Cape Hatteras lighthouse was built in 1870 and is the world's tallest brick lighthouse standing at 198.5 feet. Treacherous waters off the coast bear the name Graveyard of the Atlantic- over 600 ships wrecked here as victims of shallow shoals, storms & war. Few ships wreck today, but storms still uncover the ruins of the old wrecks. The beacon from the lighthouse can be seen 20 miles out to sea.
It was a gorgeous day! And we climbed to the top....
That's the point of Cape Hatteras directly behind us (sort of between our heads)
Over time, the Atlantic Ocean slowly crept its way closer and closer to the original location of the lighthouse, eating away at the beach... in the summer of 1999 the lighthouse was actually moved to its present location. This photo shows the track on which the lighthouse was transported- all 6250 tons & 1,250,000 bricks of it! The original site was that bare area of sand kind of in the middle of the photo, past the far side of the parking lot, all the way down next to the water. My cousins were there that year and watched as it inched its way down the track- Liz remembers putting a quarter down on the track and having it smashed by the lighthouse as it passed over- she still has that quarter!
On our way back up the coastline, we stopped to see the Bodie Island Lighthouse. It is the last of 3 lighthouses to bear that name. It was completed in 1872 and stands 156 feet tall. The beacon can be seen 20 miles away. All the beacons have a different pattern of flashes (and different patterns of paint on them) so that sailors can identify which lighthouse it is (& therefore where they are located).
This one was not open for climbing- it was slated to begin restoration in the following month or so.
