The Present Conditions of the Race Rocks Tower February, 2007

These pictures were taken before restoration of the Race Rocks Lighthouse in 2009-2010 Historic Tower. The Times Colonist ran an article on the problems of the deterioration of the heritage light tower at Race Rocks.Jack Knox and Deborah Brash pay a visit to the tower at the end of January 2007. The following article appears in the Times Colonist. “A beacon of hope for Race Rocks Carney tries again to win protection for prize lighthouses now withering away, Jack Knox, Times Colonist, Tuesday, Feb. 06, 2007.

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THE PRESENT CONDITIONS OF THE RACE ROCKS LIGHT TOWER: 2007
Note: These are addressed in 2009: http://www.racerocks.com/racerock/history/restoration/restoration.htm

The light tower of Race Rocks is managed by The Canadian Coast Guard as anAid to Navigation. Coast Guard is operated by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans. Currently, there are no funds allocated by this Department for lighthouse restoration, although they are expected to maintain their Aids to Navigation. Parks Canada is responsible for National Historic Sites across Canada. Only one Lighthouse (Fisgard) on the Pacific Coast is provided for by that Department.
The Race Rocks Lighthouse, built in 1860 sits on a small parcel of land on Great Race Rocks leased from BC lands. This leased area remains out of the provincial Ecological Reserve. The Ecological reserve covers the remainder of Great Race Rock Island, and the whole area is an MPA designate under the Ocean’s Act of the Fisheries and Oceans Canada.

: Inside the tower, on the way up the stairs, the walls become pockmarked with condensation blisters

: Near the fog sensor, which is set into a south facing window, moisture has caused the wall surface to crumble

: The flaking is extensive in the top third of the tower

: When the stairs are not swept, there is a continual rain of sand and paint chips.

: Near the window where the counterweight is stationed, the crumbling is particularly obvious.

: Looking downstaters at the same window. The yellow flag denotes the top of the stairs.

: Even the inside of the lantern room has condensation from the windows loosening the painted surface.The light in the foreground is state of the art in low energy consumption.

: Outside at the base of the windows, caulking has deteriorated, allowing driving rains to send moisture inside.

: Wherever iron is exposed, rusting and deterioration sets in.. this is at the base of one of the windows in the lantern room.

: Moisture builds up even behind recent painting

: The metal straps underneath the lantern room which help to anchor the top in place are rusted and partly detached from the decaying sandstone wall.