The Lighthouse . . .

Day two of the three day weekend, my friends and I intended to go for a hike in Half Moon Bay. 

So we hit the grocery store for food, gassed up the vehicle, and headed South on 280 to Half Moon Bay.  As we then cut across to Highway 1 we continued South.  And then like the beacon of light that it is, there before us was the Pigeon Point Light Station.  I have always wanted to see a lighthouse so I asked if my friends Shagun and Shamoli would be willing to pull off and have a look.  They agreed and unfortunately for Shagun, who really wanted to go for a hike, we never made it to Half Moon Bay.

Pigeon Point Light Station is a State Historic Park.  The Lighthouse rises 115 feet and is the tallest operating lighthouse on the West Coast.  It is also on the National Register of Historic Places.  In June of 1853 the Boston based Carrier Pigeon on her maiden voyage was torn apart by a fog blanketed rock off Whale Point and from then on the former Whale Point was called Pigeon Point.

Pigeon Point is also known for viewing Spring and Winter whale migrations.

Just to the left of the lighthouse is Whaler's Cove pictured above.

We had the fortune of seeing an elephant seal floating in the water.  The beach portion of Whaler's Cove was closed to protect this "Marine Mammal On Watch."

Just below the lighthouse was this whale head skull.

After taking lots of photos of Whaler's Cove and the Pigeon Point Light Station we decided to climb down the rocks to the beach and enjoy our lunch.  I am sure we were a sight to watch as our uncoordinated bodies maneuvered down the cliff.

After lunch we then checked out the numerous tide pools.  In the above picture you can see hermit crabs that have not had their shells painted to be sold in a mall kiosk.

I ventured out a little further and was able to see the starfish in the above picture.

And then we must have started to get a little over confident in our wet rock climbing skills because unfortunately Shagun slipped into the water.  We were very lucky she was not hurt and she had some shorts to change into.

Here we are after climbing back up the rocks.  We were trying to take a picture with the lighthouse in the background.  

Then Shagun had the good idea to take a picture of our shadows.  

So we never made it hiking but as always it was an enjoyable adventure!

The Song Of The Day - The Lighthouse's Tale by Nickel Creek