Built in 1920 exactly the same as the neighbor in O Roncudo, a simple cylinder covered with white tiles, this 11-meter-high construction is located at the Ínsua point of Cabo Laxe, on a hill some 50 meters above sea level. , which defends the town and the port from the prevailing winds, in a privileged natural space.
The current lighting installation dates from 1996 and its characteristics correspond to those of an Acrylic Rotating Beacon, equipped with incandescent lamps connected to the electrical network. Its luminous appearance corresponds to that of a group of 5 flashes in 20 seconds.
In nearby waters, the Playa de Arnela shipwrecked in 1972, a ship from Corme that, upon arriving at its port, was dragged by the sea to the rocks and breakers of Punta da Insua, saving only two crew members.
The place name “A Costa da Morte” defines a large area of Galicia between the Muros and Noia estuaries and the A Coruña estuary. This curious place name, according to some scholars, could have been coined by the Greeks to define the region where the Sun disappeared daily into the sea and sank into the land of the dead until the next morning.
Another more recent and widespread meaning refers to the large number of shipwrecks that occurred on this coast for centuries, due to the danger of its shallows, the frequent storms, its cliffs, the days and nights of fog… Its name dates back , according to the oldest documented quote, found by José Manuel Lema Mouzo in a copy of the Noroeste newspaper, in January 1904.
Near the lighthouse we can see the bronze sculpture ‘A WAITING’, the idea, the work of Iria Rodríguez, located in the «MIRADOR DE A INSUA», serves as a reference for all the relatives and friends of the drowned whose bodies were never found.
The artist has managed to reflect all the tension and desperation of the one who is waiting, in that young mother who scans the horizon in search of a ship that does not arrive.
The young mother represented could be hundreds of women who throughout the history of the Costa da Morte have waited without hope not only for their husbands but also for their children, parents or brothers. Sometimes, as happened on the Panchito, another Laxe ship, it is necessary to bury the husband and son at the same funeral.
The looker has a RECREATION AREA that simulates a castro with very good panoramic views. It has chairs and tables. It has no protection from the sun or trees.
From Laxe we can approach the lighthouse following the approved circular route PR-G70 SENDEIRO LAXE-PUNTA ÍNSUA. This simple itinerary of 4.6 km; achievable in 2 hours; with an accumulated unevenness of 107 m; and Low difficulty, it is signposted and runs along the entire eastern coast of Monte da Insua, up to the Laxe lighthouse, returning along the western slope until it surrounds the mountain. At all times, the path that runs halfway up the slope is the path traced by the fishermen who collect the products of the sea.
ACTIVATION QO100 04-12-2022
DATA OF LIGHTHOUSE
International Code: D-1732 ARHLS Code: SPA-238 Height above or ground: 11 meters Light characteristic: GpD(5) 20s. Period: L0,1 Oc2,4 L0,1 Oc2,4 L0,1 Oc2,4 L0,1 Oc2,4 L0,1 Oc9,9 Range: 20 milles Grid Locator: IN53LF Coordenates: 43º 13' 54.2" N - 9º 00' 40.2" W
LINKS
http://www.concellodelaxe.com/turismo/info.php?id_seccionweb=158&id_info=63
http://guias.masmar.net/Faros/Galicia/03760-Faro-de-Punta-Insua-Laxe.-A-Coru%C3%B1a
http://www.lavozdegalicia.es/noticia/carballo/2010/05/26/espera-frente-mar/0003_8507295.htm