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Like old lighthouses? This one's been saving sailors's bacon since the 1870s. It's also, at 115 feet, one of the tallest lighthouses in the U.S. (#35 out of 242, according to Wikipedia) and tied with Point Arena Lighthouse for the tallest in California. Come wish it a happy birthday and many returns at this day-long fête featuring live music, food trucks, native plant sales, and games for the kids. Check out the Visitor's Center from 1-5 PM to meet maritime historian and author JoAnn Semones. She'll be signing and discussing her new book, which regales the fascinating stories of the shipwrecks that gave birth to the lighthouses along the central California coast. Tours of the grounds and the Fog Signal building, where the hefty old Fresnel lens is housed, will help you appreciate anew the technology that made this lifesaving, and commerce-encouraging, piece of infrastructure possible.
For more information, call the park at (650) 879-2120 during normal operating hours, Thursday through Monday, 10am to 4pm, or email Julie Barrow at Volunteers.PigeonPoint@Parks.CA.gov.
Pigeon Point Light Station State Historic Park, Pescadero. 1-7pm. Free. Park is 20 miles south of Half Moon Bay and 30 miles south of Santa Cruz on Hwy 1. View the map here.
Photo by Sanfranman on Creative Commons.
