Great Point Lighthouse

There are no paved roads to Great Point Lighthouse, so you need to walk or drive a 4x4 vehicle along the sandy beach and trail past Wauwinet and through the Coskata-Coatue Wildlife Reserve to reach its remote location. Alternatively, join one of the oversand (OSV) vehicle tours offered periodically by the Trustees of Reservations, a local preservation organization. You can also spot the lighthouse on a boat tour from Nantucket that cruises past the island's northern point.

• Admission to the Coskata-Coatue Wildlife Reserve to access the lighthouse is free for walkers. To enter with a vehicle, you need to buy a permit on the reserve website in advance.

• Follow the instructions for driving to the lighthouse carefully to avoid getting stuck in the sand or water.

• You can spot seals and other marine life inside the reserve, so bring your camera and a good zoom lens to capture them from a safe distance.

• There is no wheelchair or stroller access to the reserve or lighthouse, though you can drive to the base of the building with a 4x4 to take it in from up close.

Great Point Lighthouse is on Great Point, a sandy outcrop on the north coastline of Nantucket attached to the island by a narrow strip of sand. The only way to reach it is on foot or with a suitable 4x4 or oversand vehicle; it’s about seven miles (11 kilometers) from the reserve parking lot.

The tides on Great Point are treacherous in winter and can flood the sandy strip that connects the point to the island, so avoid visiting from November to March. The lighthouse is open to the public only for scheduled tours led by volunteer Trustees of Reservations guides; book in advance via the organization’s website so you can climb up the internal staircase to take in the view from the top.

Great Point Lighthouse is the only lighthouse of three on Nantucket that is not listed on the National Register of Historic Places since it was completely rebuilt in 1986. The red-and-white striped Sankaty Head Lighthouse in Siasconset on the island’s eastern coastline dates from 1850. Brant Point Light, which welcomes visitors to the island from its perch near the Nantucket ferry harbor, was built in 1746 and is one of the oldest lighthouses in the US.