Cape Forchu Lighthouse
A concrete lighthouse shaped like an apple core, built in 1962 to cut wind resistance on an exposed point.
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The present light at Cape Forchu was built in 1962 to replace an 1839 tower, and its unusual profile is functional: the concrete shaft is waisted in the middle, wider at base and lantern, a shape sometimes called an apple core, designed to shed the wind that batters this exposed point. Champlain named the cape in 1604 for the forked shape of the harbour entrance. The keeper's house holds a small museum and a tea room. The rocks below are volcanic and folded, and the walking trails on the point pass through a landscape scoured bare by weather. Storm watching in autumn is a local pursuit.
What you actually see
- The apple-core tower - a waisted concrete shaft built for wind resistance.
- The keeper's house - a museum and tea room in the light station.
- The folded volcanic rock - the shore below the point.
- The storm watching - the exposed cape in autumn weather.
When to go
May to October for the museum and tea room; the grounds are open year-round and autumn storms are a draw. Fog is frequent in summer and can hide everything.
Honest expectations
The tower interior is not open to the public. The museum is small and seasonal. Fog can obscure the entire point for days at a time.
Nearby
Yarmouth lies east; Brier Island is north.
What to pack for Cape Forchu Lighthouse
Chosen from what this place is for. Tap a kit for the full checklist.
Opening times, ticket prices and seasonal closures change - check the official source before you go: official site.
