Battery Point Lighthouse is one of the iconic features of Del Norte County.   We have redwood forests, gold mines, gorgeous beaches, rushing rivers, darlingtons, and we have Battery Point Lighthouse.   The lighthouse may be the first landmark noticed as visitors enter Crescent City from the south,  decending out of the redwoods.  

Battery Point Lighthouse was allocated construction money in 1855 to make the Crescent City coastline a safer place to say.   The lighthouse was ready to help mariner in December 1956, warning the mariners of the coastal obstructions and the presence of the harbor.   The coast and harbor were protected by the diligance of the lightkeepers until 1953, when the lighthouse was automated with a 375mm lens.   With the automation of the lighthouse, the lighthouse continued to protect the sailor, but, the lighthouse became the home for a museum and curators.  In 1982, the lighthouse was reassigned as a private aid to navigation and today the you can see the light operating and go on a tour the premises with the current caretakers. 

Battery Point Lighthouse is open daily April through September and on weekends the remainder of the year.   It is open 10AM to 4PM, when tide permits access.    You can call 707-464-3089 during open hours to determine if the lighthouse will be available when you are planning to visit.

While visiting, you should plan on doing several other things as you exit your car and head to the lighthouse.   You will have the chance to stare in awe at the gorgeous Pacific Ocean as waves crash on shore and nearby seastacks.   You'll want to search the tidepools.   You'll want to comb the pebble beach for facinating shells, stones and driftwood.  Seasonally, you'll want to eat blackberries that grow along the beach access to the isthmus that connects the Lighthouse to the beach.    Maybe, you'll want to stop and have a picnic on a bench near by to the isthmus access.

Warning : Battery Point Lighthouse is on an isthmus connected to the mainland at low tide, but, resides on an island at high tide.   If you actually would like to climb the hill to Battery Point Lighthouse and enjoy the tour, remember to check tidetables to insure you visit at low tide.  Make certain you do not end up on the isthmus as the tide is coming in ... you may end up stuck on the island for several hours (if you are not interested in swimming off the island).

WARNING: Don't swim off the island, it would be dangerous.   The previous comment about swimming off the island was intended in humor.