I started my fourth season of lighthouse travels with a day I call my 1-2-3-4 adventure: 1 day. 2 ferry rides. 3 states. 4 lighthouses visited. Sure, there were other numbers for the day -- 14 hours from start to finish, and 16 lighthouses seen total, including from the road and the ferries -- but 1-2-3-4-14-16 is hard to remember.

 

Our day started when I got up at 5:00 in the morning and Diane and Bob fed me (Because of the urinary problem I have had since early 2006, I have to eat a special food twice a day). Then they got my carrier and other gear (and Mr. DeOgee!) packed up and ready to go, and we left the house at 6:00. We picked up our friend Jackie, who lives nearby, then drove to the ferry to Connecticut. I napped on the ferry, but woke up in time to see the Tongue Point Lighthouse as the ferry pulled into Bridgeport Harbor. 

 

After a stop in Milford for the humans to get breakfast, we drove east to the Stonington Lighthouse. This lighthouse is not too far from the famous Mystic Seaport museum, which I hope to visit some day. We parked down by the water, and from there we could see the Latimer Reef and North Dumpling lighthouses, which stand between Connecticut and the north side of Fischer's Island.

 

The Stonington Lighthouse was just a short walk away from the parking lot, with me in my flashy blue carrier. Diane and Jackie took pictures of the lighthouse, while Bob kept an eye on me. Then we went inside the lighthouse and saw lots of neat stuff, including historic farm implements and an old lighthouse lens. After we had seen all of the exhibits, we decided to climb the short tower. I realized, about then, that although I had been to about 20-25 lighthouses, I had never been in a lantern room! I was going to the top of a lighthouse for the first time! This, alone, was worth the trip.

 

I stayed in my carrier while we climbed to the top of the tower. When we got inside the lantern room, Bob took me out and let me look around! There was lots to see - water, land, roads, people, birds, the Latimer Reef Lighthouse -- and I could the tops of other buildings! With a lot of adventure still ahead for the day, we didn't stay "up top" too long, but just long enough for me to really enjoy it.

 

There was some more picture taking before we left to go back to the parking lot. Next to the parking lot, there was a small beach. The beach had lots of sand and one of my favorite things: a sign that said "No Dogs." I walked around for a little while, and they took more pictures of me. Jackie took a walk out on the rocky pier to take more photos and explore out there, but I can't go on those big rocks. It's too dangerous for me.

 

We then left Stonington to go to the Watch Hill Light in Rhode Island. It wasn't too far away, but it did take us a little while to get to the town of Watch Hill. From my seat in the back of the car, I heard complaining up front about bad directions and the fact that the town was not on the car's GPS (which Bob calls "Elizabeth"). Despite the poor directions and Elizabeth's lack of knowledge about Rhode Island, we eventually found the little town of Watch Hill. We parked in the main part of town and took a long walk - up a hill, across the road, down a private road and out to the lighthouse.

 

It was very windy out at the lighthouse, and I don't like the wind. In fact, I think that's the only thing I don't like about lighthouses. I posed for some pictures, then walked around in the grass for a bit. As much as I like walking in the grass, I dislike the wind even more, so I walked back to my carrier and crawled inside. I had seen the lighthouse and sniffed the grass, and I was ready to get out of the wind. Diane, Jackie and Bob walked around on the rocks for a while, taking more pictures and exploring some more, but I stayed in my carrier, ready to leave. When they were all done exploring, we made the walk back to the car. I was a little thirsty, so Bob got out my water bottle and gave me a drink. You can really work up a thirst on a lighthouse adventure!

 

Next it was off to the Point Judith Lighthouse. This was a little longer drive than the last one, but we didn't get lost (although Elizabeth couldn't find Point Judith, either). We parked in a parking lot next to the Coast Guard station and walked in. It wasn't as windy as Watch Hill had been, and it was sunny out now. There was lots of grass, and even some pretty yellow flowers in the grass. Jackie and Diane started taking pictures, and Bob took me out of my carrier to explore the grounds a little. Being in the grass, in the sun, and with not much wind was great. As I was walking around, Bob realized that they hadn't brought the new videocamera. Luckily, Jackie had a digital camera that could take short videos. So I walked down the hill a little ways, sniffed a flower, then walked back over to my carrier. I did really well walking down the hill, especially when you consider I'm not used to walking on hills.

 

Soon, we left Point Judith and drove back west to catch a different ferry back to Long Island. We had to wait a while for the ferry (the first one was full and we couldn't get on), but it was worth the wait. We saw several lighthouses from the ferry, including New London Harbor, New London Ledge, Orient Point and Plum Island. The sun was on the not-windy side of the ferry, so we all sat outside for the ride across the Long Island Sound. When we arrived at Orient Point, we decided to stop at one more lighthouse that I had not yet seen: Horton Point. We walked around the grounds there for a while, and Diane and Jackie took pictures, then we got back in the car for the drive home, about another 90 minutes or so.

 

When I got home, it was about 8:00 PM. I had taken a 14-hour adventure and was ready for supper and  a nap! And so ended another exciting day in my life as a lighthouse kitty. As with all of my adventures, I had seen some new places, learned some history, and spent time with people who love me. It's not a bad life.