(Cape) Lookout! Here Comes Happy Place Number Five!

Our October 2007 excursion to the edge of North Carolina continues. We checked out of the cutest motel room ever in Topsail Beach, not quite sure of what to do next. We had already photographed all the lighthouses in the state. Our shots of Cape Lookout were dark and dreary, however, and leaving Topsail we were greeted by the above sky. Back to the tiny town with the hit-or-miss "ferry" service, and back to Cape Lookout went we.

On the island, in the shadow of Cape Lookout Lighthouse - same sky!

Awwww yeeeah...

A token shot from the old 35mm. Still gets the job done.

On Cape Lookout, all roads lead to the lighthouse. Not really. This one does, though.

View from the beach. Those black and white diamonds are significant, by the way. They are aligned north-south and east-west, as a navigational aid. Cool, non?

Dead trees, for Mom. I like 'em, too. They're like odd candelabras.

Cupola! It's WAY up there, too. Like 160 feet up there.

Despite making my poor old Cavalier run 85mph on the two-lane roads through the swamplands that made up the last 20 miles to the ferry, we missed the 3:00 boat to Ocracoke Island by about 60 seconds. First in line for the 6:00, here she sits, cooling off and waiting patiently. The extra three hours turned out to be a welcome break, and riding the ferry in the dark as thunderstorms flashed in the distance across the sound was amazing.

Of Islands Bald, Moths, Lighthouses and a Pelican. Banks Outer and Coasts Crystal.

I'm back from Camp NaNoWriMo and I'm ready to go. To bed. For a month. But first, here are some more pics from our 2007 jaunt southward along the Outer, Middle and Lower Banks and Crystal Coast of North Carolina. Above - Fort Something-or-other Park, searching for the Bald Head Island Ferry.

Our base of operations for a couple of days - the Sea Vista Motel at Topsail Beach. Cutest motel room ever. It felt more like a beach house.

Pelican!

Old Baldy Lighthouse, on the quaint and exclusive Bald Head Island. The hike from the ferry terminal to the lighthouse in the heat and humidity = rent one of those golf carts, next time.

Cupola!

Chapel on Bald Head Island. I don't know. I just love the chaos of light and shadow and architecture. Nice spot.

Marshes on east side of Bald Head Island. Peace.

Funky moth. Bald Head Island has it all!

And on the crossing, you get a glimpse of Oak Island Light, down past Southport.

Massive. Incredibly tall. Ugly. Boring. Concrete. Oak Island Light Station. I'll bet the view is amazing.

Baby car, riding yet another ferry to yet another adventure on the N.C. Coast. While this pic was being taken, her cigarette lighter was busily melting one of our AC adapter/charger things. No fire, no one hurt - the adventure continued...

(wave wave wave)

Two Tales Of Cape Lookout: Tale #1 - Clouds

It's not super easy to get to Cape Lookout in October, when you're trying to shoot all of North Carolina's lighthouses in less than a week. The so-called ferry services take turns operating, so you have to ask around to find out whose day it is, and the crossing can be rough. But we did it - twice. The second time was made necessary by the thick overcast of our first visit. I'll post those shots later, and you'll agree it was well worth the second trip. Above is the view from the pier.

Fluffy-looking pines and the awesome black and white tower. Those diamonds are aligned north-south and east-west, as a navigational aid.

Lizards! Still a pain to try to shoot, and as cute as ever.

'Sup?

Okay, sometimes clouds are cool.

Big. Large. Grande.

Flora on the island. This is one of the few plants that wasn't 100% thorns and stickers.

Seagull pacing the ferry as we continued south.

Crazy bird. "Look, if you don't have and potato chips, get off my boat, apes."

[Maris] and Joe fly as shadows skimming the waves en route to their next adventure...

Thanks for visiting!

Ocracoke And A Smile - Working Our Way Down The Outer Banks

Where were we? Oh yeah - It's October 2007, and we're in the middle of our "finally shooting the lighthouses of North Carolina" trip. Above: Obligatory shots of Cape Hatteras' famous lighthouse, now located about a half-mile from its original spot. Yep - it's pretty.

Hatteras cupola!

This is what the Ocracoke Light Station looks like if you get there too late in the day and it's a little too cloudy.

So you just have to get up a little early and shoot it in the morning sun, before catching the first ferry to Cedar Island.

Cupola, cloudy. Yes, it looks crooked. I'm pretty sure it's set on top of the tower at a slant, or at least a little off-center. That's the visual "flaw" that lends it great charm.

Cupola, sunny!

One departing shot from aboard the ferry. Shameless plug: We. Love. Ocracoke.

Clouds and sunbeams and the Pamlico Sound.

Gulls on the breakwater.

A preview of what's to come. This was our first trip to Cape Lookout. The lighthouse was so cool, we made a second crossing on our way back north, when the sun was shining.

Check back soon!

Lightmotif - Now With Half The Calories Of Regular Motif

I've wanted to do this post for a long time. It starts out a bit silly, but (I think) it gets really cool towards the end. These are ambient light time exposures of some of my neon, laser and other light-emitting toys. Above - there are no batteries in that clock, so it's ALWAYS 5:00.

I'm sure you can find these all over the place, but my palm tree lights are special. I picked them up in the midst of a tourist spending frenzy at the Key West Winery shop in 2002.

Soon after that, along came this neon silliness. Puts a nice glow in the beach room.

Himalayan salt crystal - a warm glow, plus millions of yummy, health-restoring ions!

Nice Moai. Good boy. (pat pat pat)

I thought this lamp would be the easiest to shoot, but it turned out to be the hardest. Iridescent clear plastic bits, illuminated from below and floating freely. meh. Hard to capture, but...

Leave the shutter open for 5 seconds, and look what happens! Reminds me of the opening credits (or was it closing?) of the live-action "Ultraman" TV show from Japan. But then, I'm old like that.

Now for the real fun - laser stars! They make your ceiling look like this.

Crank up the blue clouds and leave the lens open a little longer, and they do this.

Turn off the blue and open the shutter for 10 seconds, and they turn into spinny green laser spirographic awesomeness.

No words... Should have sent a poet... No... Words...

FUTURAMA!
(in color)

Hey - get out of the shot, human!

Okay. Back to reality. I gotta do some more of this stuff, someday...