What to do on an overcast, gusty summer day? Take on a local landmark you’re embarrassed you haven’t been to.
A friend invited us to tag along for a visit to Horton Point Lighthouse in Southold yesterday, and after some pushback from the fam (as well as my own reservations) we decided there was really nothing else better to do given the lack of sunshine and warm temps. I admittedly have a slight case of attention deficit, so I was a bit concerned about its level of engagement.
But it turned out to be a nice little excursion with some intriguing nautical history, scenic bluffs overlooking the Sound, and access to a beautiful rocky beach.
Snapshot: Horton Point is one of Southold’s seven existing lighthouses, built in 1756 after George Washington became alarmed about numerous shipwrecks in the surrounding waters of the LI Sound. At least 10 ships have gone down in the area. Aside from a small museum in the lighthouse itself, there’s also a tiny cottage on the property housing whale bones found on local shorelines – that was something to see. There’s also an enormous anchor on display recovered from the Commodore, a ship that was wrecked and sank off Horton Point around Christmas Day, 1866. Weirdly enough a fisherman actually pulled it up in one of his nets in recent years, and he was able to recover it and bring it back to shore.
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