Thunder Bay group restores local lighthouses

Two lighthouses just east of Thunder Bay have gone from shabby to sharp thanks to the work of local volunteers.

The group Canadian Lighthouses of Lake Superior (formerly Friends of Trowbridge Lighthouse) spent the summer restoring the Number 10 lighthouse, and Porphyry Point lighthouse.

"They were quite - I don't want to say derelict - but they certainly were weathered," said Paul Capon, the chair of the group, noting that the buildings have been vacant for many years. 

The community group acquired the two lighthouses after they were declared surplus by the federal government.

Capon said members of the organization want to make sure the picturesque red and white lighthouses are preserved for the future, and remain safe harbours for passing boaters. 

"I guess they're what you would call a very iconic picture and really a part of Canada," he said. "If your GPS does not work - which, sometimes they break down - at least there's a light our there and you're not totally alone." 

Visiting boaters will be able to stay the night in a lighthouse

In order to take responsibility for an old lighthouses, community groups must submit a business plan to the government.

In addition to fundraising, "Canadian Lighthouses of Lake Superior" plans to open the Number 10 and Porphyry Point lighthouses to overnight bookings.

Starting next summer, canoeists and kayakers will be able to stay the night in exchange for a fee, or work around the buildings. 

Capon said he looks forward to seeing more visitors at the lighthouses. 

"They're in beautiful settings, and they belong to the public. The public paid for them, and really they should have an opportunity to see them and see the beauty of northwestern Ontario," he said.

"There are plans in the future for a Trans-Canada Trail, and there's a water portion of it," he said. "We see the lighthouses as sort of jewels along that necklace of trails going along the North Shore of Lake Superior." 

Capon said his group hopes to take responsibility for more North Shore lighthouses in the future.