Welcome to the Cape Scott Lighthouse, a remote vista overlooking the stormy waters north and west of Vancouver Island.
Getting here isn't easy and requires a multi day hike starting at the Cape Scott Provincial Park parking lot. From there, hike the muddy trail towards Nels Bight or any of the other areas great for camping. Take time to plan a trip to the north coast since there's a lot of beautiful spots to see up here.
So what's the history behind this lighthouse? It all started in in 1909 on an island almost 50km offshore from the cape. Triangle Island, the furthest reaching of the islands in the Scott Islands group, was selected to house a lighthouse on its hill. By 1910, the construction had finished and a family of lightkeepers moved in for operation.
Unfortunately this was a not a great location and the summit was commonly covered in a thick blanket of fog. The light atop Triangle Island lasted only until 1919, with the associated radio station being dismantled a couple years later. Even today, you'll commonly hear that there is no month of August in Cape Scott Park, instead it's called Fogust.
Fast forward to WWII when Cape Scott saw many visitors to its rocky shores. By this time, most of the Danish settlers who attempted to make a living on the rugged landscape had departed, and the RCAF moved in to the area. They got started on the construction of a secret radar station to monitor the coast from enemy attack over the Pacific. Just down the plank road at Guise Bay was a camp that could hold the 50 people working on the Cape, though little remains from that settlement today. High on the Cape however, a concrete foundation used in radar operations was left behind, leaving a perfect spot to construct a light tower. Finally, in 1959 a new light station was completed on Cape Scott, guiding boats through the treacherous waters below. This tower has since been replaced with the one you see today which was built in 1981. It has since become beacon for thousands of hikers braving the weather and mud to say they've made to the very edge of Vancouver Island.
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Logging requirements:
You've made it out this far, so we'll keep it simple.
To log this virtual there are two requirements.
1. Post a picture of yourself or your geocaching username with the lighthouse in the background. Feel free to get creative. Your face is not required to be in the photo.
2. What is the Month and Year on the bottom on the blue sign attached to the lighthouse foundation. Email or message me the answer to this through my profile.
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Note: This cache is not in Cape Scott Provincial Park boundaries, but hikers are allowed to access the site. Please keep your camping to within the park, and visit during daylight hours only.
Further reading and additional info...
I did not touch on the history of first nations or Danish settlers who made this area home many year prior to the current lighthouse, but I highly encourage those who are interested to may enjoy this short blurb from brtishcolumbia.com
While hiking around the park, keep your eyes peeled for the trailside signs containing interesting historical info regarding the Danish settlers.
For more info on the lighthouse itself, I suggest having a read through this article from LightHouseFriends which was also a source for the writeup of this cache page.
Virtual Rewards 2.0 - 2019/2020
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between June 4, 2019 and June 4, 2020. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 2.0 on the Geocaching Blog.