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San Francisco, California
All Photos © Tim N. Touchton
Each photograph
is available as an 8x10 for a cost of $ 12.00
plus $2.00 shipping. Check or money order only please.
I took this photograph on June 22, 2000 after we left Fort Point and the
Golden
Gate Bridge. It was extremely foggy and the wind was so strong that I thought
my son and I would both blow over the edge. I had to brace my feet in a way
to keep my balance from the strong winds. Unfortunately I didn't have my 300
mm
zoom so this was the best shot I could get. It's not a very good photograph
in my
opinion, but it is a photograph of the lighthouse just the same.
Once we left the Golden Gate Bridge and over Hwy 101 we got off on the Alexander
Avenue exit to the right, just off the bridge. To get to this lighthouse you
have to drive
through an old military base. This is not an easy lighthouse to find but well
worth the
trip. We had to drive through a one-way tunnel, which was really cool. There
is a
stop light at both ends of the tunnel (it is literally one-way), so you have
to stop for
about 5 minutes if you catch the light red. It's a neat drive through this
tunnel and once
out on the other side you are close to the military base and the old forts
in the area. If
you have a road map, it doesn't help much in finding this lighthouse, in my
opinion. Once
we got on the base we saw a missile in a fenced off area. (I think it was
a cruise missile.)
We finally came to an old fort along the mountain cliff edge and signs directing
traffic to
the lighthouse. (Yes, there are signs once you are on the base.) We parked
by the road to
the lighthouse and then walked the single lane road towards the lighthouse.
It's about a mile hike
to the lighthouse along the road. However, once we got to the tunnel entrance
(the only way to
get to the lighthouse) we discovered that it was closed and locked. We could
not see the
lighthouse from behind this, so we headed back. Rich saw some old train track
remains down
along the waterfront (way down below us) and decided to hike down the mountain
side to check
them out. I decided not to go because I had my digital video equipment and
my 35 mm camera
and I didn't want to risk falling with them. (I should have gone with him....)
Once he got down to
the water I noticed many sea lions along the shore. He walked out on a jetty
and said that he was
about 20 feet away from dozens upon dozens of sea lions, which were all watching
him closely.
I really missed out on a great photo opportunity by not going down to the
beach, which was a
pretty good distance down and very steep. Once he got back up I asked if he
wanted to go
back down again with me, but he said he wanted to go to the old fort instead.
Dangit! We were
pressed for time, so we walked back up to the parking area and headed towards
the old fort.
I did manage to get a long distance video of the sea lions that I could see,
but Rich said there
was an entire beach of sea lions where he went. Once we got to the old fort
I could see the
lighthouse from that vantage point, which is where I took the photograph from.
Rich was busy
playing in the fort, which was a really cool old fort with many emply battery
areas. Parts of the
fort were too close to the cliff edge for my taste. You could see the Golden
Gate Bridge
in the back ground beyond the lighthouse, almost totally covered in fog. BTW,
when we
left the fort and drove through the military base, the missile was gone.
We couldn't stay long because we still had to drive all the way up the coast
to Eureka and
wanted to visit more lighthouses along the way. That plan didn't work out
very well either.
We skipped the Point Reyes Lighthouse in hopes of getting to Point Arena and
Point Cabrillo
Lighthouses along the way to Eureka. (If only I had an extra day because
we also missed the
Point Cabrillo Lighthouse due to darkness. I really wanted to see that lighthouse
also and I may
never have the finances or the opportunity to go there again. During this
west coast trip my son
and I were trying to catch as many xbxrx shows as possible. xbxrx is my older
two sons rock
band and they were on a west coast tour at the time. I didn't want to miss
their shows, so that
rushed some of our visiting time in different locations.) We did get to
the Point Arena Lighthouse
just before dark and I only got one photograph of the lighthouse that came
out good. I needed about
30 minutes more of daylight. The video did come out better because it can
tape in the dark just as if
it was day light. I really wanted to get to Crescent City and the Battery
Point Lighthouse by dark for
a nice sunset photograph, but we didn't make it. We did get to that lighthouse
the next day and had a
nice time. I really needed that extra day...........
Specifics about the Point Bonita Lighthouse:
It was established in 1877.
It is part of the Golden Gate Bridge National Recreation Area.
It is located just to the west of the northern part of the bridge.
It is open for visitors from 12:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.
Directions: (for what they're worth) Off Hwy 101 north of the Golden Gate
Bridge,
Exit Alexander Avenue to Bunker Road (through the tunnel), to Conzelman Road.
Look for the signs once you are in the military base, which is not a problem
getting access to. I thought it was deactivated, but apparently not (because
of
the missile we saw and the military housing).
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