Piedras Blancas Light Station is located at Point Piedras Blancas, about west by northwest of

San Simeon, California San Simeon ( Spanish: ''San Simeón'', meaning "St. Simon") is an unincorporated community on the Pacific coast of San Luis Obispo County, California, United States. Its position along State Route 1 is about halfway between Los Angeles and San ...

. It was added to the

California Coastal National Monument The California Coastal National Monument is located along the entire coastline of the U.S. state of California. This monument ensures the protection of all islets, reefs and rock outcroppings along the California coast, coast of California wit ...

in 2017.

History and management

The first-order

Fresnel lens A Fresnel lens ( ; ; or ) is a type of composite compact lens (optics), lens which reduces the amount of material required compared to a conventional lens by dividing the lens into a set of concentric annular sections. The simpler Dioptrics, d ...

at Piedras Blancas was first illuminated on February 15, 1875. The Piedras Blancas lighthouse was originally high to the top of the ventilator ball, but earthquakes damaged the structure over the years. On December 31, 1948, final damage from an earthquake centered off the point led to the decision to remove the upper three floors: the fourth landing, watch room, and lantern. Missing the ornate upper floors, the truncated lighthouse now stands about tall. The lens was moved and is on display in the nearby community of

Cambria Cambria is a name for Wales, being the Latinised form of the Welsh name for the country, . The term was not in use during the Roman period (when Wales had not come into existence as a distinct entity) or the early medieval period. After the ...

. A sound signal was added in 1906. In 1939, management was transferred from the

United States Lighthouse Service The United States Lighthouse Service, also known as the Bureau of Lighthouses, was the agency of the United States Government and the general lighthouse authority for the United States from the time of its creation in 1910 as the successor of th ...

to the

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and Admiralty law, law enforcement military branch, service branch of the armed forces of the United States. It is one of the country's eight Uniformed services ...

. In 1975, the light was automated, the sound signal removed, and the light station was unmanned. A group of biologists with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service received permission to establish a biological research station in 1977. In 2001, the

Bureau of Land Management The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior responsible for administering federal lands, U.S. federal lands. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the BLM oversees more than of land, or one ...

(BLM) assumed management of the site and was tasked to offer structured public access, allow site-specific research to continue, and restore the light station to its period of greatest historical significance (1875 to 1940). The Piedras Blancas Light Station Association is a non-profit partner of the BLM, helping to raise funds for restoration and maintenance. The lighthouse continues to serve as an aid to navigation. A Vega

VRB-25 The VRB-25 is a lighthouse optical system designed and built by Vega Industries Ltd. in Porirua, New Zealand. It was originally designed in 1993–95 with the assistance of the United States Coast Guard to meet USCG requirements for a robust m ...

produces a flash every 10 seconds. The light station is managed as a historic park and

wildlife sanctuary A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, funga, or features of geolog ...

. The Piedras Blancas Historic Light Station was designated as an

Outstanding Natural Area An Outstanding Natural Area is a protected area designation in the United States. The designations are managed by the Bureau of Land Management within the National Conservation Lands, National Landscape Conservation System. Three ONAs have been d ...

in 2008.

Access

Piedras_Blancas_Light_Station_Water_Tower

Access to the site is by guided tours. The tour lasts two hours and includes the historic lighthouse and support buildings, wildlife viewing, and spectacular scenery along an easy half-mile interpretive trail.

Elephant seal rookery and marine protected areas

The largest

elephant seal Elephant seals or sea elephants are very large, oceangoing earless seals in the genus ''Mirounga''. Both species, the northern elephant seal (''M. angustirostris'') and the southern elephant seal (''M. leonina''), were hunted to the brink of ...

rookery on the West Coast is located about a mile south of the lighthouse along California Highway One. A few animals began using the rookery in 1990. A large parking area and boardwalk offer easy access to view the elephant seals. Docents from Friends of the Elephant Seal provide insight as to what the visitor is viewing. Open year-round.

Piedras Blancas State Marine Reserve and Marine Conservation Area Piedras Blancas State Marine Reserve (SMR) and Piedras Blancas State Marine Conservation Area (SMCA) are two adjoining marine protected areas that lie offshore of San Luis Obispo County on California's central coast. The combined area of the ...

are marine protected areas offshore from Piedras Blancas Light Station. Like underwater parks, these marine protected areas help conserve ocean wildlife and

marine ecosystem Marine ecosystems are the largest of Earth's aquatic ecosystems and exist in Saline water, waters that have a high salt content. These systems contrast with freshwater ecosystems, which have a lower salt content. Marine waters cover more than 7 ...

In popular culture

The 1959 movie ''

The Monster of Piedras Blancas ''The Monster of Piedras Blancas'' is a 1959 American Horror film, horror monster film. It was produced by Jack Kevan, directed by Irvin Berwick, and stars Jeanne Carmen, Les Tremayne, John Harmon, Don Sullivan, Forrest Lewis, and Pete Dunn. The ...

'' was not shot at Point Piedras Blancas. The lighthouse locations in the movie were filmed at the Point Conception Light lighthouse near

Lompoc Lompoc ( ; Chumashan ) is a city in Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Located on the Central Coast, its population was 43,834 as of July 2021. Lompoc has been inhabited for thousands of years by the Chumash people, who called t ...

, and the town is the seaside town of Cayucos, about 30 miles south of Piedras Blancas.

Gallery

File:Piedras_Blancas_Light_Station,_2014.jpg, Piedras Blancas, 2014. File:Piedras Blancas Public Tours.jpeg, Tours of the Piedras Blancas Light Station are offered regularly. File:Native Plants at Piedras Blancas.jpeg, Native plants ablaze with color in early summer. File:PB Light Station from the beach.JPG, Piedras Blancas Light Station viewed from the beach below, May 2020 File:Sea Otter at Piedras Blancas.jpeg, Sea otters rest and feed in the waters surrounding Piedras Blancas.

References

External links

Piedras Blancas Light Station Outstanding Natural Area
Bureau of Land Management
Piedras Blancas Light Station Association
{{authority control Lighthouses completed in 1875 Lighthouses on the National Register of Historic Places in California National Register of Historic Places in San Luis Obispo County, California Buildings and structures in San Luis Obispo County, California Protected areas of San Luis Obispo County, California Bureau of Land Management areas in California Gothic Revival architecture in California Neoclassical architecture in California Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in California