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Tidepool Lighthouse #2 LbNA #30010 (ARCHIVED)

Owner:Adoptable
Plant date:Apr 12, 2007
Location:
City:Laguna Beach
County:Orange
State:California
Boxes:2
Planted by:Take A Hike Club
Found by: TLC'S
Last found:Oct 14, 2007
Status:FFFFFaFFFa
Last edited:Apr 12, 2007
Tidepool Lighthouse #2
(It's an adventure, but it's easier than #1)
Seek this letterbox only when the tide is out.

It’s a little piece of Orange County history. What appears to be a tiny ancient lighthouse actually contains a spiral stairway down to the beach from the home above. The house was built in 1926 by Senator William E. Brown, and he called it LaTour.

Then a man named Kendrick lived there. He was called The Answer Man because all the children in town knew him, and when he met a youngster he would ask him or her a question. If they could answer correctly he would give them a coin or a piece of bubble gum, which he always had in his pockets. Kendrick was a world traveler who decorated his home with unusual treasures like a set of armor and shrunken heads. Sometimes he would have treasure hunts for the children in the neighborhood. He buried coins in the walls of the ‘lighthouse’ and let the children see who could find the most of them.

The next owner of the home was Bette Midler. She once hired a barge with a spectacular fireworks display for her husband’s birthday celebration. After the Northridge earthquake, Bette was so frightened that she sold all of her California properties and moved to New York.

From the #5 Freeway exit onto Pacific Coast Highway and turn north toward Laguna Beach. When you pass Crown Valley Parkway --- follow the next paragraph*

*From Crown Valley Parkway turn RIGHT onto Pacific Coast Highway. Continue on PCH past Country Club Road to Nyes Place. Turn RIGHT, but make an immediate LEFT onto Victoria to pass under PCH.

From Laguna Canyon Road turn LEFT on Pacific Coast Hwy. Continue on through Laguna Beach past Bluebird Canyon Road, past Diamond, past Rockledge to the triangle intersection at Nyes Place. Make a hard left, and an immediate left turn onto Victoria. This goes under the Coast Highway.Victoria is a narrow residential street that curves around the hill. Within about a block you will see a metal railing on the left, leading to steps down to the beach. There are about 85 steps on this passageway to the beach. Parking is allowed only on the ocean side of the street. Do not block a driveway or entrance or you risk being towed away.

You will see a public stairway with a metal hand rail going down to the beach. There are 85 stairs down, but they are easy steps. At the the bottom of the stairs, start your hike across the sand toward the ocean, veering RIGHT around the cliff. You will see many tide pools and the remains of a round tidal basin swimming pool that dates back to the early 1920’s. Continue making your way around the cliff until you see the small, ancient lighthouse. Many believe it is an old lifeguard stand, but it is actually a staircase from the home above. The lighthouse is an estimated one block from the steps. Go to the lighthouse and from there you will take approximately 30 steps to a staircase to the house next door. Continue past those stairs, and about 10 or 12 steps from there you will see an old fireplace built into the seawall. As you stand looking at the fireplace, look up to the right at the foundation of the old stairway. Climb back there, and look up about 6 or so feet to see the box tucked into the old barbed wire that is wrapped around some boards. Place the box firmly back into the wire when you have stamped in because we don't want a splashing wave or wind to wash it out. Now do we?