Description

Today, visitors to the East Point
Lighthouse, at the extreme eastern
end of Prince Edward Island, come
away with the haunting feeling that
they have been in touch with the ghosts
of shipwrecked sailors. It is reassuring
to see the trim white lighthouse tower
and the well-kept grounds, with the
keeper's children busy at play. But
closer to the Point, Nature has set a
more ominous stage. Along the cliff
edge, an impenetrable tangle of gnarled
and twisted white spruce trees forms a
living bulwark against the prevailing
wind and the salt spray.
Off the Point, however, there is no
shelter. Men and ships are at the mercy
of the restless wind, tidal rips, and
three reefs, the longest and most dangerous
called, simply, East Point Reef.
Here, the waves from the Gulf of St.
Lawrence to the north break abruptly
against those of the Northumberland
Strait to the south, forming a long line
of distorted waters over the rocky,
submerged ledge of the infamous reef.
A buoy, nearly two miles out, marks
the end of danger.