Lighthouses of Russia: Gulf of Finland Islands

The Gulf of Finland, the eastern arm of the Baltic Sea, extends about 425 km (265 mi) to end at St. Petersburg, Russia's traditional western outlet to the sea. For most of its length, the Gulf is 60-120 km (38-75 mi) wide. The eastern quarter of the Gulf's length is surrounded by Russian territory, and the western 3/4 separates Finland on the north from Estonia on the south. Both Finland and Estonia were parts of the Russian Empire before World War I, and Estonia was a member republic of the Soviet Union from 1940 until 1991.

Between Finland and Estonia, near the centerline of the Gulf, there is a ragged string of islands that were under Finnish control between World Wars I and II. Retaken by Soviet troops during the Winter War of 1939-40, they were attached to the Russian Federation and remained as Russian possessions after the breakup of the Soviet Union. Administratively, they are assigned to the Kingiseppsky District of Leningrad Oblast.

In the Soviet Union, all lighthouses were closed to foreign visitors. Since the breakup of the Soviet empire, conditions have become much more free, but some of the lighthouses are still closed to casual visits because they are located in sensitive military areas. Better information on accessibility is needed, and photos and visitor reports would be welcome.

Curly braces {} are used to enclose former Finnish names of some of the light stations in the Gulf of Finland region that were controlled by Finland between the two world wars.

Russian lighthouses are owned and operated by the Russian Navy, although some of them have civilian keepers. The Russian word for a lighthouse is mayak (маяк); mys is a cape and ostrov is an island.

ARLHS numbers are from the ARLHS World List of Lights. Admiralty numbers are from volume C of the Admiralty List of Lights & Fog Signals. U.S. NGA List numbers are from Publication 116.

General Sources
Online List of Lights - Russia - Baltic Sea
Photos by Capt. Peter Mosselberger posted by Alexander Trabas.
Lighthouses.net - Russia - Baltic Sea and Finland
Photos taken or collected by Dmitry Rostopshin ("mitko").
Russische Leuchttürme auf historischen Postkarten
Postcard views of historic Russian lighthouses posted by Klaus Huelse.


Gogland (Pohjoiskorkia) Light, May 2007
Wikimedia Creative Commons photo by Islander
Rodsher and Gogland Lighthouses
Ostrov Rodsher (2) {Ruuskeri, Rödskär}
1886 (station established 1806). Active; focal plane 20 m (66 ft); two white flashes, separated by 3 s, every 15 s. 19 m (62 ft) octagonal cylindrical concrete tower with lantern and double gallery. The tower is unpainted dark red stone; lantern dome painted dark red to match. 1-story keeper's houses in poor condition. Viktor Tsarevskiy has additional photos, Ted Sarah has two more photos, there's a night view of the lighthouse in action, the Degree Confluence Project has a photo, and Bing has a satellite view of the station. The light station is now a research station with half a dozen 1-story buildings. The original wood lighthouse was replaced in 1886 by a round brick tower; this tower was later encased by the current octagonal concrete shell. Ostrov Rodsher, a tiny island about 22 km (14 mi) west southwest of Gogland, is the westernmost point of Russia except for Kaliningrad. Accessible only by boat. Site and tower closed. ARLHS ERU-058; Admiralty C3932; NGA 13544.
Severnyy (Northern) Virgin
Date unknown. Active; focal plane 12.5 m (41 ft); white flash every 4 s. 13 m (43 ft) square pyramidal skeletal tower partially enclosed by a slatted daymark painted red; at the top the tower carries a daymark with 2 balls under a cross. Radio amateurs have two photos (third and fourth photos on the page), a distant view is available, and Bing has a satellite view. The two Virgin islands are about 12 km (7.5 mi) east of Rodsher and the same distance southwest of Gogland. Located on the northern island. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. Admiralty C3934; NGA 13548.
Gogland (Severnyy Goglandskiy) {Suursaari, Pohjoiskorkia, Hogland, Hochland} (5)
1965 (station established 1723). Active (?); focal plane 133 m (436 ft); white light, 3 s on, 4.5 s off. Approx. 17 m (56 ft) round cylindrical concrete block tower with lantern and gallery, painted with red and white horizontal bands. 1-story keeper's house and other light station buildings. A fine 2010 photo and an excellent 2006 closeup photo are available, also a third photo and a distant view, Rostopshin has an excellent photo, and Bing has a satellite view. Gogland (Suursaari in Finnish, Hogland in Swedish, Hochland in German, all names meaning "high island") is the largest of the central Gulf islands and the closest to the Finnish coast. Peter I had a lighthouse built here in 1723, but it's not known how long that light survived. In 1807, the station was established as a range, with lights on short stone towers. In 1861, the rear light was replaced by a keeper's house with a large lantern on the roof; Huelse has a historic postcard view of this lighthouse and a 1931 photo is available. The 1861 lighthouse probably did not survive World War II, when Gogland was a base for Soviet troops. It was replaced after the war by a skeletal tower, and then by the masonry lighthouse in 1965. A Russian travel agency has built a hotel on the island and is offering tours from Primorsk. Located atop Pohjoiskorkia, a steep hill at the northern end of the island. Accessible only by boat. Site open, tower closed. ARLHS ERU-056; Admiralty C5374; NGA 13556.
Mys Lounatrivi (Gogland Yuzhny, Hoglands Södra) (3)
1906 (station established 1726). Active; focal plane 27 m (89 ft); white flash every 6 s. 25.5 m (84 ft) round brick tower with lantern and gallery, mounted on a hexagonal stone base. The tower is unpainted red brick with trim painted white. Dmitry Rostopshin's photo is at right, Maksim Antipin has a photo, Konstantin Marchenko has several photos, the Degree Confluence Project has a photo of the station, Trabas has a distant photo by Capt. Peter, and Bing has a satellite view. This is (or was) a light and research station with half a dozen 1-story buildings, and the lighthouse is dwarfed now by a tall communications tower used as part of the vessel traffic separation scheme for the Gulf. Located at the southern tip of the island. Accessible only by boat; a Russian travel agency has built a hotel on the island and is offering tours from Primorsk. Site and tower closed. ARLHS ERU-213; Admiralty C5378; NGA 13552

Mys Lounatrivi Light, Gogland, 2007
Panoramio Creative Commons photo by Dmitry Rostopshin

Tyuters Lighthouses
Malyy Tyuters (Little Tyuters) Northwest
Date unknown. Active; focal plane 14 m (46 ft); white flash every 6 s. 8 m (26 ft) square skeletal tower. One side of the tower carries a slatted daymark painted white with a red vertical stripe. A distant view is available (halfway down the page), and Bing has a satellite view. Malyy Tyuters is a small island about 30 km (19 mi) south of Gogland. Located at the northwestern tip of the island. Accessible only by boat. Site open, tower closed. Admiralty C3939.4.
Malyy Tyuters (Little Tyuters) Southeast
Date unknown. Active; focal plane 14 m (46 ft); white flash every 6 s. 8 m (26 ft) square skeletal tower. The tower carries a slatted saymark painted white with a red (?) vertical stripe. No photo available, but Bing has an indistinct satellite view. Located at the end of a long spit extending southeastward from the island. Accessible only by boat. Site open, tower closed. Admiralty C3939.42.
Bol'shoy Tyuters (Great Tyuters) {Tytärsaari} (2)
1904. Active; focal plane 75 m (246 ft); white light, 1 s on, 1 s off, 3 s on, 9 s off. 21 m (69 ft) hexagonal brick tower. Bol'shoy Tyuters is one of a group of four islands in the middle of the Gulf. Wikimapia has a small photo, a black and white closeup and a 1985 photo are available, and Google has a satellite view. Huelse has a historic postcard view showing the original appearance of the lighthouse. In 2004 the island was incorporated within the Ingermanlandsky National Nature Reserve, part of an international biosphere reserve developed in cooperation with Finland. The island is dangerous due to unexploded World War II mines; in 2005, Swedish and Russian teams removed over 30,000 mines, but it feared that others may remain. Located on the highest point of the island, about 30 km (19 mi) south of Kotka, Finland, and 80 km (50 mi) west northwest of Kurgolovo, Russia. Accessible only by boat. Site and tower closed. ARLHS ERU-017; Admiralty C3938; NGA 12960.

Sommers and Nerva Lighthouses
Sommers (Someri, Sommars, Ostrov Mayak) {Sommarö} (3)
1945 (station established 1808). Active; focal plane 53 m (174 ft); two white flashes every 10 s. 37 m (121 ft) square steel skeletal tower with gallery, painted red; the upper 2/3 of the tower is surrounded by a slatted daymark painted with red and white horizontal bands. The photo at right and a second photo show the tall radar and communications tower built on the island, Trabas has a distant photo by Capt. Peter, Swedish Wikipedia has an article on the island with a distant view, and Google has a satellite view. Several keeper's houses and other structures survive at this station. The first two lighthouses were round masonry towers about 9 m (30 ft) tall; the second, built in 1866, was destroyed by Finnish troops at the start of the Winter War in 1939. Sommers is a small island about 12 km (7.5 mi) northwest of Moshchnyy and 18 km (11 mi) south of Hanski on the Finnish coast. Accessible only by boat. Site and tower closed. ARLHS ERU-065; Admiralty C3944; NGA 13276.
Nerva (Ostrov Nerva) (2)
1945 (station established 1867). Active; focal plane 44 m (144 ft); white flash every 8 s. 37 m (121 ft) square steel skeletal tower with gallery, painted red; the upper half of the tower is surrounded by a slatted daymark painted white with a black horizontal band at the top. Maksim Antipin has a photo, Rostopshin has a good view from the sea, a distant sunset photo is available, and Trabas has a photo by Capt. Peter, but the island is missing from Google's satellite view. Several keeper's houses and other structures survive at this station. The original lighthouse was a 28 m (92 ft) round masonry tower; it did not survive World War II. Located on a small island about 18 km (11 mi) east northeast of Sommers. Site and tower closed (landing on the island is forbidden). ARLHS ERU-053; Admiralty C3946; NGA 13272.
Sommers Light
Sommers Light (left) and Traffic Control Tower, July 2010
Panoramio photo copyright Martes zibellina; permission requested

Moshchnyy Lighthouses
Vigrund
Date unknown. Active; focal plane 22 m (72 ft); white flash every 5 s. 20 m (66 ft) square pyramidal skeletal tower, painted red. A 2010 photo is available, but the island of Vigrund is missing from Google's satellite view. Located on a small island about 25 km (15 mi) southwest of Moschnyy. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. ARLHS ERU-230; Admiralty C3940; NGA 12964.
Moshchnyy (Moschny, Bashnya) {Lavensaari}
1910. Active; focal plane 30 m (98 ft); three white flashes every 10 s. 29 m (95 ft) 16-sided cast iron skeletal tower with lantern and gallery, painted red; lantern dome painted white. Wikimapia's photo is at right, another photo is available, and Bing has a wintry and cloudy satellite view. Moshchnyy is an island about 20 km (13 mi) northwest of Kurgolovo. Located on the northern tip of the island. Accessible only by boat. Site and tower closed. ARLHS ERU-154; Admiralty C3952; NGA 13280.
Ostrov Moshchnyy Range Front
Date unknown. Active; focal plane 20 m (66 ft); white light, 1.5 s on, 1.5 s off. 19 m (62 ft) square concrete tower, painted white with a black vertical stripe on the range line. Wikimapia has a photo, the same photo is on Panoramio, a view of both range lights is available, and Bing has a satellite view. Located on the northeast side of the island. Accessible only by boat. Site and tower closed. Admiralty C3954.
Ostrov Moshchnyy Range Rear
Date unknown. Active; focal plane 34 m (112 ft); white light, 1.5 s on, 1.5 s off. 29 m (95 ft) square skeletal tower, painted red; the tower also carries a rectangular daymark painted white with a black vertical stripe on the range line. A distant photo and a view of both range lights are available, and Bing has an indistinct satellite view. Located 415 m (1/4 mi) behind the front light. Accessible only by boat. Site and tower closed. Admiralty C3954.1.
Promezhutochnyy Range Front
Date unknown. Active; focal plane 20 m (66 ft); quick-flashing white light. 16 m (52 ft) square skeletal tower, painted red; the tower also carries a rectangular daymark painted white with a black vertical stripe on the range line. No photo available. Located on the east side of Ostrov Moshchnyy. Accessible only by boat. Site and tower closed. Admiralty C3958.

Moshchnyy Light
Wikimapia Creative Commons photo
Promezhutochnyy Range Rear
Date unknown. Active; focal plane 35 m (115 ft); white light, 2 s on, 2 s off. 26 m (82 ft) square skeletal tower, painted red; the tower also carries a rectangular daymark painted white with a black vertical stripe on the range line. No photo available. Located 410 m (1/4 mi) behind the front light. Accessible only by boat. Site and tower closed. Admiralty C3958.1.
Ostrov Malyy
Date unknown. Active; focal plane 37 m (121 ft); white light, 2 s on, 4 s off. 27 m (89 ft) skeletal tower, painted red. The tower carries a slatted daymark painted white with a red vertical stripe. No photo available, but Bing has an indistinct satellite view. Ostrov Malyy is a small island about 8 km (5 mi) due east of Moschnyy. Located on the highest point of the island. Accessible only by boat. Site and tower closed. ARLHS ERU-154; Admiralty C3964; NGA 13284.

Seskar Lighthouses
Seskar {Seiskari} (3)
1858 (station established in the 1600s). Active; focal plane 30 m (98 ft); two white flashes, separated by 6.5 s, every 30 s. 31 m (101 ft) round tower with lantern and gallery, painted red with a broad white horizontal band covering most of the lower half. A large clamshell Fresnel lens is in use. The keepers houses were occupied by keepers as of 1998. Capt. Peter's photo is at right, Nikita Bogomolov has a 2007 photo, a closeup and a sunset photo are available, Rostopshin has an aerial view, a historic photo is available, and Huelse has a historic postcard view, but Bing has only a distant satellite view of the island. Sweden built a lighthouse here in the 17th century; Russia replaced it with a brick tower in 1807 before building the present lighthouse in 1858. The status of this site is unclear; Pete Amass visited the station and climbed the tower in 1998, but there is a 2004 report that the island has only recently been opened to foreign visitors. Located on the northwestern point of Ostrov Lesnoy, the main island of the Seskar island group, about 16 km (10 mi) northwest of Mys (Cape) Kolgampja. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. ARLHS ERU-005; Admiralty C3968; NGA 13288.
Pen-Kheta-Stor
Date unknown. Active; focal plane 26 m (85 ft); two white flashes every 4 s. 24 m (79 ft) square skeletal tower, painted red. The upper 2/3 of the tower is covered with a slatted daymark painted white with red vertical stripes. Wikimapia has a photo (sixth photo in the row). Located on the southeastern tip of Ostrov Lesnoy. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. ARLHS ERU-223; Admiralty C3972; NGA 13292.

Seskar Light
photo copyright Capt. Peter Mosselberger; used by permission

Information available on lost lighthouses:

Notable faux lighthouses:

Adjoining pages: North: Southern Finland | East: St. Petersburg Area | South: Northern Estonia

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Posted May 22, 2005. Checked and revised March 20, 2013. Lighthouses: 18. Site copyright 2013 Russ Rowlett and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.