Maine Lighthouses Welcome Visitors for Tours

PAGE 2
TOURIST NEWS, SEPTEMBER 3 – 16, 2015
Maine Lighthouses Welcome Visitors for Tours
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Viewing at least one of the lighthouses that dot the
Maine coastline is on every visitor’s to-do list, and the
state’s Open Lighthouse Day makes it easy to learn more
about these iconic symbols of Maine.
Intended to increase awareness of Maine’s maritime
heritage and the rich history of its lighthouses and lighthouse keepers, Open Lighthouse Day is the largest event
of its kind in the country. It attracts between 15,000 to
18,000 visitors each year and offers the general public
the rare opportunity to explore and learn about nearly
two dozen historic Maine lights. Maine’s seventh annual Open Lighthouse Day will
take place on Saturday, September 12, when the Coast
Guard, in partnership with the State of Maine and the
American Lighthouse Foundation, will open 22 lighthouses for the public to visit and tour, rain or shine.
Some lighthouses have limited, timed entry, and
some have age or height restrictions for climbing the
light tower. Visitors must find their own transportation
to get to the lighthouses.
Known as the “Lighthouse State,” Maine had at least
70 lighthouses guiding mariners by the turn of the 20th
century. Sixty-five still stand. There are more lighthouses
Participating Lighthouses in Southern Maine
Portland Breakwater
Light, So. Portland
Portland Breakwater
Light, known as Bug Light,
in South Portland guards
Portland Harbor.
Bug Light was erected
in 1855 as a wooden tower
and in 1875 was rebuilt in
cast iron to resemble a 4th
century BC Greek monument with six Corinthian
columns.
It was dubbed “the bug”
because of its small size.
It is on the National Register of Historic Places. In
1942, it was extinguished
to protect the harbor during World War II; it was
reactivated in 2002.
There is free parking at
nearby Bug Light Park; it
is possible to walk to the
tower. Open Lighthouse
Day hours are from 9 AM
to 3 PM; guided tours will
be available. Climbing restrictions: To climb the 26foot tower, small children
must be accompanied by
an adult.
The lighthouse is owned
by the city of South Port-
land and is part of Bug
Light Park, located at the
end of Broadway, near
Spring Point Marina.
The park includes a
walking path, the Liberty
Ship Memorial and Cushing’s Point House museum.
To reach the park, take
route 77 south into South
Portland, go east on Broadway, then left on Pickett,
which becomes Madison
Street and leads to the park.
Spring Point Ledge
Light, So. Portland
Spring Point Ledge Light
in South Portland sits on the
west side of the shipping
channel into Portland Harbor; the light began shining
in 1897. It is typical of the
“spark plug” style of the
period and is 54 feet high.
The lighthouse is accessible by a 900-foot-long
breakwater built in 1951.
The jetty connects the lighthouse to the Portland Harbor Museum, which lies
within old Fort Preble,
located on the campus of
Southern Maine Commu-
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in Maine than in any other state, except Michigan and
New York, and more coastal lighthouses than anywhere
in the nation.
Lighthouse preservation is very strong in Maine. The
Maine Lights program, passed by Congress in 1996, led
to the transfer of 28 lighthouses from the Coast Guard to
local preservation groups or other agencies and served
as a model for the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act of 2000.
Except for eight privately owned towers, all but a
handful of Maine’s lighthouses now have local support groups. In addition, two powerful national forces
for lighthouse preservation, the American Lighthouse
Foundation and Lighthouse Digest magazine, are based
in Maine.
While all Maine lighthouses cannot be opened to
the public for safety and accessibility reasons, those
that are opened will provide a chance to showcase the
long-lasting partnerships they have shared with the
Coast Guard for over 200 years.
Additional information on all of Maine’s lighthouses
and a detailed list of the lighthouses that will be open on
September 12 can be found at www.lighthouseday.com.
Closed Labor Day, Sept. 7
Portland Head Light, Cape Elizabeth
nity College on Fort Road.
Spring Point Ledge
Trust, owner of the lighthouse since 1998, offers
self-guided tours of the
tower and living quarters
for $5 per person on summer weekends and free of
charge from 11 AM to 3 PM
on Open Lighthouse Day.
Climbing restrictions:
Must be at least 51 inches
tall to climb the tower.
Climbing of narrow stairs
Twigs
and through small hatches
is also required. Tennis or
hiking shoes are recommended. FMI 699-2676 or
www.springpointlight.org.
Portland Head Light
Cape Elizabeth
Portland Head Light,
in Cape Elizabeth, built in
1791, was commissioned
by George Washington
Open daily
207-967-117 3
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TOURIST NEWS, SEPTEMBER 3 – 16, 2015
continued from page 2
Wood Island Light
Biddeford
Wood Island Light in
Biddeford can be seen from
East Point Sanctuary at the
eastern end of L.B. Orcutt
Boulevard in Biddeford Pool.
This lighthouse guards
the entrance to Saco Bay. A
conical white tower made of
granite blocks, it was built
in 1808 and rebuilt in 1858.
The Friends of Wood
Island Lighthouse offers
tours in the summer and
also will be offering tours
to the island aboard their
boat, Lightrunner, on Open
Lighthouse Day.
Spring Point Light, South Portland
photo by R. Dennis
of George H.W. Bush, the
island was used by the
Secret Service. Goat Island
can be viewed from the
Cape Porpoise pier and is
accessible by small boat.
FMI on schedules and fees,
contact Captain Kevin Kennedy, 831-3663. For kayaking, call Kayak Excursions
at 888-925-7496 or Coastal
Maine Kayak at 967-6065
for rates and details.
Goat Island Light,
Cape Porpoise
The 1 1/2-hour tour includes a half-mile boat ride
to the island, a half-mile scenic walk to the lighthouse
and semi-guided tours of
the keeper’s house and light
tower. A $15 donation is
requested. Reservations are
required and can be made
by calling 207-200-4552,
Monday to Friday, 9 AM to
5 PM. FMI www.woodislandlighthouse.org.
Goat Island Light
Cape Porpoise
Goat Island Light tower
and keeper’s house will be
open from 9 AM to 3 PM.
Constructed in 1835 and
rebuilt in 1859, it was the
final Maine lighthouse to
be automated, in 1990, and
is now owned by the Kennebunkport Conservation
Trust.
During the presidency
Nubble Light
York
No southern Maine
lighthouse tour would be
complete without a visit
to Nubble Light in York’s
Cape Neddick. Neither accessible by land or participating in Open Lighthouse
Day, it offers picturesque
views from the shoreline.
The much-photographed
and painted Nubble Light,
also known as Cape Neddick Light Station, sits on
a small island closed to
the public but just a stone’s
throw from the mainland.
The lighthouse was built in
1879 and is now owned by
the town of York.
Friends of Nubble Light
operate a visitors center and
gift shop in Sohier Park, on
Nubble Road, on the mainland near the lighthouse.
Finestkind Scenic Cruises
(207-646-5227; www.finestkindcruises.com) operates
cruises to Nubble Light out
of Ogunquit’s Perkins Cove.
Shops
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r on the Harb
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wrought iron & tinware
and was the country’s
first lighthouse built under the new government.
The old tower, built of
rubble stone, still stands
as one of the four colonial
lighthouses that have never
been rebuilt.
It is probably Maine’s
most famous and photographed lighthouse. It has
a white conical tower and
a Victorian keeper’s house,
which is now a museum.
Sitting at the entrance to
Portland Harbor, the lighthouse surveys more than 200
islands. It is located within
Fort Williams Park, off Shore
Road in Cape Elizabeth.
The tower will be open
on Open Lighthouse Day,
but access is limited. Approximately 280 free tickets
will be made available to
visitors on a first-come,
first-served basis.
Twelve tickets will be
given out for 15-minute
periods from 9 AM to 3
PM. Each ticket will show
an admission time.
The ticket can only be
used during the time period printed it.
Visitors must be at least
48 inches tall to climb
the tower and able to
climb 85-plus steps unassisted. FMI 799-2661 or www.
portlandheadlight.com.
handcrafted country gifts
Open Lighthouse
PAGE 3
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