The Chatham Lighthouse

Seen the movie «The Finest Hours»… well this is the iconic lighthouse portrayed in the movie! A historic, old coast guard station on the eastern edge of Chatham. The station is still active and gives tours every so often to the public. Unfortunately, they weren’t when we were there. It’s a cool sight to see; the history and the purpose of it. There’s ample parking in front and there’s also steps to walk down to the beach. A must see attraction when you’re in Chatham!

Great tiny lighthouse with a beach across the street. I noticed there’s a small military base behind the light house. Also the beach seems fairly busy at this spot. I wouldn’t soak up sun here, there’s way to many people but the view is awesome!

A great thing to do in Chatham. Great parking right on the top of the dunes with s fantastic view of the ocean and inlet or pass. They have pay viewers to see the seals and sharks. Always parking available. They have a coast guard rescue boat with dock on the land outside the lighthouse to view, which is new in 2015. Great lighthouse and coastguard station to tour. The view is to die for. You can walk down the dunes to the ocean, which is a good hike. Best on a sunny, clear day. They also have port a johns available to use. A must stop in Chatham.

Cape Cod hat nicht nur schöné Strände zu bieten, sondern auch einige schöné Leuchttürme. Wer beides haben möchte, sollte zum Chatham Lighthouse fahren.
Wir kamen dort bei leichtem Nebel und Nieselregen an und wir konnten gegenüber vom Leuchtturm einer der wenigen Kurzzeitparkplätze erhaschen. Da die Besichtigung des Leuchtturms in den Sommermonaten nur ca. einmal pro Woche angeboten wird, mussten wir uns lediglich mit ein paar Fotos zufrieden geben.
Der Leuchtturm wurde im Jahre 1808 gebaut und wird heute von der Küstenwache verwaltet. Der Leuchtturm wird seit dem Jahre 1982 nur noch automatisiert betrieben. Seit dem Jahre 1987 wurde das Gebäude in das «National Register of Historic Places» aufgenommen.
Vom Parkplatz aus hatte man einen wunderschönen Blick auf den Chatham Lighthouse Beach, der aufgrund des schlechten Wetters einen nicht so einladenden Eindruck auf uns machte. Aufgrund des schlechten Wetters und unserem Kurzzeitparkplatz haben wir auf einen Spaziergang verzichtet.
Ein wirklich netter Fotostopp und wer mehr Zeit mitbringt sollte sich das Pier und den Strand näher anschauen. Wer Glück hat, kann hier auch Robben sichten, die hier öfters mal Pause machen sollen.

Charming lighthouse. It would have been nice to go on the tour but it’s not open everyday. If I had more time, I would have loved to stay till dark to see the lights. The beach was very picturesque also. The tide had gone out so we saw patches of sand.

There’s not much to do in Chatham. Besides the «Main St» and the beach and the lighthouse, I’m not quite sure what else… Regardless, we came and saw the lighthouse. It’s probably more interesting during on the of the scheduled days it’s open to the public. From the outside, it’s a quaint stereotypically-​looking, good for Instagram lighthouse. No qualms. Just don’t expect much more if you’re coming on a non-​tour day.

This light house may be small but is is still important even today. Admission is free and you learn so much history of all of cape cod. From the top there are amazing panoramic views. Nearby is lighthouse beach and small town. Great place

During a stay in Chatham or the surrounding area make a point to visit the Chatham light house especially at night. The views of the beach during the day are just beautiful but at night the light house beam cuts through the darkness and across the sky with a wave a light which is hard to describe unless you see it for yourself. The light house is even more amazing on those foggy nights and there are always visitors there to view the sights. This is a very popular attraction in the are so parking is very tight so be prepared to circle around a few times until a spot opens up. Dawn at the light house is breathtaking as well and is worth losing a few hours of sleep to see for yourself.

Wandering lights
and
shifting sands
Chatham Harbor was and still is a very dangerous place. Since it is on the elbow of the Cape it gets hammered by huge storms and sneaky currants. Most maps are less than accurate because things are always changing and the sands are always shifting.
So the very first lights constructed back in 1808 were small wooden structures actually built on movable wooden platforms that could be moved around to always align with the shifting sands.
These small lights soon proved inadequate and were finally replaced with two taller cast iron and brick lined lights that stayed put. These twins lights were common back at the time and were thought to help mariners to distinguish this area from the huge Highland Lighthouse not far north of Chatham.
The idea of twin lights soon fell out of favor and the southern light was moved to Nauset Beach in 1923 where it still stands.
The Chatham Lighthouse is now part of a Coast Guard station so you can get close to the light but not actually right up to it. Still a very cool place, with the light on one side of the road and the cool beach on the other. Great views no matter where you look.
The light is still very active and very necessary and is one of the few lights that is on 24 hours a day. The Fresnel Lens is long gone but a powerful electronic beam does the job of showing the way.
Chatham can still be a challenging place to get to into by sea, especially in the night, fog or frequent nasty storm. Things are always changing and the treacherous sands shifting. The Chatham Light still is working to make things just a bit easier, just like it has for a long, long time.

Beautiful views at the beach below!

What a bummer. We drove there thinking we could walk up to the top of the lighthouse and get a nice view of the area. But it’s short, and it’s fenced off so you can’t even go inside. It’s by the beach though, and there is an 30-​minute parking lot across from it so you can take pictures from the coast.

Beautiful lighthouse right outside of the town, this is one of the few light houses that you can actually see the entire lighthouse.
Plenty of parking is available across the street.
Stop here for a view of the beach, and pictures with the lighthouse.

The beach below the Chatham Lighthouse is one of our favorite beaches to spend the day. The beach seems to be never-​ending — you can walk along the shore for what seems like miles (and might actually be miles). I walk with family members and we lose track of time walking and walking and walking…
Farther down the coast, away from where most people are, you can find beautiful, polished rocks, colorful seashells and all sorts of washed up marine life. The other day we saw seals swimming, and on a jetty a few hundred yards off the shore, hundreds of seals sunbathing! It was an amazing sight to see!
The beach is very clean and the water is almost as blue as Caribbean waters (no joke!). And while you’re laying out or swimming in the surf, it’s nice to turn around and see the lighthouse on the hill.
A beautiful place!

I was unimpressed. The other review said the words magical and wonderful… while these do apply to the view when your back is towards the lighthouse, looking over the water, they do not apply to the look/​experience of the lighthouse. It is surrounded by this big fence, and since I went on a hot/​sunny summer weekend, the parking area across the street was more than crowded, so I didn’t even bother attempting to stop. If you’re looking for a beautiful picturesque lighthouse, I would not really say this is it, but the area of Chatham is worth visiting.

If I were a boat, it’d get me home. Unless I didn’t live in Chatham, then I’d hope it’d pay for a cab fare. Or a water taxi. Something that would actually get me home.
In all actuality, the Lighthouse is the name given to the beach (stiff shore lines and a no dog policy for the off-​season) that’s beautiful, but has only an across-​the-​street relationship with your porch light on steroids.
Still historic, always scenic and more fo’ this oddly placed place.

Magical, wonderful, scenic views, fabulous beach. love Chatham and LOVE Chatham Lighthouse Beach.

The famous lighthouse of Cape Cod.