It’s The Real Thing….

I think I’ve mentioned a few times over the years how much I like lighthouses.  There are some that are tall and ‘graceful’ – others are short and aquat – and even more  that fall in between.  All flashing their lights in a regular fashion, playing their part in keeping those on the sea safe.  If we’re anywhere near the coast with a lighthouse to be seen it’s a sure bet there’ll usually be a picture or two coming home on my camera with me 😊

This one is down on the south west coast of Victoria at Port Fairy – just a short walk from town, sitting there facing the Southern Ocean complete with a bench to take in the view.

The one below is on Stone Island at Bowen Queensland.  There is a great carnival atmosphere in town the day of the lowest tide for the year because that’s the day The Walk to the Lighthouse takes place.  Click on the photo to see the line walking over on the exposed sandbar – we certainly had lots of fun!
Coincidentally they both have a football team (albeit different codes) called The Seagulls 😊

Tucked away on the south coast of the Canadian province of Labrador (which is across the Strait of Belle Isle off the north west coast of Newfoundland) you’ll find the Point Armour Lighthouse.

According to  this website as well as this one, at 33m/109ft it is the tallest lighthouse in Atlantic Canada and the second tallest in all of Canada.  It was on our list of ‘things to see’ during our 2013 Canadian trip.  As we drove up the gravel drive we mentioned to each other that it didn’t really look all that tall. But once we’d clambered out of the car into the gale force wind and struggled to reach the original keepers house we’d changed our mind.  It was enormous !

I’ve just finished rereading The Light between Oceans – a tale about a young lighthouser keeper and his wife stationed on a light just after the First World War.  It was situated on an island quite a distance from the coast of Western Australia and these are some of her thoughts about the waters the lighthouse ‘guards’

 

Here the Indian Ocean washed into the Great Southern Ocean and together they stretched like an edgeless carpet below the cliffs.  On days like this it seemed so solid she had the impression she could walk to Madagascar in a journey of blue upon blue

Reading that reminded me of the seas at Point Armour.  They also seemed to stretch on and on forever.  Unfortunately the wind was so strong (and cold) that day I only took a couple of photos outside and for some reason I didn’t take any from the top of the building – there was so much to concentrate on (climbing over a hundred steps to the top for one thing) I was worried I’d drop my camera.

As I said reading Isabel’s description of her seas looking like a carpet of blue stretching out into the distance reminded me of the the waters below this lighthouse.  They just went on and on – not to Madascar – but north to the Atlantic and south to the Gulf of St Lawrence (and all ports in between 😊)

 

It was a bit like reading the book and seeing the film.  Similar but not the same.  Somehow I think ‘the real thing’ is going to stay there in my memory long after the words in the book!

As usual click photos for a different view.

 

Linking to Our World Tuesday 

http://ourworldtuesdaymeme.blogspot.com.au