A
lighthouse located in Aireys Inlet- a
small town on the Great Ocean Road, Victoria,
Australia. Originally called Eagles Nest
Point, the Split Point Lighthouse was
originally built in 1891. It was converted
to automatic operation in 1919. The original
British made lens is still in use. However,
the factory in Birmingham, where the lens
was built, was bombed during war-time
and the essential formulas for making
the unique lens crystal were lost, should
a replacement ever be needed. A Japanese
firm, consulted by the Australian Maritime
Safety Authority, estimated the cost of
replacing the lens at more than AUS$1
million. Under standard Australian lighthouse
convention, red filters which would usually
be placed to the extreme left and right
of the beam (indicating "danger zones"
for a passing ship, in-line with the jagged
coastline). For reasons unknown, the Split
Point Lighthouse operated for many years
under the opposite system; although this
has now been corrected.
The
original lighthouse keeper's quarters,
a detached house adjacent to the site,
is now a privately owned residence. The
view to the right from the top of the
lighthouse.Since summer 2005, the Split
Point Lighthouse has been offering regular
30 minute guided tours, during which visitors
have the chance to climb the original
staircase and experience the view from
the balcony just below the latern room.
Tours had been available for much of the
1990s, but on only a few days per year.
The top of the lighthouse is also now
used as a mobile phone base station, making
it dangerous to enter the latern room
(or any area above) whilst it is in operation,
due to possible exposure to RF radiation.
The popular children's television series
Round the Twist used the area around the
Split Point Lighthouse for many external
scenes.
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