Tahkuna lighthouse stands over 40 metres tall on the northern tip of Hiiumaa, an iron tower built in Paris in 1874 and shipped to Estonia by freighter. Its sister lighthouse, Ristna, was delivered at the same time and placed on the western tip of the island. Local legend insists the two were switched by mistake — Tahkuna, the taller of the pair, should logically have gone west, where it would be the first beacon ships saw coming from Europe. Instead the shorter Ristna ended up there.
Both lighthouses warn ships away from Neckmansgrund, the treacherous shallows off Hiiumaa's northwest coast. Hundreds of ships have gone down here over the centuries. The wrecks were tragic but profitable for islanders, who made a living salvaging cargo and rescuing passengers.
The area around Tahkuna also saw a brief, sharp battle in 1941. Soviet troops built gun emplacements and bunkers facing north, expecting a German naval assault. The Germans landed instead at Emmaste in the southwest, swept north, and overwhelmed the defenders. Some 2,000 Soviet soldiers were captured. A dramatic memorial to the fallen stands along the road a few hundred metres before the lighthouse.
You can climb to the top during opening hours — the views over the Baltic are worth the effort.