Lighthouses capture the imagination of water-affiliated folks, in other words, those of us who love to live and travel by the water. Over many years of working, I wanted nothing more than to visit and climb the many lighthouses along the Atlantic’s eastern coast.
My first visit was to the Assateague Light located on the southern end of Assateague Island, within the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge, along the coast of the Virginia Eastern Shore. The lighthouse is a 142-foot tall conical structure, with alternating red and white bands, built in 1867 to take the place of a shorter lighthouse built in 1833. The lighthouse is built on a barrier island that has grown by 5 miles since it was first designated.
The lighthouse is still used for navigation, and the keeper’s quarters are occupied in the summer by seasonal workers. Climbing the lighthouse is challenging in the heat of summer, but mosquitos are the worst, the size of a quarter, and bite through REPEL!
Traveling the World 