From our campsite at Elk Neck State Park, we drove to the trail head for the Lighthouse Trail at Turkey Point. It took less than 10 minutes to the trail head so it wasn't far. Parking at the trail head was pretty bad as it was a small parking lot with not many spaces. Luckily someone was leaving right when we got there, so we got a parking spot pretty quickly.
At the very start of the trail to your right, are cliffs. If you look at the above picture, the red sign on the right says "Cliffs are hazardous proceed at your own risk". Definitely true as there are steep drop offs. The picture below is a beautiful view from the cliff side. If you have kids with you, please make sure they don't get close to the edge.
The trail is fairly easy and perfect for kids. My 3 year old did a great job and walked the whole thing.
At one point in the trail, the trail divides and you can go either left or right. We stayed to the right and it leads you towards a private little beach area if you veer off the trail (you will see the opening).
The kids loved throwing rocks and looking for little shells.
Got a great family pic by the water.
After spending some time at the little beach we followed the trail to the lighthouse.
We were able to climb up the 35 foot lighthouse, built in 1833. It is open (April through November between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.). What was pretty neat, was we learned from the man that was there allowing people to go up, that he was actually related to the last lightkeeper. The last lightkeeper was his Great Grandmother. I thought it was pretty cool as he has got lots of history there with his Great Grandmother as the last keeper and that he is also working there now.
The pic below shows some pictures about the history of the lighthouse that were inside.
There are steps to climb and at the top a ladder to go inside. Here is my 3 year old on the ladder about to go inside where the light is.
Here is the view at the top with the actual light in the picture.
Inside it is pretty stuffy and very cramped. It is no wonder they only let 4 people at a time when going up.
In all it was a great hike, especially since it is great for kids. The trail was wide and easy to follow. Distance was very doable as it was a mile and a half total and there were great views. The little private beach I feel was the best part. The kids really enjoyed that part the most. I definitely recommend this hike if you are ever in the area or are camping at the park.
No comments:
Post a Comment