Located on Bass Harbor Head on the south end of Mount Desert Island, the Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse stands 56 feet above the water and has an occulting red (three seconds on, one second off) light beamed through a fourth order Fresnel lens.

The lighthouse, constructed of brick, was established to mark the long Bass Harbor Bar that extends out from Bass Harbor Head to nearby Great Gott Island, and also serves as th initial aid to mariners navigating into Bass Harbor.

The light station and building were originally established here in 1858. The United States Coast Guard automated the light in 1974, and still actively maintains the light as an aid to navigation.

Use NOAA Chart 13316.

The Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse marks the eight- to eleven-foot deep Bass Harbor Bar extending from the “mainland” to Great Gott Island, and also serves as the initial aid for mariners navigating into bass Harbor. Depths in the area, aside from the bar, are deep right to shore. Two nun buoys at its entrance mark Bass Harbor itself.

Local Notices to Mariners are now available exclusively online from the U.S. Coast Guard.

The grounds are open 365 days a year from 9 a.m. until sunset, but the lighthouse itself is not open to the public. The lighthouse is located on state Route 102A in Bass Harbor.