YBDXC yb land dx club: Lighthouses of Indonesia: Northern Sumatra

http://www.unc.edu/~rowlett/lighthouse/idri.htm

Lighthouses of Indonesia: Northern Sumatra

Indonesia has been independent since 1945, after having been the Dutch East Indies for more than 350 years. It is a huge country, stretching along both sides of the Equator for more than 46 degrees of longitude (roughly 5100 km or 3200 miles). Comprised of some 17,000 islands (more than 6000 inhabited islands), it has hundreds of major aids to navigation. Unfortunately, it's difficult to know how many of these aids can be considered lighthouses. Information about them is scarce, and photos are even scarcer. Official light lists contain dozens of entries for "framework towers" and "white beacons," providing little guidance for the lighthouse fan.
Sumatra (or, as Indonesians prefer, Sumatera) is the world's sixth largest island and the westernmost of the major islands of Indonesia. It is separated from Malaysia to the north by the Malacca Strait, from Borneo to the northeast by the broad Karimata Strait, and from Java to the southeast by the Sunda Strait. Its south coast faces the open Indian Ocean. This page includes lighthouses of North Sumatra province and Aceh territory, located at the northwestern end of the island.
This page is probably not complete. Listed here are towers at locations known to be historic Dutch light stations, plus some additional sites at which there is some evidence for a lighthouse. Added to this is an appeal for more information and photos; if you know about lighthouses in Indonesia, please share that knowledge.
Note: Lighthouses of Bangka and Belitung, formerly listed under Sumatra, now have a separate page.
The Indonesian word for a lighthouse is mercusuar. The phrase menara suar, which includes the Arabic word menara, is sometimes used instead. Tanjungand ujung are words for capes, pulau is an island, selat is a strait, and teluk is a harbor.
Aids to navigation in Indonesia are operated and maintained by the Indonesian Directorate of Marine Navigation (Indomarinav).
ARLHS numbers are from the ARLHS World List of Lights. Admiralty numbers are from volumes F and K of the Admiralty List of Lights & Fog Signals. U.S. NGA List numbers are from Publication 112.

General Sources
Historical Lighthouses: From Indomarinav, information on four surviving Dutch lighthouses.
KITLV Beeldbank: Historic photos from the collection of the Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies.

Breueh Light, Aceh, May 2010
photo copyright Douglas Cameron; used by permission

Lighthouses of North Sumatra Province's West Coast

Batu Islands Area Lighthouses
Pulau Nias Area Lighthouses
Note: Nias is a large island (more than 5000 km²) about 140 km (88 mi) off the Sumatran coast and 80 km (50 mi) northwest of the Batu group. It has a substantial population, more than 750,000, although it does not attract many Western tourists. The island is accessible by air and by ferries from Sibolga on the mainland of North Sumatra.
Pulau Hinaka (Hinako): 1912. Active; focal plane 54 m (177 ft); white flash every 5 s. 32 m (105 ft) cast iron skeletal tower, painted white. No photo available. KITLV has a historic photo of the original lighthouse, and Google's satellite view indicates that this historic tower survives. This lighthouse guides vessels passing Nias to the west. Located on a small island in the Indian Ocean about 10 km (6 mi) off the west coast of Nias. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-198; Admiralty F1254; NGA 23240.
Pulau Sumabawa: Date unknown. Active; focal plane 33 m (108 ft); white flash every 4 s. 30 m (98 ft) skeletal tower, painted white. No photo available, and the island is only a blur in Google's satellite view. Located on an island about 12 km (7.5 mi) off the east coast of Nias. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-260; Admiralty F1257; NGA 23246.
Tanjung Mbaa: Date unknown. Active; focal plane 75 m (246 ft); white flash every 5 s. 21 m (69 ft) cast iron skeletal tower, painted white. No photo available, and the tower has not been located in Google's satellite view of the cape. The light guides vessels approaching Gunungsitoli, the administrative center of the island, on the northeast coast. Located on a promontory about 3 km (2 mi) north of Gunungsitoli. Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-286; Admiralty F1248; NGA 23248.
Gosong Baohi: Date unknown. Active; focal plane 28 m (92 ft); white flash every 5 s. 25 m (82 ft) cast iron skeletal tower, painted white. No photo available; Google has a satellite view that may show the light. This lighthouse guides vessels to the port of Lahewa. Located on an island off the northwestern coast of Nias. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-129; Admiralty F1250; NGA 23260.
Bintanah: Date unknown. Active; focal plane 33 m (108 ft); white flash every 5 s. 30 m (98 ft) cast iron skeletal tower, painted white. No photo available, and Google's satellite view shows only a blur. Located on an island in the center of the Mentawai Strait, midway between Nias and the Sumatra mainland. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-112; Admiralty F1262.3; NGA 23267.
Sibolga Area Lighthouses Labu Labu Kecil: Date unknown. Active; focal plane 57 m (187 ft); two white flashes every 7 s. 40 m (131 ft) skeletal tower, painted white. No photo available; Google has a distant satellite view of the island. Located on a small island on the west side of the southern entrance to the bay of Sibolga. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-152; Admiralty F1262.5; NGA 23269.
Ujung Karang: Date unknown. Active; focal plane 41 m (134 ft); three white flashes every 17 s. 40 m (131 ft) skeletal tower, painted white. No photo available. Located on a peninsula sheltering the west side of the bay of Sibolga. Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-349; Admiralty F1263; NGA 23284.

Lighthouses of Aceh

Note: Located at the northwestern end of Sumatra, Aceh was the scene of a lengthy and sometimes violent separatist movement, first against Dutch control and then against Indonesian administration. Following the disastrous tsunami of 26 December 2004, a peace agreement negotiated with the help of Finnish diplomats was signed in August 2005. Aceh is governed not as a province of Indonesia but as a "special territory" enjoying a considerable degree of autonomy. The capital is Banda Aceh, and the territory has a population of roughly four million.
West Coast (Indian Ocean) Lighthouses
Singkil (Singkel) (2): Date unknown (station established 1912). Active; focal plane 33 m (108 ft); white flash every 6 s. 30 m (98 ft) skeletal tower, painted white. No photo available, and Google's satellite view has no detail in this area. A 1917 coast pilot lists the original light with a focal plane of 21 m (69 ft). Located at the entrance to the port of Pasar Singkel in the extreme southern end of Aceh. Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-279; Admiralty F1267; NGA 23292.
Tinggi: Date unknown. Active; focal plane 40 m (131 ft); white flash every 3 s. 30 m (98 ft) skeletal tower, painted white. No photo available, and Google has only a fuzzy satellite view of the area. The lighthouse guides vessels approaching Simeulue Barat, a port on the northeast coast of Simeulue, a large island off the west coast of Aceh. Located on a small island about 4 km (2.5 mi) off the coast of Simeulue. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-341; Admiralty F1278; NGA 23310.
Ujung Kareueng (Teluk Muelaboh) (2?): Date unknown. Active; focal plane 27 m (89 ft); white light, 2 s on, 6 s off. 25 m (82 ft) square cylindrical skeletal tower, painted white. In an aerial photo of the promontory, the tower is barely visible at the extreme tip of the point (use maximum magnification). This area was swept clean by the 2004 tsunami, so the presnt lighthouse may be new. Located on a promontory at Muelaboh. Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-350; Admiralty F1292; NGA 23328.
Krueng Teunom: Date unknown. Active; focal plane 34 m (111 ft); red flash every 7.5 s. 30 m (98 ft) skeletal tower, painted white. No photo available, and the tower has not been located in Google's satellite view. Located at the Teunom River entrance northwest of Suak Uleue. (The river entrance is blocked by a bar, so this must be a coastal light rather than a harbor light.) Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-149; Admiralty F1292.2; NGA 23328.5.
Ujung Baro: Date unknown. Active; focal plane 60 m (197 ft); two white flashes every 10 s. 30 m (98 ft) skeletal tower, painted white. No photo available, but Google has a satellite view. Located on a promontory near Alue Titi. Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-347; Admiralty F1292.35; NGA 23329.5.
Rangas (Pulau Rangas): Date unknown. Active; focal plane 50 m (164 ft); white flash every 5 s. NGA provides no description of this light; Google's satellite view reveals what is probably a white skeletal tower at least 20 m (66 ft) tall. No photo available. Located on a small island about 3 km (1.75 mi) southwest of Ujung Baro. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-261; Admiralty F1292.3; NGA 23329.
Pulau Rondo and Pulau Weh Lighthouses
Le Meule (Ujung Tapagaya, Ujung Baratlaut) (2): Date unknown (station established 1905). Active; focal plane 29 m (95 ft); white flash every 5 s. 25 m (82 ft) square skeletal tower with gallery, painted white. No photo available, but Google has a satellite view. KITLV has an odd double-exposed 1914 photo in which the lower portion of the Meule tower is seen at the left, against the vegetation. Located at the northern point of Pulau Weh. Site probably open, tower closed. ARLHS IDO-340; Admiralty F1308; NGA 22260.
East Coast (Andaman Sea and Strait of Malacca) Lighthouses
Ujung Pidie: Date unknown. Active; focal plane 60 m (197 ft); three white flashes every 20 s. 40 m (131 ft) skeletal tower, painted white. No photo available, and Google's satellite view has no detail at this cape. This lighthouse marks a prominent cape about 80 km (50 mi) east of Banda Aceh and 16 km (10 mi) northwest of Sigli. Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-344; Admiralty F1319; NGA 22286.
Lhokseumawe (2): Date unknown (station established 1904). Active; focal plane 22 m (72 ft); white flash every 3 s. 13 m (43 ft) iron framework tower, painted white. No photo available. KITLV has a historic photo of the original lighthouse; it was of similar size but the focal plane was only 15 m (49 ft). Located in Lhokseumawe, a city about 160 km (100 mi) east of Banda Aceh. Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-157; Admiralty F1324; NGA 22356.
Tanjung Jambuair (Tanjung Jamboaye, Diamantpunt) (2): Date unknown (station established 1905). Active; focal plane 44 m (144 ft); one long (1.5 s) white flash every 5 s. 40 m (131 ft) skeletal tower on an octagonal base. Lighthouse painted white. No photo available, and Google has only a distant satellite view of the cape. KITLV has a photo of a scale model of the original lighthouse, a 26 m (85 ft) screwpile tower. This lighthouse is on Sumatra's northern "shoulder," marking the south side of the entrance to the Strait of Malacca. Located on Tanjung (cape) Jambuair, about 40 km (25 mi) east of Lhokseurnawe. Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-083; Admiralty F1327; NGA 22364.
* Idi: Date unknown (station established 1905). Active; focal plane 20 m (66 ft); white flash every 3 s. 20 m (66 ft) iron skeletal tower, painted white. No current photo available. KITLV has a historic photo of the original tower, a 20 m (66 ft) hexagonal skeletal tower. Perhaps this lighthouse survives, but we have no evidence of it. Located at Idi, a town about 50 km (30 mi) southeast of Tanjung Jambuair. Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-083; Admiralty F1327.5; NGA 22368.
Ujung Tamiang: Date unknown. Active; focal plane 44 m (144 ft); three white flashes every 20 s. 40 m (131 ft) skeletal tower, painted white. No photo available, but Google has a very fuzzy satellite view. Located just off a swampy cape about 35 km (22 mi) east of Langsa. Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-345; Admiralty F1334; NGA 22394.

Lighthouses of North Sumatra Province's East Coast

Malacca Strait Lighthouses
Nipahlarangang: Date unknown. Active; focal plane 44 m (144 ft); three white flashes every 20 s. 40 m (131 ft) skeletal tower, painted white. No photo available. A Google satellite view shows a station of some kind, but the tower is not discernible. Located on a low cape about 16 km (10 mi) north of Belawan. Site status unknown. ARLHS IDO-172; Admiralty F1352; NGA 22400.
Pankalan Dodek (2): Date unknown (station established 1906). Active; focal plane 18 m (59 ft); white flash every 5 s. 15 m (49 ft) "white beacon," according to NGA. No photo available, and Google has only a very distant satellite view of the area. KITLV has a distant view of the original lighthouse, which had a focal plane height of 15 m (49 ft). Located on the south side of the entrance to the Pangkalan River about 20 km (13 mi) northwest of Tanjungbalai. Site status unknown. Admiralty F1376.5; NGA 22458.
Pulau Salahnama (South Brother Island): Date unknown. Active; focal plane 121 m (397 ft); white flash every 6 s. 30 m (98 ft) "white beacon," according to NGA. No photo available, and Google has only a very blurry satellite view. This island and its shorter neighbor Pulau Pandang (North Brother) are well-known hazards to navigation along the Sumatran coast. Located on an island in the Strait of Malacca about 20 km (13 mi) off the coast north of Tanjung Balai. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. Admiralty F1378.5; NGA 22462.