Ponta dos Capelinhos Lighthouse, Maritime navigation lighthouse in Capelo, Faial Island, Portugal.
Ponta dos Capelinhos is a stone lighthouse on Faial Island in the Azores, built with an octagonal tower about 20 meters tall, a viewing platform, and a two-story keeper residence beneath. The structure sits at the western tip of the island where rocky cliffs drop to the water and rough ocean conditions prevail.
The lighthouse was completed in 1894 after seafarers had requested a navigation aid in these treacherous waters for many years. It became essential for guiding ships safely along the western Azores.
The structure stands as a marker of maritime connection to this remote island group and reflects generations of fishing and seafaring activity in these waters. Visitors can sense how people once depended on such beacons to navigate these particular coastal passages.
The site is accessible by car along the main road through Capelo with parking spaces nearby. Since the location is somewhat remote, visitors should wear sturdy shoes as paths to the cliffs and shoreline are uneven and exposed to wind.
A large portion was buried under ash and lava flow during a volcanic eruption in 1957, transforming the working structure into a geological site. The partially buried lighthouse stands as an unusual example of how natural disaster both preserved and repurposed a building.
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