Download Lighthouse Ocean Drive
Analisa Hadfield
National Album Day Exclusive 180gm Blue Vinyl. Ocean Drive the multi-platinum selling debut album from the much-loved Lighthouse Family is released for the first time ever on vinyl - Originally released on Wildcard/Polydor Records in September 1995, the album reached No 3 in the UK charts and spawned four Top 20 singles. Lighthouse Family formed in Newcastle when keyboardist Paul Tucker and singer Tunde Baiyewu were students in the city. Taking their name from lighthouses in Whitley Bay and Tynemouth, the pair began to craft their gossamer pop- soul.
Since my mother works at the natural science center in Greensboro, NC, she was able to arrange a behind-the-scenes tour of the aquarium with a very knowledgeable fish and invertebrate expert named Marcus. I have a new appreciation for invertebrates and the people who know and love them. And, after sharing a magical moment of intense eye contact with the albatross the aquarium uses for its public programs (the only captive bird of its type in the world), I also have a new appreciation for the large ocean-dwelling birds. Peering at us from her cage on the aquarium's roof deck, she seemed very friendly and attuned to humans.
To incoming sailors in treacherous waters, a lighthouse is an understated beauty. The guiding light and resounding fog horn are a confirmation that safety lies ahead. Not to mention, they're pretty easy on the eyes.
Jamestown, RI
Dutch Island is a small, rocky island off the coast of Conanicut Island in the West Passage of Narragansett Bay. The thirty-foot lighthouse that resides there was built in 1826 using stone and slate found on the island. In 1856, the lighthouse was rebuilt with a two-story brick keeper's dwelling attached to the tower. The lighthouse was nearly destroyed by fire in 1923 and deactivated by the coast guard in 1972. In 2007, it was reactivated with a battery-powered, solar-charged light. Unfortunately, it is not open to the public, but you can get a great view of it from the water.
Newport, RI
Rose Island Lighthouse was built in 1870 on Rose Island, located in Narragansett Bay. In 1970, after the Newport Bridge was built, the lighthouse was neglected and abandoned for fourteen years until the Rose Island Lighthouse Foundation was founded to restore this treasure on behalf of the city. Rose Island is only accessible by boat and is now a historic living museum and environmental education center.
Pro Tip: The lighthouse operates as a living museum where you can stay overnight and become a lighthouse keeper. Stay in one of the available rooms where you'll enjoy the crashing of the waves and peaceful tranquility. In the morning, change the linens and have the room back in order before the museum opens.
The Point Reyes Headlands jut 10 miles (16 km) out to sea and pose a threat to ships traveling between San Francisco Bay and locations to the north. The historic Point Reyes Lighthouse was built in 1870 to warn mariners of this navigational hazard and served for 105 years. The Point Reyes Lighthouse was retired from service in 1975 when the U.S. Coast Guard installed an automated light adjacent and below the historic tower. The Coast Guard then transferred ownership of the lighthouse to the National Park Service, which has taken on the job of preserving this fine specimen of our maritime heritage. Visit our Lighthouse History at Point Reyes page for more.
The Point Reyes Lighthouse is located at the western-most end of the Point Reyes Headlands and Sir Francis Drake Boulevard. Sir Francis Drake Boulevard is windy and slow-going, so allow forty-five minutes to drive the 20 miles (32 km) from the Bear Valley/Olema/Point Reyes Station area to the lighthouse parking lot (one hour and thirty minutes round-trip), not including any time you will spend in the vicinity of the lighthouse. Allow one hour and forty-five minutes for the drive (three hours and thirty minutes round-trip) from the Santa Rosa area, northwest San Francisco, or the northern East Bay. Many visitors spend at least an hour or two in the lighthouse area.
Directions to the Point Reyes Lighthouse from the Bear Valley Visitor Center.
Recreational vehicles (RVs) and vehicles pulling trailers are prohibited from parking in the Lighthouse visitors' parking lot and must park along the road. While there may appear to be sufficient space early in the morning, as was the case when the RV in the picture to the right (or above if viewing this on a small screen) arrived, the parking lot can quickly fill. On a number of occasions, RV drivers have parked in the lot and by the time the driver returned, the parking lot was full and there wasn't sufficient room to maneuver the RV out of the parking lot without damaging other vehicles. Not until much later, after the parking spots adjacent to and in front of the RV across the inbound lane were cleared, was the driver of the RV driver able to safely get the RV out of the parking space and out of the lot. Some visitors who arrived during this time and were told by the driver of the RV (and later by park staff) that they had to park along the road, even though there were parking spaces apparently available in the lot, weren't too happy.
If you are traveling with a trailer or are driving an RV towing a passenger vehicle, consider unhitching at the bus/RV/trailer-only parking lot at Bear Valley and taking only the passenger vehicle for the drive out to the Lighthouse area.
Stay on the paved pedestrian path/service road between the parking lot and the Lighthouse Visitor Center and Lighthouse. Hiking along the bluff tops is prohibited. All off-trail areas west of the Lighthouse visitors' parking lot are closed to entry. This closure includes areas accessed by going over or beyond the railings on the lighthouse stairs and platforms. Stay away from cliff edges. Loose soil and/or rock can give way suddenly and you may fall. Do not climb cliffs.
The lighthouse area's accessible parking lot is located 0.4 miles (0.6 km) beyond (to the west of) the main visitor parking lot. A gate composed of a heavy metal chain hung between two bollards is located at the west end of the roundabout at the west end of Sir Francis Drake Boulevard. Individuals with a Disabled Person parking placard or plate may open the gate in order to drive to the accessible parking lot. Unclip the chain from either bollard and clip it to the other bollard, and move the chain out of the way so that your vehicle's tires will not drive over the chain. Please be aware that the chain is heavy and the clips require a fair bit of force to open. Be sure to close the gate after you've passed through.
Please drive slowly and carefully since this section of the sixteen-foot-wide service road doubles as the pedestrian path from the main parking lot to the lighthouse. The accessible parking lot is on the right/north side of the road just beyond the cypress trees. If you start to drive up a steep hill via an eight-foot wide driveway to the garages, you are going too far.
Attached to the Lighthouse Visitor Center is the Ocean Exploration Center. A collaboration between the National Park Service and NOAA's Cordell Bank and Greater Farallones national marine sanctuaries, the Ocean Exploration Center highlights the spectacularly rich and globally significant ocean environment of North-central California. The coastal and marine ecosystem off North-central California is one of the biologically richest ocean zones on the planet, but the sea life is largely hidden beneath the water's surface. The center increases visitors' opportunities to view and learn about this remarkable area, protected by two national marine sanctuaries and a national seashore. The Ocean Exploration Center features 3-D models of a California sea lion, a Dall's porpoise, a sooty shearwater, and a white shark suspended from the ceiling, murals depicting life below the surface painted on the walls, and informative panels describing ocean wildlife and habitats off our coast. A large picture window offers visitors a stunning view of the Point Reyes Beach and the Pacific Ocean, while protecting them from the legendary winds of Point Reyes.
Allow 5 to 10 minutes for the descent and 10 to 20 minutes for the ascent, plus whatever amount of time you wish to spend at the base of the stairs, i.e., checking out the lighthouse, talking with a ranger, or watching for whales or birds.
The equipment building (the long single-story building adjacent to the lighthouse) is usually open if the Lighthouse Visitor Center and the stairs leading down to the lighthouse are open, as staffing and weather conditions permit. The equipment building has an exhibit about the changes in fog signal technology at Point Reyes over the years and contains the two 1947 super typhon foghorns, the air compressors, and a backup power generator that were used at Point Reyes before the current lighthouse/fog signal building was constructed in 1975. Visit our Visitor Centers page to learn when the Lighthouse Visitor Center and the stairs leading down to the lighthouse are open.
The Point Reyes Lighthouse (e.g., the tower) is closed until further notice. However, the equipment building and the narrow pathways at the lighthouse level are open if the stairs leading down to the lighthouse are open.
The watchroom (the lower chamber) of the historic lighthouse contains exhibit panels featuring the history of the light and the keepers.
The lighthouse's clockwork room (the second-level chamber) houses the original clockworks and provides visitors with a close look at the first-order Fresnel lens above. The clockwork room is is open as staffing and weather conditions permit. Visit our Calendar page and look for the "A Look into the Lens" talk to find out when the clockwork room may be open.
The lighthouse's clockwork room (the second-level chamber), which houses the original clockworks and from which one can get a close look at the first-order Fresnel lens, is open as staffing and weather conditions permit. Visit our Calendar page and look for the "A Look into the Lens" talk to find out when the clockwork room may be open.
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