Travels with Auntie M: April 2013

Point Vicente Interpretive Center – 13 APR 2013

Located next to the Point Vicente Lighthouse, this museum which opened in 1984, has a mission to present and interpret the unique features and history of the Palos Verdes Peninsula.

The 10,000 square foot state of the art facility, highlights the peninsula’s flora, fauna and geology, with an emphasis on the Pacific gray whale.

I loved the large display dedicated to Marineland of the Pacific.

Marineland started as a research facility but opened its door to the public in 1954 and became the world’s largest oceanarium of its time.

If you’ve ever seen the classic black and white movie Creature from the Black Lagoon, there were several scenes shot at Marineland before it became an amusement park.

There were several pictures of celebrities visiting the park, below is Elvis and Irene Ryan (Granny from The Beverly Hillbillies):

There are picnic tables with a view of the lighthouse and bird watching opportunities.

December through April the Pacific gray whale migrates across the point; several whales were spotted while we were visiting.

The park grounds are open dawn to dusk. Fires and barbecues are prohibited and dogs must be on leash.

Beside catching pelicans at eye level, you get this view of the lighthouse:

Point Vicente Lighthouse, Rancho Palos Verdes, CA – 13 APR 2013

It was named after Friar Vicente of Mission Buenaventura. Located at 31550 Palos Verdes Drive West, Rancho Palos Verdes, CA, this lighthouse was built in 1926 at a cost of $80,000.

The lighthouse is closed to the public except on the second Saturday of every month when you can take a tour from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM, and admission is free.

Situated on eight acres, it became the responsibility of the US Coast Guard in 1939 and is their principal communications center in Southern California.

The 5-foot original 3^rd order Clamshell Fresnel lens was built in Paris in 1886 and served in Alaska for 40 years before coming to the Peninsula.

It takes 40 seconds to rotate a complete round but mariners see a flash every 20 seconds because it has two bulls eyes.

“Lady of the Light” is the name given to its’ resident ghost. There have been several sightings of a tall lady wearing a long flowing grown, walking the grounds. One story is that it is the spirit of a woman who leaped into the sea when her lover was lost in a shipwreck off the point; another belief is she was the wife of the original lighthouse keeper who fell to her death when she stumbled off the cliff on a foggy night.

According to the Ghost Hunter’s Guide to Los Angeles “The lady of the Point Vicente Lighthouse is still there, seen most often at night in the space between the lighthouse and the cliffs. She is reported to be a wispy, partial apparition, but some ghost hunters have seen her complete, quite solid apparition. There are reports that this ghost has been detected inside the lighthouse as well. Her appearance is often preceded by a cold gust of air and sudden change in the atmosphere.” (© 2007 by Jeff Dwyer)