One of Canada’s Last Lightkeepers Recalls His Watch From the Rugged Coasts of Newfoundland

Barry Porter, a retired lighthouse keeper with the Canadian Coast Guard, poses near an iceberg off the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador. Courtesy of Barry Porter

Isolation, beauty, danger, rescues—Barry Porter’s two decades as a lighthouse keeper on Newfoundland’s remote coasts had its dull moments and its adventures.

He had time to do things. He spent several months rehabilitating a paralyzed beagle. He half-tamed an arctic fox.