California’s historic Point Reyes Lighthouse is looking for a residential volunteer

By Cecilio Padilla

The National Park Service is looking for a residential volunteer to help staff the historic Point Reyes Lighthouse this fall and winter, with free housing included.

Running from Nov. 6 through Feb. 1, the assignment requires about 30 volunteer hours a week staffing the Lighthouse Visitor Center and historic lighthouse, answering questions and giving short talks about the area’s natural and cultural history.

In exchange, parks officials say the selected volunteer will be provided a rent-free apartment near the visitor center. Utilities, internet access, basic furnishings, laundry and parking are included. Pets are not allowed, and volunteers must provide their own transportation and groceries.

Built in 1870 to warn ships about the dangerous Point Reyes Headlands, the lighthouse remained in service for just over a century before the U.S. Coast Guard installed an automated light in 1975 and transferred the historic lighthouse to the National Park Service.

The lighthouse was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1991.

Visitors today must walk about a half-mile from the parking lot to the Lighthouse Visitor Center before descending 313 stairs to reach the lighthouse. Those stairs can close when winds exceed 40 mph or other hazardous weather develops.

Frequent fog and powerful winds are also part of life at Point Reyes, adding another layer of difficulty to the remote coastal assignment.

Applications for the residential volunteer position are being accepted through Volunteer.gov.