Spiraled

Standing inside the base of the Fire Island Lighthouse looking up

Ever since my first visit to the Fire Island Lighthouse about 10 years ago, I've been wanting to climb up the tower, yet for one reason or another never got around to doing it. Until yesterday, that is. The views from the top (where you can even go outside) are truly fantastic and the view from the bottom can be quite - eerie. Down here, the walls of the lighthouse are 11 feet thick and a metal staircase leads upwards for 182 steps. While large windows create a rather airy atmosphere higher up, the single dim light bulb illuminating the old bricks makes for a somewhat unsettling "dungeon feel" at the bottom.