Lighthouses Near Boothbay Harbor: Five Lights and How to See Them

The five lighthouses near Boothbay Harbor

There are five lighthouses near Boothbay Harbor worth planning a day around, and they could hardly be more different. One sits at the mouth of the harbor and you can tour it. One stands on a ledge off Ocean Point. One guards the southern tip of Southport. One sits at the edge of a small beach on the Sheepscot River. And the most famous of them is an hour's drive away on the granite at Pemaquid Point.

Most are best seen from the water, which is why the lighthouse cruises from the downtown piers are the most efficient way to see several in an afternoon. Two can be seen well from land. One you can walk up to.

Burnt Island Light

Burnt Island Light, built in 1821, sits on a small island at the mouth of Boothbay Harbor and is among the older lighthouses on the Maine coast. The island is kept by the state, and it is the one light near town you can actually visit.

Balmy Days Cruises runs trips from Pier 8 on Commercial Street out to the island in season, with time ashore to walk the trails and see the keeper's house. The state also opens it for Maine Open Lighthouse Day in September, when you can climb the tower. Check the schedule before you go; trips run on set days, not daily.

Ram Island Light

Ram Island Light stands on a ledge off the tip of Ocean Point in East Boothbay, at the edge of Fisherman Island Passage, the channel boats use between the open ocean and the harbor. The island is not open to the public.

You can see it two ways. From land, drive out Route 96 to Ocean Point and follow the shore road; the light is visible from several pullouts, and the rocks there are one of the best places on the peninsula to watch the sun go down. From the water, the lighthouse and harbor cruises from downtown pass close by.

The Cuckolds

The Cuckolds light station sits on a pair of rocky islets off Cape Newagen, at the southern tip of Southport, marking the approach to Boothbay Harbor. Since 2006 a local nonprofit, the Cuckolds Council, has owned and restored it.

The Cuckolds are best seen from a boat. Lighthouse cruises from the harbor pass it, and the view of the station against open water is one of the better photographs of the trip. From land, you can glimpse it from the shore around Newagen, but most of that shoreline is private, so the boat is the honest recommendation.

Hendricks Head Light

Hendricks Head Light sits on the west side of Southport at the mouth of the Sheepscot River, a white tower beside its keeper's house. The station is private property, so you are a guest at a distance.

The classic view is from the small public beach at the end of Beach Road in West Southport. The keeper's house partly blocks the tower from some angles, so walk the beach to find your spot. It is a fifteen-minute drive from town over the Southport swing bridge, and a good stop on a loop of the island. Some harbor cruises also pass it on the way up the Sheepscot.

Pemaquid Point Light

Pemaquid Point Light, built in 1827, is the one people recognize. It stands on layered granite ledges that drop into the surf in Bristol, and it is the lighthouse on the Maine state quarter.

It is about an hour's drive from Boothbay Harbor, through Damariscotta and down the Pemaquid peninsula. The grounds are a park with a seasonal entrance fee, and the old keeper's house holds a small fishermen's museum. Go in the late afternoon, climb down onto the rocks, and stay for the light.

How to see the most in the fewest days

One afternoon cruise covers the most ground. The lighthouse trips from the downtown piers pass several of these lights in a couple of hours, and the guides tell the stories of the keepers and the wrecks as you go. Cap'n Fish's Cruises and Balmy Days both run lighthouse trips in season.

Then add the two you see best from land. Ocean Point and Ram Island at sunset on one evening, Pemaquid Point as a half-day drive on another. Hendricks Head fits into a loop of Southport with lunch at Robinson's Wharf by the swing bridge.

• Burnt Island: Balmy Days trip from Pier 8, with time ashore
• Ram Island: Ocean Point shore road, or a harbor cruise
• The Cuckolds: by boat on a lighthouse cruise
• Hendricks Head: the public beach at the end of Beach Road, West Southport
• Pemaquid Point: drive about an hour to the park in Bristol

Where to stay for a lighthouse trip

Greenleaf Inns are on Commercial Street, a short walk from the piers where the lighthouse cruises leave. Greenleaf Inn has ten king rooms and a third-floor sky deck looking out over the harbor. Admiral's Quarters Inn next door has eight rooms, a glass solarium and a lawn with a fire pit. Parking is free, one space per room, so the car is there when you want Ocean Point or Pemaquid and stays put when you do not. Call (207) 633-3100.

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