AUSTRALIA – BYRON BAY

OCTOBER 8, 2025

Byron Bay is noted for its beaches, shopping and dining. None of which are on my “must do” list. Apparently there are lots of celebrities who have houses in Byron Bay. Margot Robbie, Matt Damon, Chris Hemsworth, and Nicole Kidman to name a few.

We took a tour of the lighthouse instead. In the lighthouse museum we learned how the Fresnel lens was made to turn before automation. The Lighthouse keeper would pull a huge weight up to the top with a chain on a block and tackle. As the weight slowly dropped it would turn the lens that was mounted on a film of mercury. It is still mounted on a film of mercury to this day.

The Fresnel lens is a multi-faceted lens made of many glass prisms that causes the light to intensify which in turn causes it to be seen from far away.

We went right to the top, where the lens was turning, but the lights were not on. The light is run on a photosensor and goes on automatically when it gets dark, or even on overcast days. We had a spectacular view from the platform outside of the lens.

We also learned about the maintenance and constant upkeep of the lighthouse.

There was a long beach on either side of the peninsula.

We were making our way toward Gold Coast. Our next stop was Tweed Heads.