~ This Point Reyes information page is brought to you by Reflections Photo Magnets ~
We make beautiful Photo-Magnets of the Lighthouse and the surrounding Point Reyes and West Marin Area:

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Photography by Nityam (owner of Reflections)

Nityam, a Bay Area California native, cultivated her love of photography while living in West Marin for over 15 years,
a good portion of that time was spent living above the Old Historic Marshall Tavern on Beautiful Tomales Bay.
She recently transplanted to the Foothills of the Sierras in the Historic Gold Country of California.
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Point Reyes Fridge Photo-Magnets

Our 2 1/2 by 3 1/2" magnets made with high quality Kodak Royal Gold photographs that have a thin protective coating on its surface. 
We permanently bond them to strong 1/32th" double thickness flexible magnet material, and finish up by framing each magnet with a crisp black border around the edges.

To order 1 magnet click below and specify item number(s) and 1 or 2 word description for each magnet
$3.95 each plus $2.05 Shipping

To order 4 magnets click below and specify item numbers and 1 or 2 word description for each magnet
$13.95 (set of 4 -$3.50 ea) plus $3.05 Shipping

To order 12 magnets click below and specify item numbers and 1 or 2 word description for each magnet
$35.95 (set of 12 -$3.00 ea) plus $4.05 Shipping

Photo-Magnets of other Areas of California:

Marin County Towns and Scenes

San Francisco Scenes

Marin County Towns and Scenes

More California Scenes and Towns

California Coastline Scenes

Santa Cruz/Monterey/Capitola/Carmel

Yosemite

Lighthouses from around the Country

You can order any assortment of magnets from our 500 images web catalog for the discounted priced sets. Call if you would like to order more than 12 magnets.
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Town Sign Pins of Marin County and San Francisco


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More information on the Point Reyes Lighthouse

For information on weather at the lighthouse ~ call: 415-669-1534
Point Reyes National Seashore Ranger Station ~ General Information ~  call:  415-464-5100

The Point Reyes Peninsula, which juts into the Pacific Ocean just north of the Golden Gate, has long been treacherous for ships traveling to and from San Francisco. In hopes of reducing the number of shipwrecks, Congress in 1852 appropriated $25,000 to build the Point Reyes Lighthouse.

Coping with the precipitous location and buying the necessary property, however, delayed construction of the forged-iron-plate building, so that the beacon did not go into operation until December 1, 1870. During the delay, at least seven more ships ran aground. It is impossible to say how many of them would have been saved by the beacon, however, for shipwrecks continued - although less often - after the lighthouse was in service. Some unfortunate skippers blamed the light itself, saying it was hard to see from the south. Others blamed the lighthouse's fog siren, saying it was hard to hear from the north.

The Point Reyes Lighthouse cast a rotating beam that could be seen for 24 nautical miles. The light came from four wicks, which burned refined lard oil. The beam was focused by a three-ton lens consisting of more than 1,000 hand cut prisms and "bull's eyes." The jewel-like lens mounted in a brass framework was designed in France by August Jean Fresnel and built in Paris by the firm of Barbier and Fenestre. The 24-sided lens stands 7-feet, 11-inches high and 6-feet, 1-inch wide.

Keeping it fueled and free of soot was once a nonstop job in foggy weather. A San Francisco Chronicle reporter  noted on September 25, 1887, that "the sirens had been in operation for 176 consecutive hours and the jaded  attendants looked as if they had been on a protracted spree."

In fact, because of incessant wind and fog on Point Reyes in some seasons, the Point Reyes Lighthouse was plagued by incidents of insanity, alcoholism, violence, and insubordination," notes a publication of the National Park Service, which now owns the lighthouse. One lighthouse keeper even took to drinking the alcohol shipped for cleaning the lens and "was often seen lying drunk by the roadside," the Park Service publication added.

Originally operated by the Government Lighthouse Service, the lighthouse was taken over by the US Coast Guard in 1915. In 1966, the Park Service acquired the lighthouse station from the Coast Guard, which continued to operate the beacon and fog horn. In 1973, after the six year old nephew of a guardsman was killed by its rotating lens, the lighthouse was closed to the public. It's beacon, which had been converted from to electricity in 1939, was turned off in 1975 and replaced by automatic equipment. In 1977, the Coast Guard turned the lighthouse over to the Park Service which -- in response to an editorial campaign in The Point Reyes Light -- reopened the historic structure to the public. In the years since then, the Park Service has continue to keep the old lighthouse in operating condition in case its unromantic replacement ever breaks down.

The lighthouse site is now within the Point Reyes National Seashore, and Park Service rangers are on hand to answer questions. In January and February, the Point Reyes Lighthouse is one of the best places along the California Coast for seeing California Gray Whales on their annual migration from Alaska to Mexico.

     Lighthouse Tips:

     Whenever possible, visit the Point Reyes Lighthouse on weekdays to avoid weekend crowds.

     There are more than 300 stairs between the observation platform at the lighthouse station and the actual lighthouse
     below. Walking back up again is equivalent to walking up the stairs of a 30-story building.

     The lighthouse is closed on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Thursdays through Sundays, it opens at 10 am. and closes at 4:30 pm. (Open year round, except closed on December 25). The stairs to the lighthouse are closed when winds exceed 40 miles per hour. The lens room, which houses the original clockworks and first-order Fresnel lens that were manufactured in 1867 and installed in 1870, is open from 2:30 pm to 4 pm, Thursdays through Mondays, as staffing and weather conditions permit. The lower chamber of the historic lighthouse has exhibit panels on the history of the light and the keepers. The equipment building next to the lighthouse exhibits the two 1947 super typhon foghorns, the air compressors, and a backup power generator that were used at Point Reyes.

    On weekends and holidays from late December through mid-April when visitation by whale watchers to the Point Reyes Lighthouse area is heavy, visitors may be required to ride a shuttle bus from Drakes Beach to the Lighthouse and Chimney Rock areas. There is a 650 meter (0.4 mile) walk (mostly uphill) from the parking lot/shuttle stop to the Lighthouse Visitor Center.

To reach the Point Reyes Lighthouse from Highway 1, head west on Bear Valley Road from Olema or west on Sir Francis Drake Boulevard from Point Reyes Station. In Point Reyes Station, the turnoff from Highway 1 is located at the Green Bridge on the south end of town. The driving time from Point Reyes Station or Olema is about 40 minutes.
 

~ This Point Reyes information page is brought to you by Reflections Photo Magnets ~

Reflections 
Nityam Privette
P O Box 1163
Rough and Ready, CA 95975

(530) 273-9378

Wholesale Accounts Welcome

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