Lighthouses of Northern Chile

This collection of photos was contributed by Iván Vargas, a former employee of the Chilean Maritime Signaling Service and later working for Pharos Marine Automatic Power, an aids to navigation company, in Houston, Texas.

Concordia (Limitrofe)
This 22 meter (72 ft) tower stands at of the Peruvian border (limitrofe) north of Arica. The building at the base of the tower is staffed by a navy crew.

Punta Gruesa
This light is located on a headland south of Iquique in northern Chile. The white concrete obelisk functions effectively as an daybeacon along this arid coastline, standing out against the reliably blue sky.

 


Punta Angamos
This light stands (or stood) on a high promentory 109 meters (358 ft) above the sea north of Antofagasta. Obviously it has the same design as the Punta Gruesa light, with a different stone veneer on the equipment room at the base. Apparently this light does not survive, because the present Punta Angamos Light is a slender fiberglass tower.

Antofagasta
The lighthouse stands at the end of the outer breakwater sheltering the harbor of Antofagasta. Since this photo was taken the tower has been repainted with red and white horizontal bands, as seen in the Chilean Navy's photo.

 

Punta Caldera
This substantial 18 m (60 ft) tower was built in 1947. The lighthouse guards the entrance to the port of Caldera, about 425 km (265 mi) south of Antofagasta.


All photos copyright 2004 Iván Vargas; all rights reserved. Used by permission.

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Created December 14, 2004. Checked and revised August 20, 2023. Site copyright 2023 Russ Rowlett and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.