Travel

Borden Flats Lighthouse

 

 

Our adventure began at the Borden Light Marina in Fall River, when Kevin Ferias picked us up and took us in his boat to the Lighthouse. It didn’t look very big from shore but loomed large by the time we reached the daunting steps to climb up to the apron.

 

Nick Korstad bought the Lighthouse, which had been abandoned for over 50 years, and painstakingly refurbished it to what you see here today. Our guide and current Lighthouse keeper, Kevin, bought the Lighthouse from Nick in May 2018. He has had a passion for lighthouses since he was a child and will keep on the tradition of renting the lighthouse so everyone can enjoy it’s history and charm. Kevin gave us an extensive tour of the Borden Flats Lighthouse from bottom to top and I’m sure I only remember a quarter of the vast information and stories he shared. Kevin took a few photos for us and then departed and we had the place to ourselves as “Lighthouse Keepers” until the next morning.

Kevin pointed out that the lighthouse has a 5 degree tilt which happened when it moved quite a distance with the hurricane of 1938. It was set in it’s current location more securely with this apron around it and a steel base

He showed us the large, older solar panels which have not yet been removed and the new ones which are already ready to be updated.

Kevin is so enthusiastic about his subject. We learned a lot of history and lore from him, including the story of John Paul and his ghost who haunts the lighthouse.

 

There is a relaxing deck which we took advantage of to read, write, listen to music, have drinks and dinner, and just enjoy watching the boats go by.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The first floor is very welcoming and houses the kitchen and bathroom.

 

 

 

On the second floor is a lovely living room.

In the third floor sitting room, there is a library of books and paraphernalia on lighthouses. As we climbed each floor, Kevin pointed out how the walls became less thick.

The green chute, pictured above, used to carry animal fat and kerosene to the top of the lighthouse and now it is used to house wiring.

The bedroom is on the fourth floor but Kevin is considering moving  it to one of the lower floors in the future.

There was enough power to run this fan at night.

The next level houses the lighthouse mechanics, with great views of the Braga Bridge, Battleship Cove, and the Mount Hope Bay.You can see the old style beacon light with Fresnel lenses in the photographs on the right. The light sources have changed significantly through the years to the current LED lights.

In order to get outside to see an unobstructed view you need to bend/crawl through this door but it’s worth it.

Kevin took a photo of us at the top.

This flag has to be replaced every few days!

I climbed up at dusk and at night to get these shots when the light went on. We got our exercise climbing those stairs!

Each window was decorated uniquely and added to the nautical ambiance.

 

We had beautiful views of the bridge, the battleship ” Big Mamie”, Saint Anne’s Church in the distance, and many boats passing by, including the Block Island ferry. We even spotted an unidentified fish! I grew up in Fall River and remember as a child, waiting in the car going to or from Somerset, for the bridge to open to let boats go through before the Braga Bridge was built.

 

As we were eating dinner, we were treated to a colorful sunset. We were originally supposed to go in November but our date was cancelled due to high winds. As I watched the dramatic sun set, I realized July was a much better choice! I developed one of the shots in tungsten white balance and it looked like the now closed power plant was breathing fire.

We were surprised by fireworks from more than one location, a shooting star, and spotted the Big Dipper constellation. Despite the intense heat that day, as we played a game of scrabble on the first floor that night, my legs felt cold!

I had so much fun photographing the lighthouse. There were tons of interesting detail shots also, too numerous to post. Sharyn caught this photograph of me taking photos. You had to be careful not to get too close to the edge! I included 2 or 3 shots in this blog taken with my iPhone like this night shot above as I didn’t bring my tripod. The rest were taken with my Sony A55

When I woke up the next morning at 4:30 a.m.,everything was cloaked in fog.

The sun burned off the fog and we had a relaxing morning after breakfast, enjoying the last moments of our “Lighthouse Adventure”. Thank you Kevin for preserving the history of the Borden Flats Lighthouse.