In light of the recent news articles about the unserviceable status of some web cameras on the British Columbia coast the BCGA has been contacted by Jeff George who is the Principal Lightkeeper at Lennard Island Lightstation.
Geoff informed us of a little known fact that many lighthouses on the BC coast are manned and the Lightkeepers are available to pilots by telephone for live weather updates based on actual observations.
Jeff Writes:
If any of your members are going to be flying in the area of any of these 27 staffed lights you can contact them as follows (if you’re within range all lights also stand by on VHF 82A):
Here is the contact information for all 27 staffed lightstations on the BC Coast:
North Circuit: Phone # 250-627-0344
When connected (should hear a click and ringing will stop) dial the 3 or 4 digit number (2 houses on station):
Addenbroke 195 or 1951
Dryad 379 or 3791
Boat Bluff 298 or 2981
Bonilla 153 or 1531
Green 157 or 1571
Egg Island 492 or 4921
Langara 358 or 3581
Ivory Island 184 or 1841
Triple Island 857 or 8571
McInnes Island 183 or 1831
West Coast Vancouver Island: Phone # 250-726-4209
Cape Beale 513 or 5131
Carmanah Point 591 or 5911
Estevan Point 834 or 8341
Lennard Island 375 or 3751
Nootka Light 223 or 2231
Pachena Point 516 or 5161
Campbell River area: Phone #250-339-2899
Cape Mudge 298
Chatham 230 or 2301
North Island: Phone #250-974-5912
Cape Scott 493 or 4931
Egg Island (Egg has two connections) 492 or 4921
Pine Island 987 or 9871
Pultenay Point 115
Quatsino (Kains Island) 449 or 4491
Scarlett Point 450 or 4501
Inside South: Phone #250-474-4701
Chrome Island 258 or 2581
Entrance Island 275 or 2751
Merry Island 290 or 2901
Trial Island 629 or 6291
NOTE:
these are all radio phones and that once you have dialed in you are essentially on a party line with all the lightstations on that particular circuit. By dialing the 3 or 4 number extension you are making one of the two phones on a station ring. The phones are in the houses and the three digit number also rings in the office but that also means that there’s a chance that both keepers will be outside when a call comes in and they will miss it. The beauty of a party line, however, is that another keeper on another nearby station may hear the attempted call and step in to ask who you’re trying to reach. They can also then provide their weather, if that’s helpful, or the pilot can move on and try the 3 or 4 digit number of the next nearest station.
And this is the link to the latest Lightstation Weather reports on the Environment Canada page –
https://weather.gc.ca/marine/forecast_e.html?mapID=02&siteID=16200.
Reports are done every three hours from 0430PDT to 2230PDT and special weather reports are filed in between if conditions worsen significantly but, again, contact the lightstation directly if you want an up to the minute observation.
If you follow the link above I and then click on the Weather Conditions tab you’ll see a map and at the bottom of the map it says Lightstations Reports. Click on that and you’ll see our last Weather reports. It will look like this (and this is the type of information we can provide):
Sample Lightstation Reports
Dixon Entrance, Hecate Strait & Central CoastIssued at 14:30 UTC 13 September 2018
GREEN PC 15 NE25EG 5FT MDT FBNK NE-S
TRIPLE PC 3F NE03E RPLD LO W
BONILLA CLDY 15 CLM RPLD LO NW
LANGARA PC 35 NE06 1FT CHP LO W SWT 11.6
BOAT BLUFF PC 15 NW08 RPLD
MCINNES PC 15 E05E RPLD LO SW
IVORY CLDY 15 NE05 RPLD LO SW
DRYAD CLDY 15 CLM RPLD
ADDENBROKE CLDY 15 CLM RPLD
SUPPLEMENTARY WEATHER INFORMATION
GREEN 1430 CLD EST FEW ABV 25 11/07
TRIPLE 1430 CLD EST FEW ABV 25 09/09
BONILLA 1430 CLD EST 04 FEW 18 SCT BKN ABV 25 10/10
LANGARA 1430 CLD EST FEW ABV 25 10/07
BOAT BLUFF 1430 CLD EST SCT ABV 25 09/09
MCINNES 1430 CLD EST 14 FEW 22 SCT SCT ABV 25 12/10
IVORY 1430 CLD EST 10 FEW BKN ABV 25 11/09
DRYAD 1430 CLD EST BKN ABV 25 10/10
ADDENBROKE 1430 CLD EST BKN ABV 25 11/10
West Coast Vancouver Island SouthIssued at 14:40 UTC 13 September 2018
NOOTKA CLDY 10 SW3E 1FT CHP LO SW
ESTEVAN CLDY 15 N5 2FT CHP LO SW 1013.2S PRCP DSNT SE-SW
LENNARD OVC 15 SE7 1FT CHP LO SW
CAPE BEALE. OVC 1/4F SE8 2FT CHP LO SW VIS NW 3F
PACHENA OVC 4F S5E 1FT CHP LO SW
CARMANAH OVC 1L-F CLM RPLD LO SW
SUPPLEMENTARY WEATHER INFORMATION
NOOTKA. 1440 CLD EST 6 SCT 10 BKN BKN ABV 25 14/13
Queen Charlotte, Johnstone Strait & West Coast Vancouver Island NorthIssued at 14:40 UTC 13 September 2018
CHATHAM CLDY 15 NW5E RPLD
CAPE MUDGE CLDY 15 CLM RPLD
PULTENEY OVC 15 E2E RPLD
SCARLETT OVC 15 CLM RPLD LO NW
PINE ISLAND N/A
EGG ISLAND OVC 15 SE6 1FT CHP LO W
CAPE SCOTT CLDY 15 SE5E 1FT CHP LO SW
QUATSINO. CLDY 15 NW3E 1FT CHP LO SW
SUPPLEMENTARY WEATHER INFORMATION
CHATHAM 1440 CLD EST 20 SCT BKN ABV 25 11/09
CAPE MUDGE 1440 CLD EST 18 SCT BKN ABV 25 12/11
PINE ISLAND 1440 CLD EST N/A EGG ISLAND 1440 CLD EST 18 BKN OVC ABV 25 12/10
CAPE SCOTT 1440 CLD EST 18 SCT BKN ABV 25 12/10
QUATSINO 1440 CLD EST BKNA BV 25 12/12
Georgia Strait & Juan de Fuca StraitIssued at 14:40 UTC 13 September 2018
CHROME CLDY 15 W5 RPLD
MERRY CLDY 15 SE7 RPLD
ENTRANCE CLDY 15 S3 RPLD
TSAWWASSEN OVC 15 SW5 1FT CHP
TRIAL IS CLDY 12 SW22 3FT MDT F BNK DSNT E-W
SUPPLEMENTARY WEATHER INFORMATION
MERRY 1440 CLD EST 15 FEW 22 BKN BKN ABV 25 14/12
Lightstation Reports – Decode Information
As you can see, some stations do a regular supplementary weather with cloud height estimates while all do a local weather with sky condition, visibility, weather, wind direction and speed and sea state. However, if you called any station directly you could ask for a cloud height estimate. Since you are talking to a human being we can also share anecdotal information, like if the fog has been moving in and out all day, or if it’s just lifted recently, the intensity of showers that have been passing through and how much visibility is reduced during those showers, etc.
Please share this wi
th your membership. Perhaps it could be posted on your Knowledge Bank page’s Weather section as a resource for anyone planning to fly on the coast.
All the best,
Jeff George, A/PK
Lennard Island Lightstation
