.5 miles on a splendid trail that ran along the edge of Lake Superior, Pictured Rocks National Seashore. Here's what we saw along the trail:

We were then given a thorough tour of the light by National Park Rangers. The view of the dunes from the top of the light was also spectacular. It was certainly worth the effort required to get there.

New and Old Presque Isle Lights

Down into the lower peninsula of Michigan on Lake Huron is a light that is very similar to the Au Sable light (in fact, built from the same plans) at Presque Isle. This is the "new" light (built in 1871). The "old" light was built in 1840. We were able to climb both lighthouses--what a treat!

Fresnel lens in the old (smaller) light.

We stop at them all...

There were several other lights we stopped to see, but were not able to climb.

Here we are stopped at Tawas Point State Park in Michigan to see a light that is no longer open to the public because of "liability issues" that haven't been solved. (Did someone jump?)

 Wind Point Light  is just south of Milwaukee.

 The grounds are open to the public, but not the tower.  The town of Wind Point uses the lighthouse for offices.

Round Island is a reef lighthouse, difficult to view from land, but we got a good shot of it from the ferry coming back from Mackinac Island.

New York

 Still operating Sodus Pierhead Light  and the old Sodus Point Light on Lake Ontario (not operating and not able to be climbed):

Yes, we have pictures of even more lighthouses we have visited.  If you are interested in more, click here for our

New England Lighthouse Collection.

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