Port Austin Reef Lighthouse

History of the Port Austin Reef Lighthouse

The Port Austin Reef Light stands 1.5 - 2.5 miles off shore depending on what books your read. The station has been automated since 1953 and at one time housed a fourth-order Fresnel lens. The lens is now gone, having been replaced by a plastic optic which requires much less maintenance.

The station has been weathering badly over the years and has now come under the maintenance of the Port Austin Reef Light Association which has begun to stabilize and restore the old lightstation.

Directions: Seeing as this lighthouse sits off shore, it is best viewed by boat. However, using a telephoto lens, we were able to get a few decent shots of it from the marina parking lot in Port Austin. The marina is located at the intersection of West Spring Street and Lake Street.

Perhaps a better view of the lighthouse from shore might be from the end of Cliff Road. Follow East Spring Street east out of Port Austin. This will change names to Point Aux Barques Road. Make a left onto Linwood Drive and follow that north. It will change names to Cliff Drive. Follow this to the end.

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