1855 Point Pinos Lighthouse

After visiting Cannery Row and the Monterey Bay Aquarium I headed west on Ocean View Boulevard into Pacific Grove to see the Point Pinos Lighthouse.

The Point Pinos Lighthouse is oldest continually operating lighthouse on the West Coast of the United States having first been lit in 1855. The Point Pinos Lighthouse stands is a 43 foot high structure and is located 89 feet above sea level. Reportedly can be seen as far as 15 miles away on a clear day. The lens at the Point Pinos lighthouse is original having been constructed in France back in 1853. The Point Pinos Lighthouse was automated in 1975 and apparently has fog horn which was deactivated back in the 1990s.

The Point Pinos Lighthouse is generally open 1 PM to 4 PM during the weekends so I missed out on being able to tour the interior of the structure. The Point Pinos Lighthouse is located on a reservation of the same name which provides access to the waters of the Pacific Ocean on Ocean View Boulevard. There are some really cool coastal formations to climb during low tide and I've often found the Point Pinos Lighthouse Reservation a great place to watch sunset when the weather is clear. The storms that had been ongoing all day were starting to clear when I arrived at Point Pinos as can be seen by the clear sky out in the ocean.

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