The red tower at the end of the South Haven pier

It is the most photographed object in South Haven, and you can walk almost all the way out to it. The fire-engine-red tower at the end of the south pier is the South Haven South Pierhead Light. It stands where the Black River empties into Lake Michigan and guides boats through the narrow harbor mouth.

A light has burned here since 1872. The cast-iron tower standing now went up in 1903. In 1913, crews hauled it about 425 feet farther out to the tip of the pier. On a calm summer evening, the walk out is the whole town’s idea of a nice time. Fishermen line the pier, kids drop lines, and the lake goes pink behind the tower.

The detail worth noticing is the spindly metal walkway raised beside the pier. That is the catwalk, and it was no scenic touch. In a gale, waves break clean over a pier like this. The keeper still had to reach the light, and the raised catwalk helped him get there without being washed into the lake. Most catwalks were scrapped long ago. South Haven’s is original and one of just four left standing in Michigan. It is working machinery, not a decoration added later.

The Coast Guard handed the lighthouse to the Historical Association of South Haven in 2012. The group cares for it now and opens the tower on certain days. The far reach of the pier has no railings, and a storm can send water straight across it. On a rough day, the smart move is to admire that red tower from dry land.