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Lake Havasu Lighthouses information kiosk in London Bridge Park
Working replicas of famous lighthouses on Lake Havasu, Arizona
Arizona is a land-locked state and not often associated with lighthouses, but Lake Havasu City in Arizona is home to more lighthouses than any other city in the United States. The fully functional lighthouses are one-third scale replicas of famous East Coast, West Coast, and Great Lakes lighthouses.
A group of Lake Havasu City boaters formed the Lake Havasu Lighthouse Club in 2000 to address the need for navigation aids on Lake Havasu’s twists and bends.
The first lighthouse replica was of West Quoddy Lighthouse in Lubec, Maine. The replica replaced an existing navigational aid and was dedicated in June, 2002. Today 22 lighthouse replicas exist, with plans for an additional 5 to be built.
Currituck Beach Lighthouse replica. The original is on North Carolina’s Outer Banks.
Wind Point Lighthouse replica. The original is 3.5 miles north of Racine, Wisconsin on the shores of Lake Michigan.
All of the lighthouses on the west side of Lake Havasu are replicas of West Coast lighthouses while those on the east side are replicas of East Coast lighthouses. The lighthouses around the island are replicas of Great Lakes lighthouses. As per coast guard navigational regulations, lighthouses on the west coast use a green beacon and lighthouses on the east coast use a red beacon.
Algoma Pierhead Lighthouse replica. The original is on the shores of Lake Michigan at Algoma, Wisconsin.
Vermillion Lighthouse replica. The original is on the shore of Lake Erie at Vermillion, Ohio.
A map of lighthouse locations is available at Lake Havasu City Visitor Center at the foot of London Bridge. 11 lighthouses are accessible by land. The others may be seen from the lake.
Split Rock Lighthouse replica. The original is located on the North Shore of Lake Superior near Two Harbors, Minnesota.
Have you seen Lake Havasu City’s lighthouses? Have you seen any of the originals? In addition to the ones I’ve highlighted in my pictures, replicas include West Quoddy, Cape Hatteras, Robert H. Manning, Main Buffalo, Sandy Hook, Table Bluff, East Quoddy, Alpena, Mount Desert Rock, Barnegat, Berwick, White Shoals, Umpqua, Portland Head, Fire Island, Chicago Harbor Navy Pier, and Gray’s Harbor Light.
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This post is part of Travel Photo Mondays on Travel Photo Discovery.
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62 Comments
Paul Graham
June 1, 2014 at 8:21 amHi Donna. Yes, I had the pleasure of seeing several of the Lake Havasu area lighthouses. I think these are a great idea. With all of the recent lighthouse closures on Canada’s coasts it would be good to see something similar here. I read recently about a Brit who is making smaller replicas of some Nova Scotia lighthouses. Hopefully it will catch on !
Donna Janke
June 1, 2014 at 10:32 amHi Paul. I’d like to see those Nova Scotia lighthouse replicas. The building of the replicas requires people dedicated enough to put up money for it. In Lake Havasu City, each new lighthouse is sponsored by someone or some group.
Michele Harvey
June 1, 2014 at 2:29 pmI never knew about the many lighthouse replicas in Lake Havasu City. Your photos of the lighthouses against the backdrop of mountains and palm trees are really beautiful.
Donna Janke
June 2, 2014 at 11:04 amThanks Michele. It is a beautiful setting for these replicas.
flattiresandslowboats.com
June 1, 2014 at 3:27 pmWhat a great way to integrate a pragmatic solution with an artistic one. These lighthouses serve both. Thanks for bringing this to my attention.
Donna Janke
June 2, 2014 at 11:06 amI agree it is a good combination of art and function.
Laurie S Hurley
June 1, 2014 at 4:35 pmI had no clue Arizona has so many lighthouses! And I live in California, right next door. Should have known that – a good piece of trivia. I used to live on Cape Cod and my running route would take me by a beautiful lighthouse overlooking Buzzard’s Bay. This brought that sensation back to me for a moment. Beautiful pictures.
Donna Janke
June 2, 2014 at 11:09 amThanks Laurie. There is something appealing about lighthouses, isn’t there?
Patricia Weber
June 1, 2014 at 7:45 pmAlmost tied with our area with this number! In North Carolina and Virginia. Who knew. We have one lighthouse that was closed and a couple bought it to live in it as a house. Your post reminded me to check into just how that worked out. It’s been about a year or more.
Thanks.
Over from LinkedIn group BHB
Donna Janke
June 2, 2014 at 11:10 amIt would be interesting to see how the lighthouse to home conversion worked out.
Kumar Gauraw
June 1, 2014 at 10:22 pmHi Donna,
I never knew about the any of these lighthouse or the Lake Havasu City itself. Thanks for sharing these beautiful pictures. Some of them look so beautiful.
Regards,
Kumar
Donna Janke
June 2, 2014 at 11:10 amThanks Kumar. Lake Havasu City is a pretty spot.
Lenie
June 2, 2014 at 6:29 amHi Donna – I find it wonderful that people are creative and dedicated enough to build these replicas. I live just east of Lake Huron in Ontario and we have a number of lighthouses placed along the shore of the lake. I always enjoy seeing them. I also enjoyed seeing your pictures – they are beautiful.
Lenie
Donna Janke
June 2, 2014 at 11:12 amThanks Lenie. I also enjoy seeing lighthouses.
Kay Dougherty
June 2, 2014 at 10:31 amThis was so interesting in the “Whooda Thunk It”? category! It’s such a clever idea. I lived in New England and have seen many of the east coast “real” lighthouses but if I find myself in Arizona I will definitely look this place up. Thanks!
Donna Janke
June 2, 2014 at 11:13 amIt is a clever idea, especially because all the replicas are working lighthouses.
William A. Butler
June 2, 2014 at 10:37 amHi Donna,
Thanks for a beautiful post! I love learning. I had no idea of all the lightouses in Arizona. I like the contrast of mountain and lighthouse in the Algoma Pierhead photo. We were through Kingman on through to Sedona nearly 2 years ago, so we did not venture into the Lake Havasu or the Grand Canyon area. I’ve seen a number of interesting lighthouses in Michigan, but my all-time favorite is Peggy’s Cove, Nova Scotia.
Kind Regards,
Bill
Donna Janke
June 2, 2014 at 11:13 amThanks Bill. I too love Peggy’s Cove lighthouse.
Arleen
June 2, 2014 at 11:23 amI have never seen Lake Havasu City’s lighthouses. I do love to go and visit lighthouses along the eastern seaboard. They fascinate me. We stayed at a hotel in Rhode Island where the lighthouse was close by and beacon of light lulled me to sleep
Donna Janke
June 2, 2014 at 12:44 pmIt’s good that the beacon of light lulled you to sleep rather than keeping you up. I suspect some people might have had that issue.
santafetraveler
June 2, 2014 at 12:08 pmHow cool! I love lighthouses. Seeing them in AZ would be a bit strange.
Donna Janke
June 2, 2014 at 12:45 pmCertainly not what I would have expected in AZ either, but pretty cool to see.
Jackie and Joel Smith
June 2, 2014 at 1:47 pmOh Donna, This is great. I would never have put lighthouses and Arizona in the same thought pattern or sentence. Love your post~
Donna Janke
June 2, 2014 at 2:58 pmThanks. Lighthouses and Arizona don’t seem to belong together, do they?
Carole Terwilliger Meyers
June 2, 2014 at 2:50 pmI’ve heard about these lighthouses but never actually seen them. Thanks for taking me there! Here’s an original California lighthouse not mentioned, that you can spend the night in, http://weekendadventuresupdate.blogspot.com/2014/03/greater-east-bay-richmond-east-brother.html
Donna Janke
June 2, 2014 at 3:02 pmThanks Carole. East Brother Light Station looks and sounds like a fun adventure.
Mina Joshi
June 2, 2014 at 3:01 pmI wasn’t aware of any light houses being built inland away from the sea. They must look impressive .
Donna Janke
June 2, 2014 at 3:27 pmLake Havasu City sits along the shores of Lake Havasu, a lake created by dams in the Colorado River. Apparently, there are some twists and bends in the lake that make navigation tricky – hence the need for the lighthouses.
Irene S. Levine
June 2, 2014 at 7:28 pmThanks for sharing. Arizona would have definitely been the last place I would have looked for lighthouses!
Donna Janke
June 3, 2014 at 8:27 amI didn’t expect that in Arizona either.
Neva Fels
June 2, 2014 at 8:43 pmWe love visiting lighthouses and being able to see so many in miniature is a great way to get your fix on these buildings. It would be fun to send our family in Wisconsin these photos of Algoma and Racine’s replicas for a chuckle.
Donna Janke
June 3, 2014 at 8:29 amYes, it would be interesting to hear what people who live close to one of the original lighthouses think of the replicas.
Susan Cooper
June 2, 2014 at 9:40 pmOh WOW, I never knew these existed. They are absolutely wonderful. When I find myself in these areas I do plan on going to see them. Thank you so much for sharing this. :-)))
Donna Janke
June 3, 2014 at 8:29 amThey are fun to see.
A Taste for Travel
June 3, 2014 at 8:05 amLighthouses in Arizona…what a unique idea yet how perfectly they seem to fit into the desert landscape. They look as desolate and evocative as they do on water’s edge.
Donna Janke
June 3, 2014 at 8:30 amThere is definitely something evocative about lighthouses.
Beth Niebuhr
June 3, 2014 at 9:57 amHow cool! I live in Arizona but haven’t visited Lake Havasu lately. I’ll put the lighthouse replicas on my list of fun things to see. Great pictures!
Donna Janke
June 3, 2014 at 3:50 pmIt’s fun to seek out the lighthouses. I only managed to see a few of time. Some are only visible from on the lake.
Julie Conway
June 3, 2014 at 10:02 amNever would have thought about lighthouses in Arizona. Interesting article.
Donna Janke
June 3, 2014 at 3:50 pmThanks Julie.
Crystal
June 3, 2014 at 10:09 amHi I live in tempe Arizona and never knew there where light houses in lake Havasu. So cool and great way of explaining it! 🙂
Donna Janke
June 3, 2014 at 3:51 pmThe lighthouses are pretty cool! Thanks Crystal.
jacquie
June 3, 2014 at 10:22 amThis is one of the most interesting posts I have read this week! I had no idea! I lived in Wisconsin for 18 years and had a home in Northern Wisconsin as well… I drove through Algoma every weekend! I think it such a wonderful idea to do these replicas as a creative way to meet a real need. These pictures took me back….thanks so much for entertaining me this morning:)
Donna Janke
June 3, 2014 at 3:52 pmThanks Jacquie. The replicas are a creative way to meet a real need.
Meredith Wouters
June 3, 2014 at 2:12 pmHow fun! Your title really caught my attention – who would have thought AZ would have lighthouses? I’m fascinated by lighthouses, since I live in a landlocked state as well. The only one I’ve seen up close is in Oregon.
Donna Janke
June 3, 2014 at 3:53 pmI live in the middle of the Canadian prairies so I also don’t see many lighthouses on a daily basis, but I find them fascinating as well.
Anita Oliver
June 3, 2014 at 5:56 pmWhat a creative and picturesque solution to address a safety problem! I love lighthouses and one of my favorites is in Astoria, Oregon.
Donna Janke
June 4, 2014 at 8:18 amDefinitely picturesque Anita.
dukestewart
June 3, 2014 at 10:42 pmWow, so cool to recreate lighthouses from other places. I also live near the water and this post has made me wonder about the purposes and locations of each one in my own city. Thank you for sharing this. You might’ve just inspired a post from me on a similar topic. I hope you don’t mind.
Donna Janke
June 4, 2014 at 8:19 amI would love to read about the lighthouses in your city.
Derrick Coyle
June 4, 2014 at 9:02 amWell that’s something learned for the day. I’ve always wanted to visit Arizona but I would have been a long time guessing this particular claim to fame! Thanks Donna, I enjoyed the read and photos of these beautiful lighthouse lights.
Donna Janke
June 4, 2014 at 9:35 amThanks Derrick.
Jason Butler
June 4, 2014 at 2:06 pmWho would have though AZ has all those lighthouses? That’s pretty cool.
Donna Janke
June 4, 2014 at 5:18 pmThey’re fun to seek out when touring around the city.
Doreen Pendgracs
June 4, 2014 at 3:59 pmI have never been to Lake Havasu, but have heard lots of good things about it. Although I’ve never heard of any good chocolate makers there! Interesting how they have so many lighthouses!
Donna Janke
June 4, 2014 at 5:21 pmI was only in Lake Havasu City for a short time, but I never heard of or saw any chocolate makers.
Kinda Zennish
June 5, 2014 at 6:55 amI lived most of my life in Arizona and I have never heard of Lake Havasu City’s lighthouses! I wish I had when I was out there, I’ve never seen a light house.
Donna Janke
June 6, 2014 at 7:11 amThe first lighthouse replica was dedicated in 2002. All the lighthouses have been built in the 14 years since then, so they are a relatively recent thing.
Ilaria
June 7, 2014 at 10:28 amHi Donna, I’ve seen only sea lighthouses. I love them all cause they’re very romantic and fascinating! In Italy there are some lighthouses offers as a B&B, a very nice kind of accomodation 🙂
Donna Janke
June 7, 2014 at 5:14 pmI’d love to stay in a B&B in a lighthouse.
http://nonnaswanderings.wordpress.com
June 7, 2014 at 4:31 pmyou have a knack for highlighting detail that many of us overlook. The replicas are clever additions.
Donna Janke
June 7, 2014 at 5:15 pmThanks. The replicas, if you are able to get close enough to them, have information about the original lighthouse posted on the side.