If you are setting out on the Light to Light Walk on the far south coast of New South Wales, there is a good chance your journey will begin beside one of the region’s most recognisable landmarks.
For many years the lighthouse standing here no longer shone, but recently that changed.
After standing idle for more than three decades, the 143-year-old Green Cape Lighthouse near Eden is glowing once again. The lighthouse holds an important place in Australia’s maritime history.
Completed in 1883, it was the first lighthouse in the country constructed entirely from concrete. When it first began operating it used a four-wick kerosene burner, casting its beam across the Tasman Sea to guide ships safely along the coast. In 1962 the light was modernised and replaced with an electric 1,000-watt globe.
By the early 1990s the lighthouse itself was decommissioned and the working light was moved to a nearby steel lattice tower fitted with a solar beacon. For years the elegant white tower remained as a silent landmark while the functional light beside it continued its job.
When the lattice tower approached the end of its lifespan, authorities had the opportunity to return the beacon to its original home. The decision meant that, for the first time in decades, the historic lighthouse would once again serve the purpose for which it was built.
Greg Leayr, who has cared for the lighthouse for the past 11 years, described the moment as a “full circle” event. After standing watch over this stretch of coastline since the nineteenth century, the lighthouse is once again an active part of the landscape rather than simply a historic monument.
The Light to Light Walk is one of the most spectacular coastal hikes in southern New South Wales. Stretching 32km through Beowa National Park near Eden, the route links Boyd’s Tower with Green Cape Lighthouse. Along the way walkers follow rugged clifftops, quiet beaches and windswept heathland.
Completed over two or three days, the trail passes rust-coloured rock platforms, pale sand coves and forests of banksia and tea-tree. Dolphins are often seen offshore and migrating whales travel past the coast between May and November, making this dramatic walk a memorable journey along one of Australia’s wildest shorelines.