Cape Palliser Lighthouse is a lighthouse at

Cape Palliser Cape Palliser is a promontory on the southern coast of New Zealand's North Island and is the southernmost point of the North Island; it is in fact considerably farther south than Nelson or Blenheim in the South Island. It is located at the easte ...

in the

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by m ...

region of the

North Island The North Island, also officially named Te Ika-a-Māui, is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but much less populous South Island by the Cook Strait. The island's area is , making it the world's 14th-larges ...

of New Zealand. It is owned and operated by

Maritime New Zealand Maritime New Zealand (New Zealand Maritime Safety Authority) is a Crown entity and also a state maritime safety authority responsible for protecting the maritime transport sequence and marine environment within New Zealand and maintaining safety ...

. The light was built in 1897 and was originally fueled by

oil An oil is any nonpolar chemical substance that is composed primarily of hydrocarbons and is hydrophobic (does not mix with water) & lipophilic (mixes with other oils). Oils are usually flammable and surface active. Most oils are unsaturate ...

. In 1954 the oil lamp was replaced with an

electric Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described b ...

one powered by a local diesel generator. This was subsequently replaced by a connection to the mains grid in 1967, although a diesel generator is retained for emergency power. The light was fully automated in 1986 and is now managed from a control room in Wellington. The base of the lighthouse is reached via a staircase with 258 steps, up a 58-metre-high cliff. This staircase – built in 1912 – replaced a dangerous dirt track. Cape Palliser lighthouse is one of three New Zealand lighthouses with a distinct striped paint scheme; the other two are

Dog Island Lighthouse The Dog Island Lighthouse on Dog Island in Foveaux Strait is New Zealand's tallest lighthouse, and one of its oldest. It is notable for its masonry construction, and is a work example by an engineer who was prominent at the time. The lighthous ...

and Cape Campbell Lighthouse, which both have black and white stripes.

References

External links

Lighthouses of New Zealand
''Maritime New Zealand'' * Lighthouses completed in 1897 Lighthouses in New Zealand Buildings and structures in the Wairarapa 1890s architecture in New Zealand {{lighthouse-stub

See also

References

External links