Beyond the Scenery

Park News

    Yay for fourth graders and their teachers! The Park Service’s Every Kid Outdoor Pass allows those entering fourth grade in August/September to obtain a free pass for them and their families for all of their fourth grade year. Educators who teach them can also get passes for their students.

    Did you know August 7 is National Lighthouse Day? Let me introduce you to a few spots in the Park Service where you can find them:

•    Wisconsin’s Apostle Islands National Lakeshore has the largest collection of lighthouses in the Park Service. Scroll down on this page to see the map of the to discover just how many there are scattered around the 21 islands that make up this site on Lake Superior. This one, constructed in 1881 from locally quarried brownstone—is on Sand Island. The way to get to them is by boat—in your own craft or a rented one, or on a cruise run by a park concessionaire. You can even stay overnight in one of them! 

•    Cabrillo National Monument in California features the Old Point Loma Lighthouse. It has a fixed lens, seen in this photo, which continually beams out in an unwavering 360-degree circle. Its original lens was a flashing one, shooting out periodic radiant spokes, and is on display in the Assistant Keepers Quarters. While you can explore the main level and grounds by yourself, a guided tour of the lighthouse tower only happens a few days a year—August 25th is the next one.

•    The tallest lighthouse on Long Island, New York is at Fire Island National Seashore. Take a $10 tower tour (182 steps!) and see the New York City skyline. 

•    Cape Cod National Seashore in Massachusetts has a number of beacons to visit. Tours are given from May to September or October. The Three Sisters, shown here, have been moved back from the shore due to erosion.

Find more lighthouses here.

August’s sub-par park review

         “A massive disappointment” is the assessment for Maine’s Acadia National Park. Probably not for most of the millions who go there every year, which is why it’s among the top ten most visited of all 63 of the national parks. Hike, bike, boat, horseback ride, birdwatch, or take in the spectacular scenery by horse-drawn carriage.

         If you want to drive up Cadillac Mountain and see the sunrise, you’ll need to register your vehicle mid-May through mid-October. This photo depicts the Milky Way through the trees on Cadillac Mountain. And stop by Jordan Pond House to pick up a box lunch, or stop by for tea and popovers.

Acadia also has lighthouses.

Current affairs in the parks

Here’s a mixture of news about the Park Service’s budget, signage, and volunteers.

Books

         My fellow authors at Pelican Publishing Group have novels coming out this month. If you like fictional romance, these are for you (and very inexpensive, too!):

• Moon Swindler, Moon Shakers, by Robert Kuntz (August 08)
• Super Heroes, by M. Jean Pike (August 22)
• Shifting Goals, by Tracy Wainwright (August 29)

The Light

     Lighthouses are God-sends to mariners needing guidance or looking for a safe harbor. Jesus literally is God-sent (John 3:16) light:

• In Him [Jesus] was life, and the life was the light of mankind (v. 1:4)

• [Jesus said], “I am the Light of the world; the one who follows Me will not walk in darkness, but will have the Light of life” (v. 8:12)

Only He had the power to keep His promise to direct our path and keep us from shipwreck:

• For this God is our God forever and ever; He will be our guide until death (Psalm 48:14)
• The Lord will deliver me from every evil work, and bring me safely to His heavenly kingdom. To Him be glory forever and ever. Amen. (2 Timothy 4:18)