Tag Archives: Lake Superior

Au Sable Point – Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore

Posted by Richard Harrison on

I suppose the real cause of my all night drive from Pictured Rocks National Seashore resulted from my dalliance along the Au Sable Point Trail. I had seen the Au Sable Light from a vantage point along the dunes about five miles north near Grand Marais and decided I needed to get a closer look. It’s reached by a trail located just off the north perimeter of the Lower Campground, about a mile and a half from the lighthouse, so when I finished up tramping around the dunes I drove down that way.

By the time I reached the trailhead it was 1930. I calculated the walk would require 30 minutes one way and given that I’m still way north (46 degrees) I’d have plenty of time to get out there do some photography and get back before dark. I was thinking about the Light not the sunset and relished the idea that for once I would be approaching my subject both at the right time of day and under near perfect weather. One of those rare times when my schedule coincided with the right everything.

The Lower Campground is hard by the lakeshore. I parked and proceeded up the path. It runs parallel to the and within feet of the shoreline providing a panoramic view of Lake Superior. As I trudged along it  occurred to me that in addition to the Lighthouse I might also be able to capture shots of the sunset over the lake.

I took my time at the Light and shot it from as many angles as I could. It has stood on the point since 1874 and is one of tens such lights found around the Great Lakes area. If you’re into light houses this is the place to be – much more so than on the east or west coastlines. The shots will be the subject of the next post because I was more taken – at least for now – by what followed that part of the shoot.

I finished up, working my way around a few late evening visitors who arrived in time to clutter up the view, and headed back down the trail at a quick pace. I planned on finding a spot on the beach near where I had parked the car and taking in the ending of the day.  I arrived about 2030 and looked around for a spot. It was then I also realized that I had plenty of time to run and get my tripod – always a last-minute and usually overlooked thought – as well as a lens filter that would help to cut the sun’s glare and capture more of its coloration. So I picked the items up and headed back to the beach.

I was surprised to see that just left of the place at which I entered the beach a creek was flowing into the lake at moderate to high velocity so I settled on a spot that placed its exit point between me and the sunset. The lens filter ( a variable Tiffen) allowed me to soften the sun’s rays and to slow the movement of the water. I really loved the results.

Click on the photograph to see the several different shots that are in the SmugMug Gallery

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Eastbound and Down

Posted by Richard Harrison on

I arrived in Los Angeles late last October with the idea of spending a few weeks before heading south to Baja for the winter and then working my way back east and home to Virginia. Well, it didn’t quite work out that way. And I’ve been in LA ever since. I’ve yet to change my voting registration and driver’s license but I’ve come to think of this beautiful place as home. For a died-in-the-wool Virginian that’s hard to believe – but it is what it is. Still, there are places back east I need to be in the near future – principally my daughter’s wedding in September – and people scattered between here and there I need to see so next week after dawdling lo these many months in the SoCal sun I begin the long trek eastward.

One of my projects, not that I’m burdened with many, is to visit and photograph each of our National Parks at least once. There are 59 all told and so far I’ve taken in 27. Nine of those by the way are in California, the state which is home to the largest number of national parks. The trip back will consume 37 days primarily because I intend visiting a few more along the way. Eleven in fact. This project gets tougher as the number increases simply because at some point it’s no longer possible to drive to my destination: there are parks in America Samoa, the Virgin Islands and Hawaii. And eight in Alaska!

I’ll figure it out.

For now I thought I’d share the itinerary in word and image:

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  1. 10 July                       Depart Los Angeles, CA
  2. 10 – 12                       Mono Lake, CA
  3. 12                               South Lake Tahoe, CA
  4. 13                               Ely, NV – Layover Point
  5. 14                               Great Basin NP, Baker, NV
  6. 14 – 16                        Capitol Reef NP, Torrey, UT
  7. 16                               Natural Bridges National Monument, UT
  8. 16 – 17                        Blanding, UT – Layover Point
  9. 17                               Hovenweep National Monument, UT
  10. 17 – 18                        Mesa Verde NP, Cortez, CO
  11. 18 – 19                        Heron Lake State Park, NM
  12. 19 – 22                        Taos, NM – Summer Writer’s Conference
  13. 22 – 23                        Great Sand Dunes National Park, Alamosa, CO
  14. 23 – 25                        Black Canyon of Gunnison NP, Montrose, CO
  15. 25 – 27                        Rocky Mountain NP, Estes Park, CO
  16. 27 – 28                        Wind Cave NP, Custer, SD
  17. 28                                Badlands NP, SD – Stopover
  18. 28 – 29                        Jamestown, ND – Layover Point
  19. 29 – 31                        Voyageurs NP, International Falls, MN
  20. 31 July – 2 Aug            Isle Royale NP, Grand Portage, MN
  21. 2 – 3                             Ironwood, MI – Layover Point
  22. 3 – 4                             Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, MI
  23. 4 – 5                             Saginaw, MI – Layover Point
  24. 5 – 6                             Parma Heights, OH – Layover
  25. 6 – 7                             Cuyahoga Valley NP, Brecksville, OH
  26. 7 – 12                           Elizabethtown, KY – Layover
  27. 12 – 14                         Great Smoky Mountain NP, Gatlinburg, TN
  28. 14 – 16                         Triad, NC – Layover
  29. 16 – 17                         UVA, Charlottesville, VA
  30. 17 Aug                         Arrive Reston, VA

The trip covers a little over 6,000 miles and will consume about 115 driving hours. I’m won’t get to spend as much time in each of the parks as I’d like but I know I’ll get back to many of them over the next several years.

I’m looking forward to visiting my longtime friends and maybe to making a few new ones along the way. More about the wedding later. For now I’ll just say I’m probably looking forward to it as much as any father does when it comes to his one and only (and favorite) daughter. But I’ve known my future son-in-law now for half a dozen years or more and he’s a wonderful young man. I’m sure AnnaSummer will mold him into something workable. 🙂

And next winter?  Baja, of course.

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