National Lighthouse Day

Travel 4 Minutes

In honor of National Lighthouse Day, I present 10 amazing lighthouses from Michigan–the state with the most lighthouses in the whole country. With it’s 3,200 miles of shoreline, Michigan has about 115 lighthouses! Tall and elegant or short and utilitarian, beautifully restored or lying silently forgotten, they are worth a visit. Many of Michigan’s lighthouses are open for tours, if only seasonally. Others are home to bed and breakfast lodging or museums. Still, others are privately owned or otherwise inaccessible, inviting admiration from afar a few souvenir photographs. Here are some of my favorites…

Grand Island East Channel Lighthouse | Photo Courtesy of Trevor Mahlmann

Built in 1870, Grand Island’s East Channel light sits surrounded by the wilderness of the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. Although the light is privately owned and inaccessible to travelers, its weathered wooden exterior is so attractive that shutterbugs are still drawn to photograph the light on boat cruises through the channel.

Granite Island Lighthouse in Marquette | Photo Courtesy of Instagram fan emmafink

Tiny Granite Island pokes up above the surface of Lake Superior north of the city of Marquette, its rocky promontory topped with the Granite Island Lighthouse. Originally built in 1869, the stone lighthouse fell into horrid repair after its decommissioning. But a complete renovation of the light was completed in 2011. The Granite Island Lighthouse is available to rent for special functions.

Port Austin Reef Lighthouse | Photo Courtesy of Instagram fan michiganskymedia

Built in 1878, the striking six-story Port Austin Reef Light sits in a shallow area of Saginaw Bay nearly 2 miles from the mainland. The six-story tower and its adjoining keeper’s house were crafted of a tough, buff-colored brick meant to withstand the most severe weather conditions. The lovely Queen Anne “Castle on the Lake” isn’t open to tours but can be viewed up close via boat.

Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse | Photo Courtesy of Trevor Mahlmann

In the 19th century, the narrow Straits of Mackinac were no tourist attraction. They ranked among the most treacherous stretches of water for mariners. Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse, the unusual Norman Revival “Castle of the Straits,” began illuminating the shipping lane in 1889. The light served an immensely important role until 1957 when the Mackinac Bridge and its superior navigational aids rendered the lighthouse obsolete. Costumed interpreters guide visitors through the lighthouse tower, a restored keeper’s quarters as well as the Straits Shipwreck Museum.

Bois Blanc Light | Photo Courtesy of Instagram fan katielx

Set on an island neighboring Mackinac Island, the Bois Blanc Lighthouse stands out from its wooded backdrop, its tower and keeper’s quarters of sand-colored brick, the lantern atop its 38-foot tower a vivid white. The light was constructed in 1867 and operated along the Lake Huron shoreline until the mid-1920s. Today the light is privately owned and can only be enjoyed from a distance, by boat.

Grand Traverse Lighthouse | Photo Courtesy of Trevor Mahlmann

Set at the end of the Leelanau Peninsula near Traverse City, the 1858 Grand Traverse Lighthouse stands vividly white and red against the deep green pine forests and turquoise waters of Lake Michigan. Visitors can climb to the top of the lighthouse tower and explore the keeper’s quarters, which have been restored to their 1920s and ‘30s appearance.

Ludington North Breakwater Light | Photo Courtesy of Mark Miller Photography

The white, bullet-shaped Ludington North Breakwater Lighthouse sits at the end of a pleasant pier in the heart of Ludington, surrounded by the beach and playground facility at Stearns Park. Built in 1924, the light is open to tower climbs all summer long.

Holland Harbor Lighthouse | Photo Courtesy of Brian Hammond

Referred to merely as Big Red by locals, the Holland Harbor Lighthouse dates from 1907. Fire-engine-red against the blue waters of Lake Michigan, the lighthouse sits at the end of the city’s southern pier, which in turn leads to Lake Macatawa and Holland’s working docks. Entrance to the lighthouse tower is rare, and to its grounds through a gated community. It is best to enjoy Big Red from the beach at Holland State Park, just across the channel.

St. Joseph North Pier Outer Lighthouse | Photo Courtesy of Pure Michigan

In 1907 St. Joseph extended its pier by 1,000 feet, rendering its 1859 lighthouse obsolete. In its place were built the North Pier Inner and Outer Lights that you see today. The white lights rank as a beloved landmark in St. Joseph, the lights are still joined by their original catwalk. Access to the lights themselves is prohibited, but visitors and locals enjoy walking the pier to see the lights up close. Good photo opportunities can be had at Tiscornia and Silver Beach Parks.

40 Mile Point Lighthouse (Rogers City) Photo Courtesy of Mike Fritcher

This lovely brick lighthouse in Rogers City sits tucked among greenery and trees, giving it an almost ethereal appearance. You’ll want to snap a few photos of the picturesque building, which was constructed in 1896. Depending on the time of year, it’s also possible to climb to the top and enjoy the breathtaking view of the Great Lake.

This map details a lighthouse road trip: driving time for this lighthouse road trip in Michigan is just over 18 hours, so if you want to stop and get out at each lighthouse you’ll probably want to plan on doing the trip over a long weekend.

Unknown's avatar

Published by pat frederick

Published

124 thoughts on “National Lighthouse Day”

  1. EXCERPTS: “Oh, Joy! – The Centers for Democrat Control and Perversion (CDC) has Sex Advice for Monkeypoxxed Americans …

    The Centers for Democrat Control and Perversion (CDC) issued guidance after Joe “Fell Here” Biden announced that Monkeypox was a national health emergency. I think he meant donkeypox, but one informs the other; the CDC is telling “Americans” to masturbate. All the way to the midterms, probably. A lesson from the era of the Ch!nese V!rus.
    ————-
    That was the NYC department of health, breaking new ground with other suggestions like, “Be creative with sexual positions and physical barriers, like walls, that allow sexual contact while preventing close face to face contact.” No such luck with the pox upon us (them, they, whatever), but the feds still feel obligated to get more – what’s the term … government into your “bedroom.”
    ————–
    Excuse me, but I’d like to hear this presented on love video by some stuffed suit in a lab coat. Wouldn’t that be amusing? And, oh, sorry, they do have some “cardboard/plastic wrap guidance for the poxxed.
    ————–
    Maybe they could put a mask (or two or three) on the pox. Rumor has it they can be very effective at stopping something. And you might as well wear one, no mouth to poxxed-person contact allowed, and condoms may not work. To their credit, and this is a rare event, covered on these pages here, suggests taking a break.
    —————
    And whatever you do, do not ask that cheating beeyatch how they got it if it wasn’t from you. And no, there is no emergency. Maybe 6000 since May. That’s 0.0017% of the entire population. Remove the top 5 states, which include DC and New York, and it drops to 0.00067%. And over 95% of cases are among gay men.

    Nothing fun about getting the pox but mobilizing the federal government? Really? There’s no good reason but plenty of bad ones.”

    https://granitegrok.com/blog/2022/08/oh-joy-the-centers-for-democrat-control-and-perversion-cdc-has-sex-advice-for-monkeypoxxed-americans (H/T: Fox)

    Liked by 1 person

  8. sliding down…we just got internet back. the power flickered…no rain, thunder or lightning…it just went off. then we lost internet. back now…
    gotta catch up!

    Liked by 2 people

  9. EXCERPT: “On April 2, 2020, Los Angeles County Fire Lifeguards chased down and arrested the lone surfer on a beach near Malibu. In the name of stopping a virus, the government shut down the economy. No funerals. No church services. No surfing.

    Two years later, though, a gay disease — monkeypox — is breaking out. Instead of arresting those engaging in monkeypox sex, the media and the government are encouraging gay orgies.
    The Washington Post reported, “SAN FRANCISCO — Thousands of gay men clad in leather, latex — and often much less — partied along Folsom Street here last weekend during the annual kink and fetish festival. Even after the city had just declared the monkeypox outbreak striking its gay community a health emergency — one day after the World Health Organization urged men to sleep with fewer men to reduce transmission — San Francisco public health officials made no attempt to rein in festivities or warn attendees to have less sex.

    “Public health authorities typically emphasize safer sex over abstinence to prevent the spread of diseases through intimate contact. But monkeypox is presenting new challenges in calibrating the right message to stop the rare virus from becoming endemic while limiting government intrusion into the bedroom.”

    Oh. I see. It was OK for the government to intrude in our worship of the Lord and in every aspect of our lives without any proof that masks or social distancing work. Heck, the vaccines wear off quickly.

    But getting gay men to stop having anonymous sex with multiple partners is verboten. LGBT uber alles, eh? Instead of protecting gay men from disease, public health officials are protecting gay rights.”

    https://donsurber.blogspot.com/2022/08/shut-down-gay-orgies-for-15-days-to.html#more

    Liked by 1 person

  11. I am adding a short daily prayer to the board. I would invite each of you, if you wish, to also add one or maybe two of your own liking. I do not want to stifle anyone but please limit yourself to one or two religious postings. here’s one I found that I liked.

    Like

  15. oh for Pete’s sake…the power surges we experienced over the last 2 days might have screwed up the tv we just bought this past march…we get sound but no picture…sigh…

    Liked by 1 person

    1. That sucks! Hope it can just be re-set. We got a nice steady light rain for, at most an hour – not even a fraction of what we need – before it stopped. So much for that – still cool, tho. Had a hummer approach the suet, the regular feeder, and the meal worms before searching and finding the honeysuckle….until a finch drove it away. So I moved the hummer feeder from out front to the back under the eaves – hanging on the end of the patio just outside the area where I have all my plants.

      I also moved the feeder/planter onto the patio, hanging in that corner – since the leaves were getting burned and losing their color, I realized the plants are too new and fragile yet for the full, all-day sun. They should do much better now, with morning sun and filtered afternoon sun. Until they get firmly established and start showing some growth at least. Still learning as I go…..

      Liked by 1 person

      1. hubby’s upset about the tv…we can’t find anything on line for the specific problem…we tried the reset button, but it didn’t do anything.
        this is the reason we got rid of the old tv…one day the picture stopped working…but that tv was 17 years old! this is less than 6 months!

        Liked by 1 person

Comments are closed.