Special thanks to ANGEL specifically for the fourth image in the new series and also for thus reminding me that I could actually do the same thing. (I'm sometimes not too bright—unlike Barney now!—and forget I can do such techie stuff.)
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On January 1st at 5:06 PM one of my favorite day trip destinations achieved a significant milestone. Long Beach Island's Barnegat Lighthouse, the third tallest lighthouse in the U.S., was officially relit at dusk and is once again a shining navigational beacon for boaters, welcoming fishermen safely home at night.
The relighting took place exactly 150 years to the day since it was first lit for its original service stint. Back in mid-October this was all celebrated and publicized with official festivities, but the actual relighting was scheduled for the new year to coincide with the significant anniversary.
I did not attend the October celebratory events, but I definitely wanted to be there for the actual re-awakening of "Ol' Barney." I only wish my folks could have still been around to see it, especially my Dad as he loved to go to the lighthouse once in a while and just sit at a picnic bench watching the boats go by.
I began to realize how big an event this was when I started seeing online news articles about it from the New York Times and MSNBC.com as 2008 was drawing to a close. Here are a few of those articles, but I'd say the New York Times one is the best as far as providing and explaining details:
New York Times: Barnegat Lighthouse on Long Beach I. to Shine Out Again
by Coleen Dee Berry
MSNBC.com: Shine On Ol' Barney—Shine On!
by Ted Greenberg
Asbury Park Press: Many want to see Ol' Barney's new light
by Jessica Infante
Some informational highlights:
- The new light is surprisingly (to me) only 100 Watts, but should be visible up to 20 miles away. It is designed as a "pencil beam unit" (though not really visible as such to the naked eye) so that it will not bother local residents below.
- The light swells to brightness then dims on about a 10-second cycle. It operates via a light sensor so that it kicks on when the ambient light gets low enough depending on time of sunset and weather conditions.
- The U.S. Coast Guard insisted that any light put in place should be an actual registered functioning navigation beacon, not just a ceremonial representation.
- Compare this pic by Laura Pedrick (New York Times) showing the newly installed light up close (Angelo Rinaldi, President of the Friends of Barnegat Lighthouse, stands next to it) to the original Fresnel lens which resides in a small museum around the block.
- The Friends of Barnegat Lighthouse organization had been collecting donations for the purpose of relighting Barney. When the Long Beach Township Fraternal Order of Police Lodge #5 heard of the effort, they donated the whole $15,000 that the organization was seeking to cover the cost.
- That in turn freed up the "Friends" organization to use their collected money to have new glass installed around the lantern room. (The prior glass was actually plexiglass that had been scratched and worn by the elements over the years such that it no longer resembled anything transparent and would have greatly hindered the functional utility of the beacon.)
Here are a couple articles which cover the relighting:
The Press of Atlantic City: Barnegat Lighthouse beams again
by Derek Harper
Delaware Online: Barnegat Lighthouse burns brightly again
by Erik Larsen (...for the Asbury Park Press)
Includes a couple images by Shawn Huber, also of the APP: pic #1 pic #2)
The first one states:
Organizers estimated about 2,000 people jammed the park to watch the red-and-white landmark again emit light.
The evening was absolutely gorgeous with not a cloud to be seen near or far, but it was coooooold! To give you an idea, that second article begins:
Despite wind gusts that made the sea air feel several degrees below zero, thousands bundled up and crowded together on the northern tip of Long Beach Island on Thursday to see Barnegat Lighthouse relit for the first time since Calvin Coolidge was in the White House...
In order to operate my camera I had to have my right hand exposed much of the time, of course, and I couldn't feel it for about 10 minutes after I got back in the vehicle and had some heat going.
Like many folks I enjoy taking pictures, but I don't by any means consider myself an accomplished photographer. I've rarely tried night shots and when I have the results have been spotty at best—often downright worthless. But this time with the aid of a recently discovered actual full size tripod, I think the results were decent and better than I expected, especially considering that I was still experimenting somewhat with different camera settings and taking my chances. (My digital camera, being probably almost ten years old now, is far from state of the art anymore. It came with a mini 6" high tripod that, believe it or not, actually is halfway useful at times, but I knew it wouldn't be much help for this event.)
I plan to return to the lighthouse some other time when there is no crowd and better conditions (i.e. warmer!) to try some more experimentation with settings and get more variety of angles. For now, though, this is what I got (I hope you enjoy'em; just click'em to view full size)...
A couple shots of the lighthouse from the ocean-bound side of the inlet with some glare from the setting sun off to the left, plus two bagpipers tuning up in preparation for serenading Ol' Barney back to life. I ended up positioning myself out in the parking lot to better catch the effect of the setting sun on the lighthouse as the time drew near, so I never did hear the actual piped tunes to know what they played:
In these next shots you'll note the tops of some New York-based news trucks. Surprisingly there was only one Philadelphia-based news van, but it must have come late as it was parked on the street outside the parking lot and the lone cameraman was just walking by toward the lighthouse as most folks were in their cars trying to get out and head home to a hot meal shortly after witnessing the big moment.
It's amazing how much nicer Barney looks in daylight with the new glass installed:
This last batch gives an idea of the sequence from dusk to dark and the moment of rekindling. Due to trying different camera settings and my own general inexperience with such shots they aren't necessarily a true and accurate representation of the experience, but it's close enough and certainly as good as I could do (although actually in some ways I think it's a truer representation than the couple pics I've seen online so far of the new light):
Here's an amateur video (2:52) of the relighting. The light comes on about halfway into it:
It's poor quality, but that's all I've been able to find so far. The person does reference the cold and in fairness to him, I'm sure I'd have had a hard time keeping the camera steady by hand too in those temperatures. It sort of captures the moment, but kind of doesn't either. On the same YouTube page you can also find related links to other videos of the lighthouse, including both outside and inside footage it appears (though I didn't try to view any), but no others of the relighting event (...yet, as of the time I'm writing this).
Oooo... I finally found the short news piece on the relighting that I caught on last night's local KYW/CBS3 11 PM newscast. (That's the Philly station where the cameraman was just entering after the fact.) It's only 25 seconds long so the anchor obviously doesn't provide a lot of details, there are no interviews (again, obviously), and you have to wait for a short ad to play first, but at least the very brief zoomed-in footage of the light in action is a lot clearer.
Here are some screen captures from the CBS3 video and clicking any of them will take you to the same CBS3 video page for the actual footage:
Unfortunately I still can't seem to find any video connected with the New York stations I saw represented.
Lastly, judging by a couple comments/reactions I read in one of those after-the-fact news articles some people seem to have been somewhat underwhelmed or even disappointed. It probably depended on what their expectations were and how well they understood the actual concept of a lighthouse. Such folks folks were, I think, expecting to see this sharply defined beam of light shooting out through the darkness to the water, but that's just not the case. It's really just a visual navigational aid for boats/ships farther out at sea providing an easily spotted and recognizable landmark at night. For those boaters actually based out of the town of Barnegat Light or nearby it means "Home." (Plus I imagine it could potentially be especially handy should someone's GPS suddenly go on the fritz!)
P.S. One minor seasonal footnote:
An ornament featuring Barnegat Lighthouse hangs on the 2008 White House Christmas tree...
The official White House Christmas tree is an 18 1/2-foot Fraser fir... The tree is decorated with 369 ornaments hand-decorated by artists from around the country selected by members of Congress.
...the following New Jersey artists' work is featured on the tree:
Joyce Gagen, 65, of Tabernacle, selected by U.S. Rep. Jim Saxton (R-3d Dist.), primarily focuses her art on wildlife and waterfowl. Her ornament, depicting the Barnegat lighthouse with a blue heron and crashing waves in the foreground, is a perfect symbol of the Jersey Shore area...
(Sorry, I was unable to find a corresponding pic.)
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11 comments:
I am overwhelmed by your coverage and the attention to detail of your post. Much more then I would have expected.
Even a Christmas Ornament! lol
By the way, your Dad WAS there, in spirit and through the eyes of his son. You did him proud.
Thanks, Angel. :-)
Once I got started composing, I kept finding more stuff to include. I wasn't planning on publishing until later in the weekend, but I got on a roll and decided the sooner, the better to get it out there, especially once I found the couple of videos.
This was one of those posts where I tried to provide links to the larger context for anyone so inclined to learn more, but I also wanted it to be easily skimmable for those who probably only want just the quick overview and then move on. I also feel the extra articles and such help provide a little corroboration on the historical/geographical significance rather than folks just accepting my say-so on things.
I wish I'd found a picture of the Christmas ornament, but even without one I still thought it was worth the P.S. given the season.
(I know I probably put way too much thought and effort into posts like this that only a handful of folks at most will ever read, but that's OK as the enjoyment for me lies largely in the process. Plus the fact that I don't post that often allows me to put more effort into the ones here and there that really do have special meaning for me.)
If I in any way implied that you overdid it on the post, please delete that from your mind. It is a PERFECT post.
I, being one who feels a stake in "Old Barney" found every aspect of it interesting and eagerly clicked each link and enjoyed the ride. Even the station who got there late, caught (in my opinion) the best shot of all. Something from everyone, even the latecomers. :-)
Awesome post, glad to have had an eyewitness there.
May I link to you, for a future post?
First off, Angel... By all means, feel free to link away. I feel honored and yet humbled that you are considering doing so.
Second...
"If I in any way implied that you overdid it on the post..."—Angel
No, no, no, no, no! I didn't take it that way in the slightest, so please don't be concerned about that even a little bit.
If anything such thoughts that I may have had concerning "overdoing it" as an issue were entirely in my own head from the start only because I do honestly recognize I have a tendency to provide more info and detail on such things than a lot of (most?) bloggers would. But that's just me doubting myself in my usual way and I try to ignore it even though the feeling is often lurking around in here (I'm tapping my head to indicate my brain) somewhere.
It often helps when I find myself having such qualms to step back and do a personal reality check, remembering that I'm not Ken Levine with his thousands upon thousands of daily devited readers. I'm quite content with my quality handful!
Way back when I first started my experimental blogging I once read somebody's alleged tip sheet of blogging do's & don'ts saying that bloggers should try to keep their posts uniformly short, pretty much sound-bite-like, otherwise people will tune out.
I understand that reasoning, but I don't agree with it. To me if you feel you have something to say you should take however much time and space (and however many dimensions!) you need to say it. At least that's my philosophy. In short, anything worth the effort to try say it right.
I don't just want to do one-liners and zingers, I want to occasionally do stuff that matters even if it only matters to me. This post particularly mattered to me and I was simply grateful that your original comment (in my mind) reflected that you picked up on that.
I'm always pleased when people DO seem to notice such things and I was merely taking the opportunity to elaborate a little more on my behind-the-scenes thinking.
See... I even overdo my comments! (LOL!) But I really want you to understand and not be concerned. I apologize if I inadvertently caused any misapprehension on your part.
lol.
there is nothing left for me to say lol!
Gina, Angel, et al...
Believe it or not there WAS something I forgot to at least mention even though there was a (probably) self-explanatory pic: the bagpipers.
So I added a short paragraph before that first set of three pics. As I mention therein I never did hear them playing, only tuning up. Which brings up the question of how do bagpipers even know when their instruments are well-tuned? I'm kidding, I'm kidding!
Anyway, I actually would have liked to have heard them playing, but they seemed to be setting up to play a little too close to the lighthouse, I thought. I was more focused on Ol' Barney for the sake of awaiting the big moment and trying to get the best shots I could get.
That took me to the far side of the parking lot to account for the glow from the setting sun looking over the trees. I needed to be close enough for my camera to be able to "see" Barney well, but far enough away to try to capture the actual new light shining out.
Gina said...
lol.
there is nothing left for me to say lol!
Chicken... lol
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Thanks for the belated addition of commentary on the bagpipers. I did wonder.
Really, what else can one add? LOL
An impressive coverage, DS. You have the makings of a sleuth/historian in you. And a pioneer -- after all, you braved the elements to attend the ceremony!
Nice pics and videos. They fit perfectly with your blog and its atmosphere! :)
Alrighty then... I'll try not to add anything more unless it's absolutely vital.
;-)
Thanks again for the positive and kind comments! I'm so glad you all enjoyed virtually "tagging along"...
that thing with the beam of light... maybe when it's foggy? or only in comics and romantic novels?
it is often presented that way, for a lighthouse to function...
Yeah, Gina, I wondered about that too, but I don't know. I'm guessing that the standard image of a lighthouse shining brightly down on the nearby rocks and such is either A) relegated to the time long past when there were actual lighthouse keepers, or B) one of those things that people "know" that, well, just isn't so.
My guess would be (A) since I can imagine that being more of a necessity in the olden days when boating traffic was much more critical to a coastal town's fortunes. But that's just a guess on my part based on nothing of substance.
(B) is usually attributable to misinformation from TV and movies. I recall reading recently (I think it was on Earl Pomerantz's blog) about how for some show there was supposed to be a gunshot, but they needed a strong echoing type of gunshot sound for dramatic effect even though the type of gun in question would not have produced anything near as loud. So blame Hollywood for that kind of thing.
Even though Barney is functional now, it's still really more as a tribute to days of yore than out of any practical need. Boaters and ships obviously have been doing just fine without any such light since 1965 or so when the lightship, Barney's replacement at the time and anchored eight miles off the coast, was itself decommissioned.
Yeah, if it's foggy the beam-of-light effect might actually show up to the naked eye, but the beacon's effectiveness would be drastically reduced. And though it might even look neat, but I wouldn't want to travel the hour there and the hour back in fog to try to get any pics.
;-)
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