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April 18, 1996

Lighthouses of Western Washington

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"To a sailor, a lighthouse means you're home. They symbolize a sentinel. It's always there."
 -- Bosun's mate chief Gene Hullette

More than 20 lighthouses still operate in Washington state. The map below shows 12 along the Western Washington coast. Click on a lighthouse's name or icon for more detailed information about its history and location.

Compiled by Greg Johnston Mail Author
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER

Browns Point

A light and fog signal were first placed here in 1887, with the present structure built in 1933. A fog detector activates a horn that sounds about 837 hours per year, one of the most frequent in Puget Sound. It's surrounded by a picnic area and small beach now maintained by the Metropolitan Park District of Tacoma, on Wan-I-Da Avenue, reached via Hyada Avenue off East Side Drive.

Point Robinson

At a particularly scenic spot on the easternmost tip of Maury Island (an eastern extension of Vashon Island), the present 38-foot tower and signal building were built in 1915. This lighthouse was originally a lens lantern suspended from a 25-foot post, erected in 1893. The building is sometimes open for tours on summer weekends. Reach it by heading east on Southwest Point Robinson Road to a 'T' and then turn south (right) on Southwest Luana Beach Road to a small parking lot.

Alki Point

[Photo] Automated in 1984, the present 37-foot tower with spiral staircase and foghorn house were built in 1920 and feature a cut-glass Fresnel lens, handmade in Paris. The U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary conducts tours May through September, from noon to 4 p.m. on Saturdays, Sundays, most major holidays, and on Wednesdays by appointment (call 217-6123). Head south on Alki Avenue Southwest until you see signs for the lighthouse.

Mukilteo

The Mukilteo Historical Society now maintains this 30-foot octagonal lighthouse, 90 years old this year and the site of frequent summer weddings. On display inside is a Fresnel lens, taken from the New Dungeness Lighthouse. The lighthouse, off Front Street just west of the ferry landing, is open to the public April through September on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, noon to 4 p.m.

Point No Point

A particularly important navigational aid set where Admiralty Inlet meets Puget Sound proper, the Point No Point Lighthouse has been a beacon to mariners and fishermen since it was erected in 1879. That was 10 years after the bark Iconium went aground here. The 27-footer, off Hansville Road Northeast in Kitsap County, is sometimes open on summer weekends, but you can always stroll around it.

Point Wilson

Situated at the north end of Admiralty Inlet. An unknown steam tug skipper is reported to have said this lighthouse "is like a great welcoming beacon opening the portal to Puget Sound." Its a classic 46-foot octagonal structure that still has its French-made Fresnel lens. Alas, the compound is staffed by the Coast Guard and fenced off. You can still see it closely, however, from the adjacent beach. Reach it via Fort Worden State Park. Coming down the hill toward downtown Port Townsend, take a left at the third stoplight onto Kearny Street; when you have to turn, take a right and when you have to turn again, go left on Cherry Street. When you have to turn for a third time, go right on W Street, then left into the park entrance. park in 3.5 miles.

Admiralty Head

A beautifully restored lighthouse at Fort Casey State Park on Whidbey Island (although currently in need of a paint job), this beacon also marked the top of Admiralty Inlet and was built in 1861, decommissioned in 1927. It served as officers' quarters for the Army during World War II and is now an interpretive center for the park, open Thursday through Sunday, 11 a.m.-5 p.m., April through September. The park is reached via Engle Road on the north or Highway 20 on the west.

New Dungeness

Five miles out on the end of Dungeness Spit, this classic, 63-foot lighthouse is maintained and staffed by a local chapter of the U.S. Lighthouse Society and is always open. You must hike along the driftwood-piled spit to reach it, however, a long, pleasant walk among seals, gulls, cormorants and geese. Head west from downtown Sequim on Highway 101, then north on Kitchen-Dick Lane, following signs to Dungeness Recreation Area.

Lime Kiln

Since 1914 this lighthouse has guided mariners through Haro Strait on the west side of San Juan Island and is now the site of a state park where orca whale-watching is popular. Lime Kiln State Park and lighthouse are off West Side Road.

Westport

This stately beacon is the tallest on the West Coast at 107 feet, still has its original Fresnel lens and is surrounded by Westport Light State Park. The Coast Guard long since automated the light with a powerful 1,000-watt lamp visible up to 25 nautical miles, and in a cost-saving program, wants to find a group that will take over maintenance of the tower and building. To reach it, head south from Westport on Highway 105 and take a right on West Ocean. The Coast Guard will conduct tours for groups of five or more. Call the Grays Harbor Coast Guard station, (360) 268-0121.

North Head, Cape Disappointment

[Photo] Two beacons guard the treacherous entrance to the Columbia River, known as "Graveyard of the Pacific": North Head lighthouse, circa 1898, and Cape Disappointment (on the cover), the first lighthouse in Washington and one of the first on the West Coast, established in 1858. North Head, perched on cliffs in the north part of Fort Canby State Park, is open for tours on weekends beginning in May ($1 fee). Cape Disappointment, on Coast Guard land adjacent to the park just inside the river's mouth, is near the area where Lewis and Clark first saw the Pacific. From Ilwaco, head west on Spruce Street, which becomes Robert Gray Drive. The road to North Head can be reached in 2.3 miles, the main entrance to the park in 3.5 miles.

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