It is still a wonder until today why I am passionate about lighthouses. I tried but I had given up knowing. Is it the beauty or the concept of guidance? Hard to tell. I have been, however dragging my hubby with this enthusiasm. We have said our hello’s to the old Mackinac Point Lighthouse in Michigan and the Sullivan Island Lighthouse in South Carolina. And about two weekends ago, this time with my parents-in-law who offered us their utmost hospitality at Wyndham Resort at Fairfield Harbour Point in New Bern, the Cape Lookout Lighthouse charmed us with her beauty. This was less than a week before hurricane Sandy hit the East Coast, when we were lucky to have a weather perfect for a tour around the Outer Banks.
The Cape Lookout Lighthouse is a 163-foot high lighthouse located on the Southern Outer Banks of North Carolina with a rotating 1,000-watt beacon that flashes every 15 seconds, 24 hours a day, perhaps the only lighthouse known to operate during the day. It is painted in a black and white diamond pattern to indicate compass direction. When the sailors see a black lighthouse with a white diamond pattern, that meant the ship was sailing east or west. However, when they see a white lighthouse with a black diamond, that meant the ship was sailing south or north.
A short walk trekking the boardwalk from the lighthouse surprised us with a beautiful view of the Atlantic Ocean. If you stare long enough, you will be enchanted with dolphins as if inviting you to take a dip into the water.
Getting to Cape Lookout and the Lighthouse is only accessible through authorized ferries and boats and is an adventure itself. Aboard the Outer Banks Ferry, it takes half an hour from Beaufort to the docks of Cape Lookout. The 3 hour tour with one hour disembarkation at Cape Lookout Lighthouse cruised down the shore of Shackleford Banks, giving us a glimpse of the wild banker ponies that inhabit the island. And just when we thought the adventure is over on our cruise back to Beaufort, we were more than delighted to be entertained with dolphins. They get really close you are tempted to touch their fin!
And it seems we were not the only ones enjoying this cruise. The tour captain’s dog seems to be enjoying as well. Yup, Cape Lookout has a way of seducing you, your pets included.
Dolphins! :)
Sorry. I’m not a fan of lighthouse. To each its own, right?
Anywho, love the different distances and angles of your captures of the lighthouse, truly excellent! And the information about the diamond black and white color is wild :D and very interesting. I never imagine the designs of lighthouses have significance. Thanks, and what a great post!
Thank you Rommel. You are right to say to each his own. I even have friends who have extremely unique interests and I still love them and their passion. I think their uniqueness makes them really beautiful. As for the photos, the distance and the angles were not easy as we were on board the ferry. We cannot stop nor return once we missed something. And you know, the diamond pattern on the lighthouse drove me mad for minutes. I even had to try it myself just to see if it works :) Thank you again. I guess I got lucky again this time.
cool trivia about the black and white diamond prints on the lighthouse. i had to read it twice (okay, thrice) though coz the first time, i was like, “huh?”
lemme get this straight, so it really all depends on which side of the lighthouse they are sailing? (am i the only one who doesn’t get this? hahaha.)
thank you jankurdt. the black and white diamond is really a smart idea, and truly mind-blowing for us. i have edited the caption of the third photo so you can see and imagine how it works. it took me a while as well haha. thank you for the visit :)
Thank you for posting the beautiful photos. I’m familiar with the area but have never seen it as you captured it.
thank you as well mmadonna1 for the visit. we were surprised how beautiful the outer banks is :)
Beautiful photos and a very attractive lighthouse. don’t think we have anything that pretty in UK. Ours are usually just white, although I do know a red and white striped one. Totally unfamiliar with this area. Thank you for showing me.
You are welcome Pat. Thank you for the visit as well. I am always fascinated with UK, that is one of the reasons as a matter of fact why hubby and I are huge fans of Renaissance Faires. You might want to check this https://becauseiamuniquelyandwonderfullymade.com/category/renaissance-faire/ . Hadrian Wall will always be special, hubby proposed there :)
How lovely – I like Hadrian’s wall too, though I have only been once to one of the forts. Would very much like to go again. The fairs look fun: very much into history, but don’t think we have anything quite like this here. Sealed Knot and societies like that do battle reconstructions, but they are very scary!
The area looks lovely! :) Many thanks for the follow.
Thank you and you are welcome as well. This is one of my favorite travels :)