A Unique Holiday Gift Idea 
By Bill and Judy NewblomArvada, Colorado
New Dungeness Light Station is the gem of the Pacific Northwest. We first discovered this as we hiked the 5½ miles from the parking lot to the Light Station. This beach hike on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington was magnificent, filling our senses with the smell of salt water and our sights with gulls and harbor seals guarding the longest natural sand spit in the U.S.
At the end of the spit we experienced not only a beautiful light station but one that was manned by volunteer keepers year round. After we climbed the tower and learned about the history from the outstanding exhibits, we spoke to a keeper about becoming a member so that we could be eligible to volunteer as a keeper.
The rest is history. Our experiences staying as Keepers at New Dungeness Light Station have been unbelievable. Since we are coming from out of state, we and the other Colorado keepers, George Scholz, Kay Seiler and Nancy Baker, always stay in Sequim the night before to pick up groceries for the week. We have planned our menus and will be taking turns sampling one another’s excellent cuisine throughout the week. Of course, we need to be sure to have enough as there is no pizza delivery on the spit!
In the morning, we leave our car at the transfer station and ride in the Association’s 4-wheel drive vehicles that take us and our supplies at low tide via the beach to the Light Station. We almost always see deer as we leave the forest and lots of wildlife on the spit that is part of a protected wildlife refuge.
As we approach the Light Station we encounter a sign, “Welcome to Serenity. Reality 5 Miles Back.” Once at the Light Station we unload our provisions and the other keepers load theirs in the vehicles for the trip back. We are welcomed to NDLS and immediately become keepers.The orientation and safety video we viewed before we arrived helped us as we greeted our first visitors. We are left in charge of the station and the adventure begins.
The Keeper’s Quarters are wonderful. Before we enter, we change our shoes to indoor ones so as not to scratch the beautiful hardwood floors. This house, over 100 years old, is in excellent condition with all the comforts of home—a well equipped kitchen, satellite television and wi fi (who has time for this?), a library, pool table, lots of games and very, very comfortable accommodations.
The upstairs bedrooms provide great views. In the Tower Room you can lie in bed at night and see the light in the tower. Across the hall in the Baker Room, you awake to many sights and sounds of the wildlife refuge.
The lighthouse tower is 63 feet tall so you have only 74 steps to climb to reach the top.
The view from the top is breathtaking, as are most of the scenes we experience around the Light Station throughout the week—a photographer’s dream.
As lighthouse keepers, we have a few duties that are to be performed each day.
They include raising and lowering the flag, giving tours up the tower and sharing the history of the Light Station with visitors, cleaning the brass and windows in the lantern room, watering the grass, and cleaning the public restroom at the end of the day.
Once a week you must cut the grass, and then, before you are picked up for your return back to “reality,” you make sure the keeper’s quarters are clean and ready for the next set of keepers.
The head keep, or manager of the Station, will leave a list of other duties to be done if you wish.
Yes, it is a working vacation, but you are contributing to the maintenance and care of this historical treasure. Without the volunteer keepers the Light Station would probably be in shambles.
The beauty of the sunrises and sunsets, along with the flora and fauna, are some of the ways keepers are rewarded for their efforts.
We have stayed in the summer where we have photographed all kinds of birds, most recently a mother duck with nine ducklings.
Some people prefer staying in the winter where the lively surf and dramatic storms are part of their week.
Since the spit is a wildlife refuge we never know what we will encounter. Once when we stayed we woke up to deer in the yard which we understand is unusual for them to venture all the way down the spit.
Bald eagles are always present flying around or near the Station looking for their next meal. One time we counted 17 eagles perched along the shoreline.
Meeting the many visitors that venture out either by hiking the spit or kayaking across Dungeness Bay is another bonus.
We have met people from around the world and even encountered visitors surprisingly from our own hometown.
Watching the maritime traffic in the Strait of Juan de Fuca is an adventure. We have seen many container ships, cruise ships, nuclear submarines, U.S. Naval and Coast Guard ships, and small craft.
The serenity and the experience of a bygone era are two reasons most people are attracted to New Dungeness Light Station. You are tending and caring for a site that is over 150 years old. Suddenly you become part of the history of the New Dungeness Light Station.
By joining the New Dungeness Light Station Association we have helped keep the lighthouse alive and staffed by volunteer keepers.
As members, besides being eligible to become a keeper for a week, we are helping to contribute to the preservation, maintenance and renovation of the Lighthouse, Keeper's Quarters and outbuildings which are entirely the responsibility of the non-profit New Dungeness Light Station Association.
Our donations, dues and Keeper fees help toward these costs. For more information on this unique experience check out the website, www.newdungenesslighthouse.com
From the East Brother Light Station in San Francisco Bay, CA:
Jacobsville Lighthouse, on Lake Superior on Michigan's Upper Peninsula, was opened as a B&B April of 2005 by Mike and Cheri Ditty. There are five unique guest rooms, including one with a sitting room.
I just heard from Ginger Allison, a volunteer at the Maine Lighthouse Museum who has spent a night at Goose Rocks. Here's what she wrote: 
East Brother Light Station is an island of beautiful contrasts; a mysterious combination of old and new, wild and refined, secluded and friendly. One of the best ways to experience this contrast is to visit the island on a day when a race or regatta is slicing through the water.
| Free Romance Package | To extend the festivities, we have turned Valentine's Day into Valentine's Month. Book a reservation for any day and room in February, and we will have a free Romance Package waiting in your room upon your arrival. The Romance Package includes one bottle of chilled Domaine Chandon, 2 signature glasses, and a box of Belgian chocolates (value $72.00). Offer valid with new reservations only. Please mention "Valentine's Special" at time of booking. |
| Offer Expires: February 28, 2010 | |
The Middle Island Keepers' Lodge is in a former fog signal building on majestic Lake Huron, between the North Point of Thunder Bay and Presque Isle in Alpena County, Michigan. A tour of Middle Island's lighthouse is included with every stay. Click here for details.Once all the topsoil was over to the island, there was a sigh of relief. The fun, however, was just beginning. Some workers (four then later five) came from Hancock, Michigan, and were arriving at Rockport Harbor to hitch a ride to the island. They came to help spread the topsoil, plant grass, plant trees and flowers, etc. around Middle Island's Light Station. The landscaping materials and other supplies took an additional four trips to the island from Rockport. After five days of continuous labor, there were twenty trees planted, about thirty flowers and shrubs planted, and a lot of grass seed spread. It was a successful week with no real hitches. The rain held off so that we could get the job done. Later, we received numerous showers to get all the vegetation growing again. Thank you, God.
I took a skid loader to the island to extend a rock pier in front of the Keeper's Lodge. We unloaded topsoil on that pier. Including prep work, mobilization, and demobilization, the whole topsoil project took fourteen days. Many thanks are given to Rod, Jack, and Larry for helping make this project happen.
We had numerous lodge customers "tough it out" and stay the night at the lodge this summer. A group of two couples were staying the night when we were moving the topsoil to the island. They seemed to like watching the activity and even helped out a bit. A family from Waterford, Michigan, had proven that the cormorants did not eat all the fish around the island. They caught at least three good sized small mouth bass by the life saving station. They took lots of pictures. I think that family had a great time. That was the third time this nice family from Waterford made it to the island. Don't forget to bring your poles, and take advantage of the free boat usage as well!
Another suggestion I would like to add: You could see a lot of interesting underwater landscape if you bring a snorkel, mask, and fins on your next trip. Wet suit is optional. The sinkhole, Portsmouth and limestone formations are very cool to look at and are all on the north side of the island. A group of SCUBA divers from the Grand Rapids area had a terrific weekend on the island this year. They enjoyed four local shipwrecks while staying two nights. I was pleasantly surprised to see more guests staying two nights (+) this year. It takes more than just one night to relax and unwind.
I do appreciate repeat customers and want to thank everyone for spreading the word about the uniqueness of Middle Island. As a token of my appreciation, I would like to give ten percent off the 2010 rates to anyone that has already stayed at the lodge. Also, new customers can stay with us any Monday-Thursday evening, and we'll give you 10% off yoru entire stay!
So book your vacation now, for the 2010 summer is bound to be a good one!
-- Capt. Mike
