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Cape
Lookout Lighthouse - continued:
 Still
looking
north from the lighthouse gallery, this left photo shows
the dock, 4WD staging area, and the boardwalk coming south to
the Keeper's Quarters. At the upper right is a beautiful wide-angle
view of the same area looking north at Core Banks. Looking
northwest you see the east
end of Harker's Island, shown in the telephoto shot at right.
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  From
the pier, the boardwalk leads to the Keeper's Quarters (left).
Also note at the top left of the Keeper's Quarters photo that
the concrete
base sits exposed where the coal shed stood before Hurricane
Isabel toppled it. The shadow of the lighthouse gallery and
lantern room nibbles at the porch in the bottom of the photo.
At the right you see the steps at the base of the lighthouse
with visitors waiting their turn to climb. The lighthouse
shadow runs directly up the sidewalk to the house. |
 
Looking
more than 150 feet down
at the lighthouse base, you see visitors anxiously waiting
in the shadow of the lighthouse for their turn to climb (left
photo). Visitors looking
back up at you would see the black diamond side of the lighthouse
(right photo) and be reminded how sad the tower looks without
a fresh coat of paint. The thin "scratch" running up the left
side of the tower is where the old lightning rod grounding cable
came loose and marked up the tower where it swung in the wind.
When the cable was replaced it was installed on the other side
of the tower. |
 
From
the gallery, the midday sun off the ocean was blinding when
looking
southward, trying to view the point
at Cape Lookout. A telephoto shot helped keep the glare
out of the picture so the fishermen's' trucks and campers could
be seen at the point. |
Gazing
south to east from the gallery you will see a fantastic view,
depicted in the panoramic photo above. Looking
across the "bight", which hooks northward from the point,
you can see beyond Morehead City and Atlantic Beach to Emerald
Isle. (South is the left side of the photo, and east is the
right side.) Panning around to the east northeast, beyond Shackleford
Banks, you can see Beaufort and Harker's Island. Like the other
large panoramic photos on these pages, the panoramic enlargement
accessed from the link above is only a fraction (16%) of the
original size, and simply does not show the detail or do justice
to the original.
Near the narrow strip of land called the
"bight" are several houses, now owned by the Park
Service, but in years gone by they were summer homes for a few
adventurous souls. Several telephoto shots (below) show some
of these buildings and other visitor activity along the bight.
Click each one for a larger view. |
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Left,
upper left, and above: Cape Lookout is a popular fishing
spot, and anglers take advantage of the few available houses
on the cape.
Upper and lower right: The "bight" is frequented by
boaters, shell hunters and the adventurous. |
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The
southern tip of Cape
Lookout at the "point" is a popular fishing spot. Standing
on that isolated stretch of sand nearly surrounded by ocean,
with great waves crashing in front of you and spray leaping
15 to 20 feet into the air, must be a special experience. |
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Getting
to the "point" is a long walk for the casual visitor.
Luckily there are 4WD "tours" that will take you around the
area along the sand roads that access much of the island. The
ride is rough on wooden benches, even with a plastic cushion. |
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But
you don't have to go all the way out to the "point"
for good
fishing. Several anglers were having a
good day trying their luck in the surf near
the end of the boardwalk. Even if the fishing had not been
good, just the scenery would have been worth the time spent. |
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There
is much more to see. Next - page 5 |
| Continue
to Cape Lookout Lighthouse - Page
Five > |
Cape
Lookout
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