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Most of these lighthouses have easy access while others require some planning ahead if you want to visit or take a tour inside. Point Arena is one of the tallest lighthouses on the Pacific Coast and they allow visitors to hike up to the top. To get a bird's-eye view of the lighthouse, you can take a helicopter ride with Los Angeles Helicopters. The Port of Los Angeles website lists operators that offer harbor cruises that might pass near the lighthouse. Cruise ships that depart from The Port of Los Angeles World Cruise Center in San Pedro will also pass by the lighthouse as will boats to Catalina Island leaving from San Pedro.
Old Point Loma Lighthouse
Although it was erected upon a 300-foot ridge above the ocean, it was later removed from its original place and put on a lower elevated point near the Point Bonita tip. On sunny days, enjoy the magnificent views overlooking San Diego and visit the lighthouse that has been restored to its original looks. If you’re a boat person who savors the faint scent of diesel, however, you’ll want to book Walter’s Room, a small bedroom and sitting room in the fog signal building. The bathroom is 25 feet away, but a barn-style door opens to a patio and spectacular view and there are no shared walls.
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The lighthouse itself isn't open to the public, but if you're already on the island to visit its infamous prison, you'll pass right by this maritime relic. Many of these lighthouses have grand visitor centers and some even have museums in them like the Surfing Museum at the Mark Abbott Memorial Lighthouse. Each lighthouse has a different appearance and a unique story to tell. Almost any California road trip can include a stop at one of these historic spots.
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Fairport Harbor West Breakwater Light
Located in Crescent City, this lighthouse sits just offshore from Battery Point Beach and can be accessed only around low tide when the beach and island connect. You can head upstairs, where there’s a wood-burning stove and a room full of puzzles, board games and a guitar. There’s a horseshoe pitch on one side of the fog signal building. The cellphone coverage is fine, but there’s no Wi-Fi, no landline, no hot tub. The San Francisco and Marin rooms upstairs, which have commanding views, private bathrooms and cost $525, are the most popular among first-timers. I paid $475 to stay downstairs in the West Brother Room, which has a slightly less commanding view and shares a bathroom.
Cabrillo Beach – Harbor Beach
Most people who are stopping at Piedras Blancas on the Central Coast come to see the hoard of resident elephant seals who occupy the beach, but completely miss out on the Piedras Blancas Lighthouse. It's easy to overlook since the top section with the light has been removed and it's now just an unlit tower. Its fresnel lens was removed and is currently on view on Main Street in nearby Cambria, next to the Lawn Bowling Club.
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The base of the structure is octagonal and covered with steel plates, while the upper section is cylindrical and built using cement plaster on metal lath. Champion Iron Works of Canton, Ohio provided the helical-bar lantern room and cast-iron parapet for the tower. The twelve columns, covered with pilasters, give the lighthouse a Romanesque feel.
The new horn, nicknamed “Blatting Betty,” was disliked by local mariners for years. The last major change for the lighthouse came January 1, 1973, when the lighthouse was automated. This California lighthouse has now been turned into a tourist attraction, serving as a museum and as a living memory of the past. The lighthouse features many historical documents, photos, and maritime artifacts as a way for visitors to educate themselves about the history of the structure. Day visitors are permitted on the island Saturdays throughout the summer. They have access to the tower for a tour and the grounds during their stay.

Point Arena Lighthouse
It's located on a private peninsula in Kingstown, Rhode Island, and has a three-car garage, an oceanfront swimming pool, several fireplaces and a sunroom. It was listed for sale for $6.45 million in July 2012, but the price was reduced and the listing was removed in November 2013. For hundreds of years, lighthouses have guided sailors safely around hazards and into harbors. Although many became obsolete with the arrival of the GPS and other navigational tools, some lighthouses have found new life as private homes.
The non-restricted areas include the lighthouse (except lantern room), museum, and street leading to lighthouse. The lighthouse is located just off of Highway 1, about 15 minutes south of the iconic Bixby Bridge in Big Sur. Some lighthouses such as the ones at St. George Reef and Mile Rocks are far offshore and are best viewed through binoculars from the nearest mainland beaches. A couple lighthouses, Point Montara and Pigeon Point, have hostels in the old lighthouse buildings so you can stay overnight on-site.
Maybe it is their immense importance in keeping ships from disaster, or their constancy – their beacons shining for decades. Or maybe it is the image of the life, solitude, and responsibility of a lighthouse keeper. Or perhaps it is simply how dreamy and romantic they seem, with a backdrop of sun, sea, and ocean bluffs. Whatever it is, we think a long day of visiting these awesome, historic lighthouses in Southern California is a perfect little coastal road trip. It's been shaken by earthquakes and swamped by a tidal wave, but Battery Point Lighthouse is still standing. Built in 1856, this lighthouse is quite literally a house with a light on it, instead of the towering column structures that most lighthouses resemble.
They also offer moonlight tours, ghost hunts, and Halloween tours. Enjoy watching the sunset and then rise by staying in one of the former lighthouse keepers and assistant’s homes. Located at the southern tip of the Point Reyes National Seashore, this lighthouse offers guests some of the best Northern California scenery.
The first two keepers at the Point Fermin Light were sisters Mary and Ella Smith. They were joint lightkeepers for the first eight years of the lighthouse’s service, and not the last sisters to take care of this place. In 1925, sisters Thelma and Juanita Austin took over care of the lighthouse after their father (the lighthouse keeper at that time) and mother both passed away.
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