International Lighthouse Weekend 22-23 August 2020.

International Lighthouse and Lightship Weekend started in 1998 as an amateur radio event where ham operators broadcast from lighthouses around the world.

It is a time to remember the contribution lighthouses and past lighthouse keepers have made to safe navigation of the world’s seaways.

I thought I would share a few photos of some Australian lighthouses I have been lucky to visit in recent years.

BUSTARD HEAD LIGHTHOUSE, QUEENSLAND

The Bustard Head Lighthouse was built in 1868 and is Queensland’s second oldest lighthouse.   It is constructed of prefabricated cast iron sections assembled on the spot.   The light is now automated and can clearly be seen from the town of 1770 20 kilometres down the coast.

CAPE BRUNY, BRUNY ISLAND, TASMANIA

Construction of the lighthouse started in 1836 and it was completed in 1838.   It is Australia’s second oldest lighthouse and was built by convicts from locally sourced stone.

EDDYSTONE LIGHTHOUSE, BAY OF FIRES, TASMANIA

The Eddystone lighthouse was built in 1884 from locally quarried granite and stands 35 metres tall.

HELLS GATE ENTRANCE LIGHTHOUSE, TASMANIA

Hells Gate is the entrance to Macquarie Harbour on the southwest coast of Tasmania.    The name “Hells Gate” was supposedly coined by convicts who were transported to the isolated and harsh penal colony on Sarah Island.    The lighthouse was built in 1892 after silver and lead were discovered at Zeehan. 

LOW HEAD LIGHTHOUSE, TASMANIA 

Low Head Lighthouse stands at the mouth of the Tamar River.    This lighthouse was built in 1888 and replaced an earlier one constructed in 1833 but had fallen into disrepair.   It stands 15 metres tall.

MOORE POINT, GERALDTON, WESTERN AUSTRALIA

The 30 metres tall lighthouse was built in 1878.   It was manufactured in Birmingham England and brought out to Australia on the Lady Louisa where the prefabricated sections were assembled on site.

SPLIT POINT LIGHTHOUSE, AIREYS INLET, VICTORIA

The Split Point Lighthouse was built in 1891 after several shipwrecks in the waters nearby.  It stands 34 metres tall and made of concrete.

SEA HILL LIGHTHOUSE, CURTIS ISLAND, QUEENSLAND

The first Sea Hill Lighthouse was built in the 1870s.   it was replaced by a second lighthouse built in 1895 and still stands there today.  It is 12 metres tall and is clad in corrugated Iron.

© C.J. Ison/Tales from the Quarterdeck.