Lighthouses in Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island

Cruising to Canadian Ports

I had heard about the interesting lighthouses in Nova Scotia and was anxious to photograph them. In the fall of 2010, a group of us went on a cruise that started in New York City and stopped at several ports in Nova Scotia as well as Prince Edward Island and Quebec City.

I knew it would be difficult to photograph lighthouses when I was at the mercy of the cruise ship and touring schedules, but I was hoping to catch a glimpse of a few. I signed up for a tour to Peggy's Cove lighthouse so I knew that at least I would be able to capture some images of that highly photographed lighthouse. I was happily surprised when I was able to photograph several other lighthouses as the cruise ship stopped at the various harbours in Nova Scotia. I learned that Nova Scotia has more lighthouses than any other province in Canada. 170 lighthouses dot the shores of Nova Scotia. I was able to photograph 6 of them on my cruise.

Prince Edward Island has 50 lighthouses and I was able to photograph 4 of them. I found the shapes of many of the lighthouses to be quite unique (or at least different from those I was used to on the eastern coast of the USA).

In 2014 we returned to Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island for a second visits. I have added more photos of lighthouses from that trip.

This page will serve as my introduction to the lighthouses in Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island. I hope you enjoy my photographs and my musings on my lighthouse visits.

Halifax Harbour - Lighthouses

I took this photo of one of the lighthouses in Halifax Harbour at dusk as the cruise ship was leaving the harbour. The lighthouse is on McNab's island. We were not given any information on the lighthouses that we passed on the cruise ship so my information comes from searches on the internet. I tried to match my photos with photos online and the places we had visited so it is possible a name or two could be mistaken. At any rate there were lots of lighthouses that we passed as we entered the ports. All of them seemed to be much smaller than many of the lighthouses I have seen on the US coasts.

Halifax Harbor Lighthouse

This lighthouse was located in Halifax harbor right where our ship was docked. I was able to capture some good photos from the decks of the ship.

Source: Mary Beth Granger

Peggy's Cove in Nova Scotia - famous lighthouse

Peggy's cove

I had read a lot about Peggy's cove and I was really excited to be able to photograph the lighthouse. I was hoping for good weather and I was not disappointed. The bright blue sky with white fluffy clouds made a beautiful backdrop for my photographs of the lighthouse. It was a very windy day and even the rough look to the sea added to the photos.

Lighthouses Dot the Shores of Nova Scotia

I photographed this lighthouse as the ship was pulling away from Halifax. It was just at the entrance to the bay high up on a rocky hill.

Source: Mary Beth Granger

Double lighthouses seen as ship was headed toward Charlottetown in Prince Edward Island.

Source: Mary Beth Granger

Prince Edwards Island - a fun stop on our cruise

Prince Edward Island was a great stop on our cruise. When we arrived in port we took a cruise and was able to see a bit of the countryside. Of course, I was thrilled to see the lighthouses on the island. As you can see from my photos they are different shapes than many of the lighthouses we see in the US. I was even able to climb to the top of one of the lighthouses. It was only a few short steps...I'd say 20 or less. Most of the lighthouses I saw were painted red and white.

On Prince Edwards Island you see things about the famous children's class, Anne of Green Gables. I was able to buy a book and doll for my granddaughter. We also saw many small churches throughout the countryside.

Lighthouse on Shore of Prince Edward Island

Lighthouse photo taken from cruise ship

Source: Mary Beth Granger

Canadian Lighthouses
by mbgphoto

Newport Harbor Lighthouses

Newport Harbor is a great  place to see several lighthouses in one short cruise.  I had taken a boat over to see Rose Island Lighthouse and as we traveled there the boat passed by several other lighthouses in Narragansett Bay.   The first one pictured below is Beavertail which is an active light that is located on the tip of Conanicut Island.  It was built in 1856 and replaced the original light on that sight from 1749.

This next lighthouse is Castle Hill light which is on the eastern shore of the east passage, just south of Newport.  It was built in 1890.

This next light is seen in the upper window of this restaurant.  I'm not sure of the name of this light.

One of the lights that I found particularly interesting was the Newport Harbor Light.  It is often referred to as the Goat Island light.  It was built in 1842 on the north end of Goat Island.  This light marks the entrance to Newport Harbor.

The lighthouse below is Rose Island Lighthouse. It was built in 1870 and is found just off Newport Harbor by the Newport Bridge.

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Cape May New Jersey

In the spring of 2014 we visited several lighthouses along the Jersey shore.  The southern most one that we visited was Cape May lighthouse.  This lighthouse is located at the southern tip of the Cape May peninsula in Cape May point state park.

This lighthouse was built in 1859 and was automated in 1946.  It continues to be operational today.  You can climb the 199 steps to the top of the tower for wonderful views of the Jersey shoreline and the coastal area. The current lighthouse is the third lighthouse to be located in this area.  The first two are now under water due to erosion.

It was a beautiful clear day when we visited the lighthouse and I was able to get several nice photos.  The lighthouse is very tall and it was somewhat hard to get the entire lighthouse into the photo from without walking a ways down the beach.  The photo on the right shows the view of the area walking down the beach from the lighthouse.

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Statue of Liberty- Is it a Lighthouse?

The Statue of Liberty is a much recognized symbol of American freedom.  But did you know that for a few years in it's early existence it also served as a lighthouse and was overseen by the lighthouse board.  

The Statue of Liberty was given to the United States of America by  the people of France.  It is modeled after the Roman goddess of freedom, Libertas.  The statue was dedicated on October 28, 1886 with much fanfare and a huge fireworks display.  

The plans for the lighting of the statue were not complete at that time and through much trial and error the lighthouse was finally lit and used as a navigational aid to ships.  It was placed under the direction of the lighthouse board and officially served as a lighthouse from November of 1886 to March of 1902.

I have seen the statue several times but for me the most exciting time was this past November when our cruise ship was entering New York harbor at the end of the cruise.  It was 6 am  and I was just opening my eyes when I looked out our balcony door and saw the beautiful sight you see pictured above.  I jumped out of bed, grabbed my camera and was able to take several shots of the statue before it  move out of my line of sight.  It was a very moving experience for me.

After we passed the statue, I was able to take a few photos of the New York skyline lit up in the early morning sky.

Statue of Liberty by mbgphoto
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Portland Head Lighthouse- Beautiful by Land and Sea

On a recent cruise I was delighted when we passed close enough by Portland Head lighthouse so that I could get some photographs. This historic lighthouse was built in 1791 and is the oldest lighthouse in the state of Maine.  It is located in Cape Elizabeth Maine and sits on a piece of land at the entrance to the main shipping channel to Portland Maine.

I had been to the lighthouse several years ago and visited it from the land side.  At that time the fog was rolling in so I had to snap a few quick shots before the lighthouse was completely engulfed by the fog.  Here are a couple of the photos I took in 2005.

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Rose Island Lighthouse

Rose Island lighthouse is located just off the coast of Newport Rhode Island on an 18 acre island.  The lighthouse was built by Vermont architect, Albert Dow.  It was first put into service in 1870.

This charming lighthouse was used to help ships navigate Narragensett Bay for nearly 100 years.  In 1970 a bridge was built near the lighthouse and the lights on the bridge overshadowed the lighthouse.  The lighthouse was decommissioned and lay vacant for a number of years.

While visiting the lighthouse in September of 2014 the guide told us how a group of people took over the restoration of the lighthouse in the 1980's.  Today the lighthouse is fully restored and is open to visitors to tour and to stay all night in the lighthouse.  Here is an article I wrote about staying in a lighthouse.  It is truly a unique experience. Lighthouse Keepers

This view of the lighthouse was taken from the dock where our boat stopped to leave us off for our tour of the lighthouse and the island.

The guide showed us how the lighthouse and grounds are eco friendly.  The get all their water from a well that is pumped into the outhouse to use to flush the toilet.  All items carried to the island are required to be recycled.

The view of the lighthouse below is one that I photographed while walking along the beach.

This photo shows one of the interior rooms of the lighthouse.  The foundation that restored the lighthouse took care to find furnishings that would fit the time period when the lighthouse was in service.

At this link you will find information on both Rose Island and other lighthouses in the Newport area. Lighthouses-in-Rhode-Island
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Sandy Hook Lighthouse

Sandy Hook lighthouse is found at the northern end of the New Jersey shore.  It is located near the entrance to the New York harbor.  This made it  important in protecting ships going in and out of the harbor for more than 200 years.  Sandy Hook lighthouse was first put into service in 1764 and as such is the oldest continuously operating lighthouse in the USA.

We visited Sandy Hook during a trip to visit lighthouses along the New Jersey shore.  The lighthouse had a small museum and gift shop in the keepers house.  The lighthouse itself is only open for visitors to climb on a scheduled and limited basis since it is still a working lighthouse.
Sandy Hook lighthouse stands on the grounds of historic Fort Hancock.

I spent some time walking around the lighthouse and looking for the best angle to shoot my photos.  I like this shot of the top of the lighthouse through the trees.  You can see the rough stone and the angled walls in the photo.
I have written more about my visits to New Jersey lighthouses on my Hubpages Mbgphoto