Travel Tips

Send Photo to a Friend

Palm Beach

We got off the cruise ship on a Thursday. I didn't know how early or late it would be, and I wanted to see two lighthouses that were north of us - Jupiter lighthouse (which we saw once from the ICW) and Hillsborough Light.

I figured it we went up north of Palm Beach to stay, we could see one of them, and then do the other one in the morning.

I did have one picture of the Jupiter lighthouse from the ICW, but since it is a red brick lighthouse, I had confused it with the lighthouse at Ponce Inlet (also red brick) which we had visited.

I didn't have really good directions to either lighthouse. I could find them on the chart and I could find them on a map, but I wasn't sure how to actually access them. I was pretty sure they were near US A1A which goes up along the barrier islands east of the ICW, so for awhile, we drove up the coast and looked at the Palm Beach mansions

Send Photo to a Friend

Bridge opening on the ICW

Eventually, we stopped at an IHOP for lunch in West Palm Beach (where I had a spinach salad with chicken and it was way to much for me to eat), and then did the rest of the trip up to Juno Beach on I-95.

Then when we went back to the coast, I followed the directions that I had in the computer, and we got to a parking lot which was on the road where the lighthouse sites said the lighthouse was.

Send Photo to a Friend

Padlocked gate

I could SEE the lighthouse. But at first I thought we could not get in - all the gates were padlocked.

It turns out that you have to get a ticket from the museum, and the museum entrance is not obvious.

Send Photo to a Friend

Pictures in the museum

The museum was $5 each and it was an additional $2 to take a lighthouse tour. The museum has nothing to do with the lighthouse (it was about the sub-spotters from WWII who lived in the house that is now the museum), and I didn't think it was worth $5. The lighthouse OTOH was worth more.

Send Photo to a Friend

Coast Guard rules sign

We went with a guide up to the lighthouse (I didn't climb it).

You are supposed to have a guide whenever you are on the grounds. The last tour is at 4 pm.

Send Photo to a Friend

Lighthouse oil house

While I was walking around taking my pictures, Bob talked to the guide who was new. He said that the lightening cable which goes down the side of the lighthouse was not grounded, and when lightening hit the tower, it blew some bricks out.

So now it does go to ground.

The lighthouse can be shorter because it is on a mound that is about 14 feet tall.

Send Photo to a Friend

Bridge is just closing & picket fenced cemetery

We were able to watch the drawbridge open near the lighthouse, and then I noticed that there was a little graveyard on the grounds. This proved to be the infant children of the lighthouse keeper who had died.

After we finished with the lighthouse, we went to stay at the Hampton Inn in Juno Beach/West Palm Beach.