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b'Cape Otway Lighthouse -- in southern Victoria, Australia, about 50 miles southwest of Melbourne --\\xa0is nicknamed the \\u201cBeacon of Hope.\\u201d\\xa0\\n\\n\\n\\n\\n\\n\\n\\nFor thousands of immigrants in the 1800s, Cape Otway was the first sight of land after leaving Europe, Asia, and North America. It\\u2019s the oldest surviving lighthouse on the Australian mainland and it\\u2019s also considered the most significant. \\n\\n\\n\\n19th century illustration of Cape Otway\\n\\n\\n\\nAlex Parry at Cape Otway\\n\\n\\n\\nBuilt in 1848, the lighthouse stands on a high cliff at the western entrance to Bass Strait between Australia and Tasmania. Frequent shipwrecks in the area with hundreds of lives lost led to the establishment of the lighthouse. \\n\\n\\n\\nIn 1891, the original system of 21 whale oil lamps and parabolic reflectors was replaced by a first-order Fresnel lens manufactured by Chance Brothers in England.\\n\\n\\n\\nToday, overnight accommodations are available in the head keeper\\u2019s cottage. Alex Parry is the operations coordinator for Cape Otway Light Station.\\n\\n\\n\\nSarah MacHugh\\n\\n\\n\\nSarah MacHugh co-hosts this episode.'