We love a lighthouse. It reminds us of spending summers on Long Beach Island where the Barnegat Lighthouse was our go-to spot for hanging out, sunbathing on the jetty rocks, checking in on the hermit crabs for sale at the old-timey gift shop and gazing out into the horizon wondering what was out there. So when we were recently in the Jupiter, Florida area, we had to check out this historic beacon.
The Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse, a brick tower on a small inlet dune about 30 minutes north of Palm Beach, was built in the mid-19th century, first lighting up on July 10, 1860. However, not long after lighting up it was disabled during the Civil War by Confederate sympathizers. Once the war was over, the lighthouse resumed operations in 1869. By 1939, the civilian lighthouse keepers joined up with the Coast Guard to manage the beacon.
Even though the lighthouse was automated in 1987 and keepers are no longer necessary, it does remain an active public aid to navigation, using a 1st Order Fresnel lenses. We aren't lighthouse geeks so we had to Google it, but this is one of the largest and most powerful lights that can be visible twenty miles out at sea. (For more oddly fascinating facts, read the lighthouses fact sheet here.) Not surprisingly, the lighhouse is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Today, the lighthouse building itself is open to the public for tours. There's also a museum on the grounds to visit as well which chronicles nearly 5,000 years of history in the Loxahatchee River region and a pioneer homestead that recreates what life was like in the late 19th century. Both lighthouse and museum are operated by the Loxahatchee River Historical Society
However, because of Covid-19 the museum is currently closed, although your lighthouse ticket provides you a voucher to come back for free when it opens. And yes, you can still climb the lighthouse. Here are the hours, times, prices, and safety requirements:
DAYS & HOURS: Wed-Sun, 10 am-2 pm. Last lighthouse grounds admission is 1 pm.
PRICES: Adult $12, US Veterans & Seniors 60+ $10, Children (6-18) $6, (5 & under)Free
SAFETY & HEIGHT REQUIREMENT: Visitors must wear face covering and observe social distancing while on site. Children must be 48″ to climb. Children under the age of 16 must be accompanied by an adult to climb the Lighthouse.
One you're done, go and visit the other “lighthouse” in Jupiter at Lighthouse Adventure Cove mini-golf where they have a replica of the original.
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