Using steel bars, slippery dish detergent, and some sturdy metal chains, a Nova Scotia community has saved its local lighthouse by pulling the structure onto solid ground.

The Gabarus lighthouse has stood on a cliff above Gabarus Bay for 125 years. But as stormy Atlantic weather wore away the cliff, the lighthouse's perch became more and more precarious.

By September 2015, the structure teetered a mere two metres from the edge.

As the cliff slowly slipped into the ocean, the Gabarus Lightkeepers Society worked to find a way to save the red and white landmark.

This summer, after more than three years of advocacy work, the society won $50,000 in a province-wide contest called "This Lighthouse Matters."

https://thisplacematters.ca/competition/this-lighthouse-matters/

"We ran into a few barriers and a few challenges," Gabarus Lightkeepers Society chair Janet McGillen told CTV Atlantic. "We just kept plugging away with lots of support from the community. They just kept saying 'keep going, keep going,' so we did."

Using their prize money, the society hired contractor Jim Demeyere to co-ordinate the relocation.

And on Friday, the community gathered to watch the big move.

Demeyere lifted the structure onto a platform made of steel bars, and then used chains to tie the platform to a digger.

Then, the contractor hopped into the vehicle's driver's seat.

From there, he manoeuvered the controls to tug the lighthouse along a metal track, which was lubricated with dish soap.

As he slowly pulled the lighthouse along the track, the structure wobbled, but didn't tip over.

"(It's) three times higher than it is wide and the top is all steel," Demeyere said. "You've got to be very careful."

For Demeyere and many of the spectators, it was their first experience moving a lighthouse.

"It's a great day and it's been a long time coming," Gabarus resident Tim Menk said. "But it's about time because (the lighthouse) was going to fall off if it was left where it was."

Now that their lighthouse is safe, the community is already planning celebrations at its new location.

They're hoping to hold the town's 300th birthday party at the lighthouse next year.

"There's a poignancy about saving something as the coastline erodes," Menk said. "(And) There's something permanent about community. That's what strikes at my heart strings."

With files from CTV Atlantic