Pensacola Lighthouse

Since Mr. L had Friday off from work thanks to Independence Day (Happy belated Fourth of July everyone, by the way!), we decided to take a late afternoon trip to visit the Pensacola Lighthouse.

The Pensacola Lighthouse was first lit on January 1, 1859.  It is 150 feet high, and sits 190 feet above sea level.  It is considered a historical landmark in the Pensacola area, and is even rumored to be haunted.

We pulled up in the parking lot and were immediately greeted by this beautiful sight:

After admiring the lighthouse's exterior, we made our way inside to purchase our admission tickets and begin our 177-step climb.

Yep, we had to climb 177 total of those!

With it being so warm outside and being so enclosed in the lighthouse itself, I definitely felt a sense of vertigo a few times -- so not fun!  There were at least windows though, five to be exact, so we could still breathe some fresh air occasionally.

View from the lighthouse's first window

Pensacola NAS Museum from another window 

View of the beach from a window closer to the top

We took a breather when we reached the Lantern Room while I attempted not to let my queasy vertigo stomach get the better of me!

Thankfully I recovered, and we headed up the teeny-tiny-narrow steps out onto the lighthouse's balcony.  It was absolutely worth the climb; the views were breathtaking!

Another view of the Pensacola NAS Museum

Beach with Perdido Key on the right, way out where the tall buildings are

We were also definitely high up:

I love this picture looking down on the flag -- so pretty!

After once again freaking myself out a little to crouch down and get those shots, I resolved myself to continue enjoying the view.

After maybe fifteen or twenty minutes of enjoying the breeze and sights, we climbed back down the tower to roam the lighthouse grounds and snap some more pictures.

Then we had to say goodbye to the Pensacola Lighthouse, but not before I purchased a souvenir of course!

I'd love to go back and watch a Blue Angels practice from there, but unfortunately I don't think we'll be able to manage that since we have so little time left in Pensacola.  We'll just have to compensate by doing something fun in Hawaii, I suppose =)