walkway approximately a half-mile away.

Wood Island has a storied past. One of the Friends of the Wood Island Lighthouse early activities was researching and writing of a detailed account of the past and the people whose service contributed so much to maritime Maine and the country. Visit the history page of their Web site (http://www.woodislandl ighthouse.org/xHistory/ index.html) to learn

more about Wood Island’s 200 years of history.

The Friends of the Wood Island Lighthouse has launched a fundrais-ing campaign to finance the restoration effort. The lighthouse is structurally sound, but much work is needed to put it into stable and attractive condition. If you are interested in contributing to their effort or becoming a member of their volunteer group go to their Web site at

http://www.woodislandli ghthouse.org.

Their Web site is excellent and will give you additional information about tours, restoration efforts, history, events and much more. As for family value, I give it a “10” on a scale of 1-10. My children range in age from 12–23, so something that pleases everyone is rare. For $60, including tipping the captain of the boat, what a deal!

Anyone, even
if you don’t
visit the site,
can become
involved with
the project.

nesting site for hundreds of seagulls, common eiders and other birds. You can see the many seagulls in my photos. We also saw deer and other animals as well.

The island is a step back in time to the era when ship navigation depended on its light and the task of operating and maintaining the light was performed by a succession of keepers and their families. The

lighthouse, standing on the eastern seaward point of the island, is a picturesque structure consisting of a two-story keeper’s house connected to the 42-foot stone tower by an enclosed passageway. A stone oil house is situated nearby. A boathouse, sheltered from the open ocean, sits at the opposite end of the island and is connected to the lighthouse by a raised wooden