McGulpin Point Lighthouse

My husband and I were in Mackinaw City visiting the popular Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse when I saw a sign for another lighthouse nearby.  We followed the signs a short distance out of the city and came upon a delightful lighthouse called McGulpin Point lighthouse.  This lighthouse is beautifully restored and has been furnished in the décor of the times.  The grounds are lovely and visitors are welcome to climb the tower and tour the house.   I first photographed the lighthouse from the parking area and then went inside to learn a bit of history about the light and then I climbed the tower for a view of the area.

  I discovered that this lighthouse was among the first in the area and helped to guide ships through the Straits of Mackinac.  The shipping had dramatically increased with the opening of the Erie Canal in 1825 and by the 1850's there was a real need for lighthouses in the area.  Congress approved the plans for McGulpin point lighthouse in 1854 and it was lit for the first time in 1869.  It was in service until 1906 when it was no longer needed because of the Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse

After visiting the lighthouse and the gift shop, I decided to take a walk down the trail in back of the lighthouse.  I had seen the "Big Rock" advertised so I wanted to walk to the water to see what it was about.  The trail was only about 1/2 mile but it was on a rather steep incline at times.  It was a beautiful walk down through the woods and ended up on the shore of Lake Michigan.

When I got to the shore and found the rock, I was surprised.  It was literally just a big rock.  The rock is said to be 33.8 feet in horizontal circumference and weighs 54 tons.  Other than the size there was really nothing remarkable about it.  I took a look and enjoyed the view of the Mackinac Bridge in the background and then made my way back up the hilly trail.  I was able to capture this photo of McGulpin lighthouse on my way back up.

 

Stop by and visit my Squidoo pages on lighthouses at Lake Michigan Lighthouses

 

 

You might also be interested in hearing about my adventures in photography on Review This

Presque Isle Lighthouses

Located on Presque Isle near Alpena in Upper Michigan you will find two beautiful historic lighthouses. In September of 2013 my husband and I took a drive along the Lake Huron coast and visited these lighthouses. We were traveling along Grand Lake Rd and we found a sign that took us off the main road and onto Presque Isle. When we got to the end of the road we turned right and found the Old Presque lighthouse.

  This lighthouse was first put into use in 1840. It is one of the oldest lighthouses still standing on the Great Lakes. The thirty foot tower is opening for the public to climb from May through October. From the tower you can get a view of Lake Huron and the coastline. The lighthouse is an interesting looking structure and definitely has an old feel to it.  Some people claim it is haunted.

Old Presque Isle Lighthouse

After photographing Old Presque Isle lighthouse we went back up the road about a mile and we came to New Presque Isle lighthouse. New is a rather relative term for this lighthouse which was built in 1870.


The grounds to the lighthouse also include a keeper's house that is not attached to the tower. It was built in 1905 and has been restored into a very interesting museum. There is also a building that now houses a gift shop.

When we arrived at this lighthouse I thought it really looked familiar. The top of the structure and the railings were painted a green color much the same as the Seul Choix lighthouse that I had seen on Lake Michigan. Upon further research, I found they were constructed by the same architect during the same time period. Here is a photo I took of the New Presque Isle lighthouse.  

For more information on my travels to Michigan lighthouses stop by my Squidoo pages at Michigan Upper Peninsula Lighthouses and Lake Huron Lighthouses

Grand Harbor Michigan Range Lights

This is a photo of the front range light for Grand Harbor Michigan. This range light is located on the Upper Peninsula of Michigan just west of Munising. On my travels around the Great Lakes area, I have found that they often use a set of range lights instead of a lighthouse to guide the ships. Range lights are a pattern of lights, usually on the shore, that help to guide the ships through narrow passageways. The first time I saw a range light was in Bailey's Harbor in Wisconsin, but I have seen several since then especially along the Michigan coast of the Great Lakes. The ones that I have seen consist of two lights a front and a back range light.

This black and white light is the rear range light for Grand Harbor. You will notice that it looks much more like a typical lighthouse than the front range light pictured above. In the case of Grand Harbor, I found the front range light located on the shore and the rear range light just across the street in a wooded area. For more information on Michigan lighthouses I visited in the Upper Peninsula, stop by my article at Michigan Upper Peninsula Lighthouses.

Copper Harbor Lighthouse

Copper Harbor lighthouse is found at the top of the Keweenaw Peninsula in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. A light station has been in Copper Harbor since 1849. It guided ships into this port on the shores of Lake Superior. The present lighthouse was built in 1866. You can reach the lighthouse by boat and take tours of the lighthouse, keeper's dwelling and museum. The day we visited Copper Harbor was a bit breezy, so instead of taking the boat out I elected to photograph the lighthouse from the overlook across from Fort Wilkins State Park and also from the Brockway Mountain overlook. Both of these overlooks provided a good view of the lighthouse and with a long lens I was able to capture some nice photos. Here is a notebook made from one of my closeup photos of the lighthouse.

Copper Harbor Lighthouse Note Books by lighthouseenthusiast You can read more about Copper Harbor lighthouse and other lighthouses in the Keweenaw Peninsula at the following link Keweenaw Peninsula Lighthouses

Ludington, Michigan Lighthouse

Ludington North Breakwater Lighthouse can be found along the eastern shores of Lake Michigan in the state of Michigan. It is located in Stearns Park and I was able to visit it on a clear day in July. The park was fairly busy and a lot of people were enjoying the stroll down the long pier to reach the 57 foot tall steel plated lighthouse. I enjoyed the walk and was able to photograph the lighthouse at various angles.

The lighthouse which is at the end of the breakwater in Pere Marquette harbor was first lit in 1924. It was automated in 1972 and is still operational today. Lake Michigan Lighthouses

Ludington Pierhead Light Ornament by lighthouseenthusiast
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Big Sable Point Lighthouse

The lighthouse at Big Sable Point was my favorite lighthouse on our latest Michigan lighthouse tour. Big Sable was built in 1867 and was originally named "Grande Pointe au Sable" which means "Big Point in the Sand". In order to see the lighthouse, I had to take a two mile trek up the beach. As I rounded a bend on about the last third of the walk I saw Big Sable sticking out among the sand dunes. What a beautiful sight! The lighthouse is open to visitors and I visited the inside of the lighthouse but this time I didn't climb the stairs to the top. I'll have to admit after that long trek up the beach my legs were a bit shaky and I couldn't quite seeing climbing the 112 foot tower. I was able to walk the grounds and took photos from all different angles. The walk was definately worth it, the views of this lighthouse were stunning.

Originally the lighthouse was brick and looked much like Little Sable Lighthouse. In 1900 it was found the the brick was badly damaged by the weather and the lighthouse was covered with a steel cladding. This black and white design is what you see today.

Big Sable Lightouse Stickers by lighthouseenthusiast
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Mission Point Lighthouse

Located at the top of the Old Mission Peninsula in Michigan, the Mission Point Lighthouse is a reminder of what life was like for lighthousekeepers at the turn of the century.

To reach the lighthouse you travel the M37 from Traverse City up the Old Mission Peninsula. The 18 mile drive is beautiful with vineyards and orchards lining both sides of the road. There are also many wineries where you can stop and taste some wine. The photo above shows the first view we had of the lighthouse after we left the parking lot. An interesting fact about Mission Point Light is tha is is located on the 45th parallel of latitude. That is halfway between the north pole and the equator. There is a sign at the lighthouse grounds showing other cities that also lie within the 45th parallel. It is interesting that many of them are also known for their wines. On the lighthouse grounds there is a log cabin that was built in 1856. You can step inside and get a hint of what life was like in northern Michigan in the 19th century. The photo below is the Hessler cabin.

At the lighthouse visitors can tour the building and if they are interested climb the tower for a view of Traverse Bay. This photo shows the bay from the lighthouse.

There is plenty of hiking to be done on the miles of unspoiled trails surrounding the lighthouse. The photo below is shot looking back at the lighthouse from the beach area

We really enjoyed our day visiting the Old Mission Lighthouse. It was a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

Old Mission Point Lighthouse Stickers by lighthouseenthusiast
More Old mission point lighthouse Stickers

For more on my lighthouse travels stop by Lighthouse Lensography

White River Light Station

The White River Light Station is located on the west coast of Michigan near Whitehall.  This charming old light station was built in 1875 to help ships maneuver the channel between White Lake and Lake Michigan.  There were many sawmills built around White Lake near the great pine forests.  Lumber schooners would travel this route to bring their lumber to market.  The light station aided in navigating the ships through the narrow channel.

When we visited the Michigan coast in July, I was able to visit the light station.  It was decommissioned in 1960 and is now open as a museum.  Visitors can climb the tower for a view of the chanel as it goes into the lake.

The museum in the light station is small but interesting.  It has several scale models of the lighthouse that have been made over the years. There is memoriablia from the keepers that lived in the lighthouse over the years. It also houses the original fourth order fresnal lens from the light station.

To learn more about Michigan lighthouses please visit some of my lighthouse pages. Lake Michigan Lighthouses and Lighthouses on Lake Michigan

White River Light Station Magnets by lighthouseenthusiast
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Little Sable Point Lighthouse

Along the western coast of Michigan are many beautiful lighthouses. One of my favorites is a historic red brick lighthouse called Little Sable Point.

This lighthouse was opened in 1874 and stands 115 feet tall. Originally the tower had a keepers house that was attached by a walkway, but this keepers house was torn down after electrical power was brought to the lighthouse and a constant keeper was no longer necessary. Today the beautiful lighthouse is now open to visitors who want to climb the 139 cast iron steps to the top. I visited the lighthouse one morning before the lighthouse was open and walked around the ground photographing the lighthouse from various angles. I really enjoyed the views of the lighthouse among the sand dunes on the coast.

I was able to take some unusual photos when I noticed the sun was rising just behind the light. Here is one of the resulting photos.

You can read more about my photographing adventures on this page Unique Lighthouse Photography.

All photographs were taken by mbgphoto