The "Oh, the pain .......... the pain!" Story

It was an ordinary day.  About two-thirds up the 217 steps on the Cape May Lighthouse in Cape May, NJ.  My brother Steve and I decided that it would be neat to visit the lighthouse and walk to the top, but at this moment, I'm not so sure.  The pain has set in!  
The legs are felling like rubber at the moment.  Our wives are seated in the car waiting for our arrival on the walkway around the top of the lighthouse.  The same walkway where someone from our hometown of Lancaster, PA jumped to his death in the late 1980s.  Not gonna happen today, since the bars that have been put in place after the jump are impregnable.  Well, we did finally make it to the top and what a view.  You can see for miles and miles.  

The 1823 Cape May Lighthouse.

 This lighthouse is the third such structure since the first one was built in 1823.  That lighthouse was 800 more feet out into the ocean than from where we are now standing.  Unfort- unately it was erected on unstable sand and was eventually washed away by the mid-1840s.  In 1847 another lighthouse was built further inland which was 78 feet tall.  

The base of the 1847 Lighthouse made into a barn.

 It was so poorly constructed that it was torn down and eventually replaced with the structure we are standing on top of at this moment.  This lighthouse was built in 1859 and stands 157 feet, 6 inches from sea level.  The walls are actually two layers thick with the outside wall, which is cone shaped, being 3 feet 10 inches thick at the bottom and 1 foot 6 inches thick at the top.  

The steps that cause the pain!

 The inside wall is a cylinder with 8.5 inch thick walls which hold the spiral staircase we just managed to navigate.  The walls are said to be able to withstand winds several times above hurricane force.  Guess so far they have worked!  The spiral staircase is made of cast iron with each tread an individual landing that is joined to a center post.  The small diamond holes in each step allow for ventilation and to help hear from top to bottom.  The closer you get towards the top, the less wide the stairs become.  The outside of the steps are supported with pins into the cylindrical inside wall.  The steps originally were navigated without help from railings, but in 1865 the wall railing was added and in 1988 the inner railing was added to help senior citizens, such as my brother and me, have a way to pull ourselves to the top.  

Every 30 steps yields a landing with a view.

 After every 30 steps there is a landing, thank goodness, which allows you to look through a small hole to the outside and allows you to rest.   The ceiling above each landing is an arch made of brick, known as a barrel vault, which adds support to the entire structure.  The light itself used to be an oil vapor lamp which had multiple wicks and required the lighthouse keeper to replenish the lamp kerosene on a regular basis.  

View of Cape May looking north.

 In 1893 an Oil House was built next to the lighthouse to store the kerosene to prevent fumes and chance of fire.  In 1933 the light was electrified.  The large lens that magnified the light was originally a Fresnel lens that used a series of prisms to reflect, bend and magnify the light.  

The rotating beacon in the lighthouse.

 In 1946 a rotating beacon light replaced the Fresnel lens.   The light is still operated today by the Coast Guard and is visible 24 miles out to sea.  Flashes every 15 seconds.  When Steve and I exited at the top we talked with the guard about the 1989 death at the lighthouse.  At the time the bars on the top of the cage were farther apart and he managed to get through them.  In front of us is a sign that says "No Shouting."  Guess the neighbors would get annoyed if everyone started yelling to their friends below.  Well, we waved to our wives, walked around shooting photos for a few minutes and made the decent to the bottom.  That was a piece of cake.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy. 

The ....... sssshhhhh ....... quiet view from the top.