beep........beep........beep.
I awake to the sounds of my phone, not an alarm that was set, but the alarm that my cell battery was going dead. I fugured it was the middle of the night, and that i would just turn off the phone and get back to sleep, for some much needed rest.
When i checked the phone to see what time it was, i was shocked that it was 6:30am. This meant two things, one it was not the middle of the night, and two i could make a dash for the beach, and the rising sun. So i throw the phone on charge while i dress and load the truck.
camera bag, gloves, hood, and layers of clothing to help insulate me from the pre dawn chill in the air.
I get back inside to collect the last few things i would need, including my cell phone with a minimum charge to get the beeping to stop. I hit the local coffee stop for the mornings first cup of coffee, and im off headed east to catch the rising sun......or so i hoped to get to the beach before the sun broke the horizon.
driving in the morning can be fun, no traffic so the travel is quicker then normal. the only real issues are not getting stopped for speeding, the local cops would be sure to be watching as not to much happens just before the dawn. so watching my speed and to be sure not to be in too much of a rush, i watch as the sky changes from blackish blue to a more transparent reddish yellow. i think that iam missing it, and the sun will be up before i get to the beach, but it is still to early and i know i have about 20 minutes before the sun is over the eastern horizon. the few clouds that i can see are changing colors and every moment brings new shades to the early morning sky and me closer to the beach.
as i get to the highlands bridge i stop to check and see what if anything would be a change of landscape for the mornings events. a quick look around and im back on my way to the beach just over the bridge. i make my way to the third beach, where i decided to park and walk out to meet the new day. as i exit the truck, i put on my hood and gloves and turn to face the water and the wind. its cold, not as bad as the last few days but still cold. the fist thing i notice is that i cant work the cameras settings with thick and warm gloves on my fingers, so off come the gloves, and now i am bare handed, in the cold and wind on the beach in january to catch the sunrise. its cold, very cold. my fingers go numb almost instantly, back on go the gloves, i ll have to make do with gloved fingers.
seagulls, fishermen, and a couple walking down the beach are what greet me. i was shocked to see anyone else on the beach for some reason. i wasnt thinking that i would see anyone. the gulls flew away as soon as i set a foot in thier direction, and the sand, rocks, and broken and discared seashells paid me no mind.
shooting at the beach into a setting or rising sun can bring up some problems on a nice and warm summer day, let alone the bitterness of a cold winter day. my finger dexteritity was shot by this point, i could hardly make any adjustments to the camera at all, i was going to pull the plug and head for the truck, but then i said, i m not awake this early not to get the photos, stop bitching and just shoot. so mind over matter, and i began to shoot.
the sky started to change to a brighter shade of yellow to blue, meaning the sun was really close to making its entrance. just then i noticed the pink on the very distant clouds, to mark the spot where the sun would peak over the edge of the once flat world. framing the shot i started to shoot, the beach, a tidal pool, and seagull that hadnt flow the coop, atleast not yet. the pink turned into a briliant yellow then white................ it has come, the sun, bringing with it the warmth and bright day light, as it chased the cold and the night, to the western horizon and beyond.
200 some photos later, it was time to retreat to the truck to warm myself for a bit, and look to a new location for some more shooting. as i was leaving the beach area, i made one of my cardnial mistakes, always go the way you came, being on an empty beach, and at low tide can hide some interesting traps that we dont always see coming............. taking a short cut across the area that i was so careful to walk around getting out to the waters edge, i now crossed the very wet and much shorter route back to the truck. only to find myself sinking in quicksand, up to my knees and thighs before i could lean back enough to stop from sinking into the sink hole i had just found myself in. so now with camera gear in hand, and sinking in very wet, and cold sand, and thinking oh great now what am i going to do, i was able to get my legs free and head back in the safe direction, the one i took out to the sand bar in the first place.................
so with being wet and cold, and escaping being stuck in a sink hole up to my hips i now headed for the truck, and the warmth and comfort it would provide. with little else going on this early in the day, i headed home after a quick stop to snap off a few more shots, but not many, the cold in my hands was getting worse not better, and with wet feet and legs, it would be wise to head for the barn.
so not bad only 5 days into the new year, and i already have a nice sunrise under my belt. with more to come in the new year, i wait for tomorrow to do it all over again, and to not make the same mistake again......... leave just a bit earlier then today, and not get stuck in the sand trap !
oh and dress warmer !
mike
=)
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