To The Top

                                

The Montauk Point Light is now operated by the Montauk Historical Society and they are doing such a great job!  They have expanded rooms of exhibits in the old keeper's quarters and there is now so much to read and learn.  In addition, they have managed to convince the Coast Guard to allow them to return this astounding three and a half order Fresnel Lens back to the the lamp room where it was for years, until replaced with an automated lamp usually used for airports.  This Fresnel lens was made in France and it consists of a huge number of curved prisms, all of different sizes, and they take the light from the bulb in the center and concentrate it into a beam that can be seen for twenty miles.  In the old days, the light source was, believe it or not, a kerosene lamp!

This is a view from the lamp room with the Fresnel lens in the upper right corner and showing the view out the windows!  Pretty spectacular.

This is the view on the stairs which you take from ground level all the way up to the top of the lighthouse.  It is an easy walk of 137 steps.  The lighthouse is in two sections, an inner wall made of brick, and then a gap which allows air to circulate, and then the outer wall of the lighthouse made of granite blocks painted white.

And this beautiful and delicate stairway made of cast iron is the last set of stairs to the room just under the lamp room.  These stairs are narrow and steep, but easy to climb.  Once you get to the top of these stairs, they allow you to climb another set of narrow stairs and stick your head and arms up through a metal floor grating.  This allows you to see the Fresnel lens, and take photographs, but you can't climb all the way up into the lamp room.  The views from that top stairway are what I saw standing on the upper steps.  It is a thrill to go to the top of the lighthouse!  So unlike any other experience.  If you love lighthouses, of course.