HECETA HEAD LIGHTHOUSE

Yesterday was another overcast and drizzly day.  We drove along the scenic coast on US 101 with Kurt and Diane to the Heceta Head Lighthouse.  The lighthouse is 206 feet above the Pacific and has guided mariners for more than a century.  The headland was named for Don Bruno de Heceta who surveyed the Oregon coast for the Royal Spanish Navy in 1775.  Construction of the 56-foot-high lighthouse began in 1892. The stone came from the Clackamas River and the bricks from San Francisco. The assistant lightkeeper's house is now a beautiful bed and breakfast with a wonderful view of the coast.

Heceta Lighthouse

The prisms are beautiful

The U.S. Lighthouse Service first lit the five-wick kerosene lamp on March 30, 1894.  The light, amplified by a 392-prism, first-order  Fresnel lens, equaled 80,000 candle power.  Heceta is the only active British-made Chance Brothers lens of its kind in the U.S. and its the brightest beacon on the Oregon coast.  The modern 1,000 watt quartz bulb produces 2.5 million candle power.  Imagine this, the visibility of the beam is limited only by the curvature of the earth.

Damp and chilly

The assistant lightkeeper's house is now a bed and breakfast

Kurt and Diane drive a brand spanking new 41' Winnebago Adventure and the floor plan is what we dream of having one day.  We especially like the living room arrangement and spent some time last night reclining on the sofa watching a movie with full surround sound.  Very nice!

All settled in to watch a movie - view from the sofa

This morning our friends left and we said our goodbyes until we meet again.  We enjoyed hanging out with them this weekend and wish them safe travels.

Thanks for stopping in.