Grotto Point Light

Grotto Point Light
Port Jackson Entrance Range Front

Grotto Point Light
Location	Balgowlah Heights New South Wales Australia
Coordinates	33°49′3.97″S 151°15′41.64″E
Tower
Constructed	1910
Construction	masonry and brick tower
Height	26 feet (8 m)
Shape	cylindrical tower with domed roof
Markings	white tower
Operator	Sydney Harbour National Park
Light
First lit	1911
Focal height	61 feet (19 m)
Lens	catadioptric lens
Range	white :12 nautical miles (22 km; 14 mi) red / green: 9 nautical miles (17 km; 10 mi)
Characteristic	flashing(4) WRG 15s. white on range, red right, green left, obscured other

Grotto Point Light, also known as Port Jackson Entrance Range Front Light, is an active lighthouse located at Grotto Point, a rocky headland at the southernmost tip of Balgowlah Heights, New South Wales, Australia, on the north side of Sydney Harbour. It serves as the front range light, Rosherville Light serving as the rear light, into Port Jackson. Rosherville Light is located approximately 1 mile (1.6 km), 1,690 yards (1,550 m) to be exact, behind Grotto Point Light.

History

A 1939 view of the lighthouse

The decision to build the range lights was taken in 1909. Construction began in 1910 and the light was first lit on 1 September 1911. It is one of four lighthouses in a style sometimes called "Disney Castle", the others being Rosherville Light, Vaucluse Bay Range Front Light and Vaucluse Bay Range Rear Light.

The original light source was a carbide lamp (acetylene gas) which was initially generated on-site, and later replaced by compressed gas cylinders brought by boat.

Later, the light was electrified and connected to the mains electricity.

Structure

The structure is a masonry and brick domed tower, attached to two barrel-vaulted service sections in decreasing heights, all painted white. The structure is surrounded by a white picket fence. The light is shone through a 2 by 1 metre (6.6 ft × 3.3 ft) horizontal slit, about two-thirds of the way up the tower.

The lens is a catadioptric apparatus.

Site operation

The light is operated by the Sydney Ports corporation while the site is managed by the Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water as part of the Sydney Harbour National Park.

Visiting

The site is accessible by a short hike from Castle Rock track. The grounds are open but the tower is closed to the public.

See also

• List of lighthouses in Australia

References and notes

• List of Lights, Pub. 111: The West Coasts of North and South America (Excluding Continental U.S.A. and Hawaii), Australia, Tasmania, New Zealand, and the Islands of the North and South Pacific Oceans (PDF). List of Lights. United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. 2009. p. 126.
• Rowlett, Russ. "Lighthouses of Australia: Southern New South Wales". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Retrieved 29 August 2010.
• Searle, Garry. "List of Lighthouses - New South Wales". Lighthouses of Australia. SeaSide Lights.
• "Grotto Point Lighthouse". NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service. Archived from the original on 16 September 2025. Retrieved 17 February 2026.

External links

• Media related to Grotto Point Light at Wikimedia Commons
• "List of Lighthouses of New South Wales". Lighthouses of Australia. Lighthouses of Australia Inc.
• "Grant and Tracey's Lighthouse Pages – Grotto Point Light". maizels.nu.
• John MacRitchie – Manly Library (2008). "Grotto Point lighthouse". Dictionary of Sydney. Retrieved 7 October 2015. [CC-By-SA]