Summer of 18-#45-Forty Mile Point Lighthouse & Shipwreck

Friday August 24th, 2018 - 1 of 2

We got up early, the sky was clear, although it did look as though winds were due to come in later today.  We arrived for our shipwreck tour just after 9am, only to find out it had been cancelled again, due to the incoming weather and it didn't look as though it was going to clear before Sunday.  Hmmm, what to do?? We decided to rebook for 10am Sunday.  Are we gluttons for punishment?  Hopefully 3rd times the charm!!!!

Fortunately, we had planned some sightseeing in the event the tour got cancelled.  We are learning!!!

Lighthouses here we come.  😂

Forty Mile Point Lighthouse was the first of the day and one of the most delightful ones we've visited.  Probably helped by the volunteers that were there.

The pilot house from the 1912 steamer Calcite is the first thing you come to.  There is a volunteer in there who gives you an explanation of everything in there.  We got talking to him and found out he is a full-time motorhomer, like  us, and they are volunteering here.  There is a place to park your RV with hookups and you don't have to pay for the privilege, just volunteer a set number of hours that pays for your site.  This is the same as the Oregon lighthouses we looked at. There were four volunteers working today.  This gentleman, his wife was in the gift shop and the other couple were in the lighthouse, one as you entered and the other at the top.

On the way to the gift shop we passed the privy, complete with an occupant!!

Perfect place to sit..........

The Bunkhouse (gift shop) was the first building to be built here.  It housed the laborers that would build the lighthouse.  We spoke to the lady in there for a while before going on to the lighthouse.  There was no fee for touring the lighthouse but donations were accepted.

See the lighthouse tower peeking from behind the chimney.

Bryan taking a picture of a butterfly

Inside the lighthouse another volunteer was waiting to give us a history of the lighthouse.  They were all very informative.  Here's the views from the windows and some of the furnishings.

This lighthouse was unusual in that the basement was open, and had a large selection of laundry equipment.  There was also a modern day washer and dryer, that maybe the volunteers can use if they need to.  There was one other lighthouse that I can remember going to where the basement was a gift shop.

Information and rules regarding the climb.

Looking down

Bryan at the top.

The last volunteer that we saw was up here in the tower.  She had an air conditioning unit up there which was a nice touch as it gets very hot in the lamp room.  She also told us all about the light.

The Fresnel Lens was made in France, as most of them were.

She told us about the wreck of the steamer Joseph S Fay that ran aground here on the beach in 1905.  She was excited, as a couple of days prior you could see most of the starboard side, as the wind had blown the sand.  Apparently that is a rare occurrence, although there is always a part of it to see.

We walked down to the beach to see if we could see it.

This is just driftwood

Looking in the opposite direction from the Fay

This is what we saw of it today.  It's amazing to me that this is even still here.

Metal sticking out of the shipwreck

We weren't sure if the next two pictures were parts of the wreck or not.

It was a beautiful location and there was a home further up the beach.

The water was very clear and there were many different colored stones.

We walked back toward the lighthouse.

I decided to walk along the beach a little further, and Bryan went back up to the lighthouse.  We could still see each other though.

Bryan decided to try out the chairs.  Good idea, I think I'll make my way around to join him.

Up the small hill I went.

There he is.

I sat next to him and we just relaxed and enjoyed the view.  It was amazing.

After a rest we started to make our way back to the car.  We stopped to look at the Fog Signal Building which is now used as a pavilion.

There was a notice board that had pictures of the birds that are common to the area.

It was a wonderful visit and on the way out we drove past the RV sites, they were small and close together but we could fit in them.  Maybe one day we'll come back and volunteer here. I can think of worse places to be.

We had another four lights to see although we wouldn't be able to go in all of them.  You can read about the rest of the day HERE.