Jeff Routzahn

Cape Disappointment, near the Columbia

North Head Light

Ilwaco, Washington

Its real signal — watch it blink

Fl(2) W 30s — two white flashes, 7½ seconds apart

One full cycle: 30 seconds.

Built
1898
First lit
1898
Height
65 ft
Focal plane
194 ft above water
Status
Still burning
Visited
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Two miles north of Cape Disappointment, a second light had to be built for ships that couldn't see the first one behind the headland. North Head's first-order lens threw light 26 miles. Its signature — two flashes separated by seven and a half seconds — still sweeps over the surf on nights when the two towers keep watch together.