Shedding light on a special story

First book by Barry Porter shares lightkeeper experiences

The life of the lightkeeper can be an exciting, but solitary, existence that few people today know or can share.

But Barry Porter is one of those few who knows what it was like. And, now, he’s sharing his experiences in his first book, Adventures of a Lightkeeper.

The Porterville man was employed as a lightkeeper for 23 years by the Canadian Coast Guard, with stints at four lighthouses on the northeast coast of central Newfoundland.

Porter started as a part-time keeper at the Surgeon’s Cove Head Lighthouse, filling in for lightkeeper Allan Roberts before Roberts retired and Porter took over permanently.

This lighthouse guided shipping to and from the busy ports of Botwood and Lewisporte.

Porter finished his career in 2006 at the historic Long Point Lighthouse on Twillingate Island where he was the last lightkeeper to live in the 146-year-old dwelling while working there.

He also worked at the Bacalhao Island Lighthouse for four years and did a shift at the Puffin Island Lighthouse in 2003.

The book documents the day-to-day operations at these remote light stations.

“We had to be carpenters, plumbers, electricians, radio operators, tour guides if you did have a couple visitors,” Porter tells Central Wire. “I just wanted to inform the public what’s going on at these light stations that most people take for granted and know very little of.”

Porter details the sense of isolation and the need to maintain “your wits” by keeping busy, whether by doing maintenance or, in leisure time, walking around the island, reading or picking up hobbies.

“You’d try it all. I tried every hobby there was besides knitting,” he says. “You just got to keep busy, keep your wits about you and get along with your co-worker, do your job and make the best of it.”

Along with 70 of Porter’s personal photos, the book includes thrilling stories of wildlife encounters with Arctic foxes, polar bears, snowy owls and humpback whales.

Within these exciting pages, Porter discusses the towering icebergs passing through that rendered shipping lanes hazardous, vicious storms, marine rescues he participated in, the process of lighthouse automation and he even shares a few ghost stories. He also shares the story of his lighthouse companion, the paralyzed beagle, Gypsy, and his determined efforts to rehabilitate the pooch.

However, the book is not simply a personal account of Porter’s experiences. Through research, he was also able to shed light on the history of the lighthouses and the legacies of the pioneer keepers who preceded him.

Adventures of a Lightkeeper was published by Flanker Press this spring. It’s available at flankerpress.com, Coles, Chapters or Amazon and has been placed at Big Stops and Orange Stores across the province. It can also be purchased at bookstores across the province.

A book launch was scheduled for June 29, 6 to 8 p.m., at Chapters in St. John’s.

Porter participated in a Q&A with SaltWire Network, discussing the writing process, how he became a lightkeeper and his favourite part of the job.

Q. Why did you want to write this book?

A. I worked for 23 years and I just took it for granted. But the more I thought about it, the more unique I realized that career was. I started posting a few pictures on Facebook a few years ago, and everybody was fascinated with the pictures and the short stories I would accompany my photos with. The more and more I thought about it, I thought there’s probably a book here. And I didn’t know of any other lightkeeper that really told the story about living and working on remote lighthouses in Newfoundland. So, with COVID, I had extra time on my hands, I started putting my stories down onto my laptop and once they started, it just flowed out of me … I kept a diary for 30 odd years and I took pictures of just about everything I’ve ever done, so I had some things I could reference back to ...

Q. When did you start writing?

A. I started writing January 2021.

Q. How long did it take to finish?

A. It took 14 months. It was a lot of work. I spent hundreds of hours researching, double checking my facts, plus telling the story because I wanted my book to be entertaining but also informative … I kept a record of any special events that went on at the lighthouse. Plus, I double checked with some of my co-workers and former Coast Guard employees just to make sure I was correct in what I was writing. It all fell into place and I’m pleased with the book.

Q. How did you get a job as a lightkeeper?

A. Porterville is a little farming town outside of Lewisporte. When I finished high school, I became a welder. I actually applied on the Ocean Ranger. I went to St. John’s, six months before the Ocean Ranger sank, I went to the job fair. I passed the interview, I passed the medical and I was told to go home and sit by the phone. When there was a job opening, I would be hired. I waited a couple months and never heard nothing. I phoned them, probably January 1982, just to double check to see where I was on the list of this welding career on the Ocean Ranger. The office told me that the next welder quits, the job is mine.

Unfortunately, the Ocean Ranger sank the next month and I gave up my welding career right there and then. So, I had to totally shift gears and I didn’t want to become a farmer. My dad was a farmer. So, I applied for a part time summer relief lightkeeping position in 1983.

Q. What was your favourite part of being a lightkeeper?

A. On the good days, when you’re sitting out and overlooking the ocean, you got 20 miles visibility in every direction, when Mother Nature co-operated. I know one time I sat on the helicopter pad on Surgeon’s Cove Head … and I counted 126 icebergs from my vantage point. Days like that when you got Mother Nature floating icebergs past you, and there could be a pod of humpback whales swimming past the lighthouse, things like that, that was enjoyable.

And the other side of it, you felt satisfaction when you helped some mariner, somebody in trouble.