By John Francis
Almost done! This picture of Lion’s Head lighthouse was taken on November 17. The volunteer-built lighthouse now has a full coat of Hardi-board siding. Volunteer Brian Swanton Sr reports that next steps will be installing three-inch angle irons up the four corners of the building to protect the ends of the Hardi-board, installing a chimney on top of the light and building a staircase to the door. The final stage — lighting the light — is not too far off.
Swanton says that Georgian Bay delivered a nasty surprise the day after the siding was finished. A storm tossed beach stone so high it damaged the bottom two rows of Hardi-board on the north side. The municipality brought in a high-hoe and a loader and pushed some stone out into the water to force the waves to break further out. The Hardi-board can be repaired but Swanton feels this was not a one-time event — Georgian Bay will push that stone back onto the shore. Ongoing effort will be needed to prevent that from damaging the light.
