Venture out for on-the-water close-ups of historic lighthouses on Long Island Sound during special cruises on Sat., April 1 and Sat., April 15 offered by The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk.
From April through October, The Maritime Aquarium offers separate monthly outings to see and photograph lighthouses in central Long Island Sound and also in the western Sound. Maritime Aquarium educators will offer details, histories and anecdotes about the lighthouses, and also point out the Sound’s waterfowl and other sights.
New this year is The Maritime Aquarium’s participation in the U.S. Lighthouse Society’s “Lighthouse Passport” program, a fun way to log your lighthouse pursuits. Aquarium staff now can stamp the books of “Lighthouse Passport” holders for every lighthouse seen during a cruise. (Bring your “passport” or buy one onboard.) Plus, members of the U.S. Lighthouse Society receive 10 percent ticket discounts for Aquarium lighthouse cruises.
The Aquarium’s Lighthouse Cruise options in April are:
• Western Long Island Sound Lighthouse Cruise
Sat., April 1; departing at 9 a.m., returning at 4 p.m.
These seven-hour cruises make close passes by eight lighthouses off Connecticut and New York:
• Greens Ledge Lighthouse, a cast-iron “sparkplug” lighthouse southwest of the Norwalk harbor (and south of the Five Mile River). It was built in 1902 and automated in 1972.
• Sheffield Island Lighthouse, one of Norwalk’s iconic structures. Built in 1868, the granite-block lighthouse with a white lantern tower was deactivated in 1902 upon the debut of Greens Ledge Lighthouse. The Norwalk Seaport Association bought the lighthouse in 1986 and re-lit it in 2011, though not for navigational purposes.
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Maritime Aquarium Lighthouse Cruises – April 2017
• Harbor Ledge Lighthouse, also a cast-iron “sparkplug” lighthouse, stands on Chatham Rock near the entrance to Stamford harbor. Built in 1882, the light was deactivated in 1953 but remains active with an automated light.
• Great Captain Island Lighthouse, a light off Greenwich with a two-story granite keeper’s home and white lantern tower (similar to Sheffield Island). This light was built in 1868, replacing a stone version erected in 1829. It was deactivated in 1970, but has flashed with a non-navigational light since 2012.
• Execution Rocks Lighthouse, which stands on a rocky island of legend between Sands Point on Long Island and New Rochelle. Made of granite and painted white, the light was completed in 1849, first lit in 1850, had a keeper’s house added in 1868 and got its central brown band in 1895. The light was automated in 1979.
• Stepping Stones Lighthouse, built in 1876 off North Hempstead in the Victorian Second Empire style. The square red-brick keeper’s dwelling is topped by a mansard roof and attached to a square tower. Lit for the first time in 1877; automated in the mid-1960s. It’s the westernmost lighthouse on Long Island’s north shore.
• Sands Point Lighthouse, an octagonal tower made of coursed brownstone on a peninsula in North Hempstead. Built in 1809 with an adjoining keeper’s house, it was deactivated in 1922 and its beacon was moved to an automated steel skeleton tower nearby. Large mansions on the lighthouse property were owned by – among others – William Randolph Hearst.
• Eatons Neck Lighthouse, an octagonal sandstone tower that is one of only two 18th-century lighthouses still standing in New York. The light was built in 1798, renovated in 1868, electrified in 1921 and automated in 1961. It stands on the grounds of an active U.S. Coast Guard station.
All but the Sands Point Lighthouse are on the National Register of Historic Places.
Tickets for a Western Long Island Sound Lighthouse Cruise are $75 (or $65 for Aquarium members).
• Central Long Island Sound Lighthouse Cruise
Sat., April 15; departing at 10 a.m., returning at 3 p.m.
These five-hour cruises make close passes by five lighthouses between Norwalk and Stratford:
• Greens Ledge Lighthouse, a cast-iron “sparkplug” lighthouse southwest of the Norwalk harbor (and south of the Five Mile River). It was built in 1902 and automated in 1972.
• Sheffield Island Lighthouse, one of Norwalk’s iconic structures. Built in 1868, the granite-block lighthouse with a white lantern tower was deactivated in 1902 upon the debut of Greens Ledge Lighthouse. The Norwalk Seaport Association bought the lighthouse in 1986 and re-lit it in 2011, though not for navigational purposes.
• Peck Ledge Lighthouse, a cast-iron “sparkplug” lighthouse at the southeast approach to Norwalk Harbor. It was built in 1906 and automated in 1933. A recent online auction to place the lighthouse – but not the light’s operations – into private hands drew a top bid of $235,000.
• Penfield Reef Lighthouse, a charming granite-block lighthouse with a short lantern tower rising from the white mansard roof. It was built in the early 1870s and automated in 1971.
• Stratford Shoal Lighthouse (aka Middle Ground Light), a granite-block house whose location is still debated: is it actually in Connecticut or New York? Built about 8 miles off Bridgeport on the Sound’s dangerous Middleground Shoal in 1877, the light was automated in 1970.
All five lighthouses are on the National Register of Historic Places.
Tickets for a Central Long Island Sound Lighthouse Cruise are $70 (or $60 for Aquarium members).
More Cruise Details:
On both cruises, binoculars will be provided. Maritime Aquarium Lighthouse Cruises are a special photo opportunity for both lighthouse buffs and bird-watchers, so bring your camera.
Participants can bring food and non-alcohohic beverages in a small bag or soft-sided cooler.
Cruises occur aboard R/V Spirit of the Sound™, a 64-foot catamaran that is the only research vessel in the country with quiet hybrid-electric propulsion. She has a climate-controlled cabin but guests should dress for the weather because the best lighthouse viewing is outside on deck.
Advance reservations are required for all Maritime Aquarium Lighthouse Cruises. Reserve tickets online at maritimeaquarium.org or call (203) 852-0700, ext. 2206.