Lighthouses of Saint Lucia

St. Lucia is an island nation located south of Martinique and north of St. Vincent in the Windward Islands of the West Indies. With a population of about 175,000, St. Lucia has become a popular tourist destination, although it may not be quite as well known as its neighbors Martinique and Barbados. The capital of the country is Castries, on the northwest coast of the island. Originally colonized by France, the island seesawed back and forth between France and Britain throughout the 18th century before becoming British for good in 1814. As a result, a French-based Creole language is commonly spoken and most of the place names are French. St. Lucia became independent in 1979. Aids to navigation in St. Lucia are owned and operated by the St. Lucia Air and Sea Ports Authority (SLASPA). Sadly, SLASPA allowed the island's two historic lighthouses to deteriorate. In 2008, private interests came forward to help restore one of them, the Cap Moule à Chique Light seen at right. ARLHS numbers are from the ARLHS World List of Lights. Admiralty numbers are from volume J of the Admiralty List of Lights & Fog Signals. U.S. NGA numbers are from Publication 110. General Sources Lighthouses in the Caribbean Aerial photos posted by Marinas.com. Online List of Lights - Saint Lucia Photos by various photographers posted by Alex Trabas. Currently the St. Lucia photos are all by Arno Siering. Leuchttürme Mittelamerikas und der Karibik auf historischen Postkarten Historic postcard images posted by Klaus Huelse.

Cap Moule à Chique Light, Vieux-Fort, February 2012 photo copyright Denise Caron; used by permission

Lighthouses

* Cap Moule à Chique (Vieux-Fort) 1912. Inactive. 9 m (29 ft) concrete or stucco-clad cylindrical tower with lantern and gallery. Tower painted white, lantern red. A short concrete block post near the lighthouse carries the active light (focal plane 227 m (745 ft); white flash every 5 s). Denise Caron's photo is above, Geoff Schultz has another photo, a view of the mountaintop is available, Marinas.com has aerial photos, Huelse has a historic postcard image, and Google has a satellite view. In October 2005 Bob Taylor found the lighthouse "being used as a junction for the wiring for all of the radio and signal towers" nearby. A 2008 photo shows continuing deterioration of the lighthouse. Later in 2008 the owners of the Coconut Bay Resort came forward to fund restoration of the lighthouse; in return, the resort is advertising the station as a location for weddings. The restoration was delayed but finally occurred in 2011, and not a moment too soon: the lighthouse was in terrible condition at the time of Tom Willett's August 2010 photo. We don't know if the light has been or will be moved back into the lighthouse. Meanwhile, the view is just as spectacular as advertised on many tourist websites. Located above Vieux-Fort on the southernmost tip of the island. Site open, tower closed. ARLHS STL-001; Admiralty J5798; NGA 15048. Tapion Rock Date unknown (station established 1843). Active; focal plane 15 m (49 ft); quick-flashing white light. 3 m (10 ft) steel post mounted atop a 1-story concrete building. The post is painted red; the building is painted in a black and white checkerboard pattern. A distant view, a closeup, and a view from the sea are available, and Trabas has a photo by Arno Siering. Located atop an isolated rock outside the harbor of Castries. Clouds hide the lighthouse in a Google satellite view. Inaccessible, but there are good views from ships arriving or leaving. Site and tower closed. Admiralty J5792; NGA 15004. * Castries West Wharf Range Rear Date unknown. Active; focal plane 34 m (111 ft); continuous red light. 22 m (72 ft) square skeletal tower, painted white. The tower carries a triangular slatted daymark painted white with an orange vertical stripe. Trabas has Siering's distant view. The front light is on a mast attached to a waterfront building. Located on a hillside southeast of Castries harbor. Site open, tower closed. Admiralty J5793.1; NGA 15020. ** Vigie (2) 1914 (Chance Brothers). Station established 1883. Active; focal plane 97.5 m (320 ft); two white flashes every 10 s. 11 m (36 ft) cylindrical tower with lantern and gallery, painted white with red trim; lantern painted red. Bob Taylor's photo is at right, Trabas has a good photo by Arno Siering, a 1996 photo and a 2003 closeup of the lantern are also available, as well as a 2007 photo by D. Flavien, and Google has a satellite view. Huelse has a postcard view of the original lighthouse shortly before the present one was built. In October 2005 Taylor found the lighthouse in poor condition, with no glass in the lantern. That's still true in a February 2011 photo, but the tower has been repainted. The adjoining keeper's house was in use as office space for the Air and Sea Ports Authority. Located on the Vigie peninsula, the north side of the harbor of Castries, near the airport. Site and tower open daily. ARLHS STL-004; Admiralty J5791; NGA 15000.

Vigie Light, Castries, October 2005 photo copyright Bob Taylor; used by permission

Information available on lost lighthouses:

Adjoining pages: North: Martinique | South: St. Vincent and the Grenadines

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Posted December 8, 2005. Checked and revised November 3, 2012. Lighthouses: 4. Site copyright 2012 Russ Rowlett and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.