McKayla Maroney Is Not Impressed With My Photo Blog

 Not impressed with hanging off the American Shoals lighthouse.

 Not impressed by Cape Lookout lighthouse.

 Not impressed by Camaro convertibles.

 Not impressed with Fort Jefferson OR its lighthouse OR its cannons.

 SO not impressed with Texas.

 Another lighthouse.  Not impressed.

Mile Zero in Key West.  Not impressed.

 McKayla is not impressed by big, billowy clouds with faces in them.

 Not impressed by trains.

 

Joe and [Maris] got married.  Not impressed.

And one bonus shot (not at all mine)...

McKayla Maroney is not impressed by Mars.

Thanks for playing along.  And before anyone gets all toe-y on us, we LOVE McKayla Maroney.  We hope she's deeply proud of her gold and silver medals from London, and we hope to see her in Rio.

The Crooked River Lighthouse, Straight-up

 Continuing eastward along the Florida panhandle, we're in the homestretch of Gulfapalooza 2011.  This is the Crooked River lighthouse, near Carrabelle.  The shot above is 35mm film, and includes the grounds of the light station, now a museum and park.

From the southwest corner.

 

 Going up...

Cupola!

 

 Another olde-fashioned film shot.

 Foot!

 From the southeast corner.

 Lizard!  Right on the foot of the lighthouse.

 Door!  Cool old hardware and trim.  Not sure whose star that is, as we are definitely NOT in Texas.

Another cool spot, and tough to leave, but leave we did.  One more light to go, plus some flora and fauna...

Cape St. George Light, Florida

 Moving right along... The next stop on the Gulfapalooza 2011 itinerary is the Cape St. George Lighthouse, which fell into the Gulf of Mexico and couldn't be photographed.  It has, however, been beautifully rebuilt in the middle of the cute beach town on Saint George Island, Florida.  Above is [Maris]'s 35mm shot of the grounds and the tower.

 And from the gulf side.

 

 The grounds were as well-maintained as the lighthouse.

 

 CUPOLA!

 From the south side.

 Red hibiscus.

 Okay, the purple flowers may not look impressive, but it was just so hard to shoot them, flapping about as they were in the gulf breeze.  There were some fluorescent green moths, too, but they were camera shy.

It was hard to leave this one, but not as hard as the next one.  And the next one after that.

Two more to go, and then we're going to have to get out there and take some new pictures...

Cape San Blas Lighthouse

Minutes after that last lighthouse-turned residence, we found ourselves at the Cape San Blas lighthouse, which watches over the southernmost point of the panhandle of Florida.  The early morning light and clear sky worked perfectly with this white steel-frame tower.  They have a cute little gift shop, too!

One tree holds it down while the other one tickles it.

Here's the requisite 35mm film shot.  I don't know if this is my photo or [Maris]'s, but I like the warmth of film.

Ah, the joys of access!  I love shooting this type of lighthouse from right here.

And here.

And here!

Cupola!

All that, and a little palm tree, too.

And we'll see you next time, with [Maris]'s favorite light from Gulfapalooza 2011.  And maybe a train.

Port Saint Me!

 And we're back!  Where was I?  Oh yeah.  Gulfapalooza 2011.  October.  Florida panhandle.  This was a really, really good day.  I'm still a little groggy from 30 days of Camp NaNoWriMo so I'm starting off slowly.  Here's my next home - although I would imagine that its current residents might have something to say about that - St. Joseph Point Lighthouse, near Point St. Joe, Florida.  The light and lens are long-gone, but it is now a beautifully-restored lighthouse on the Gulf of Mexico.

 

 Butterflies! Ridiculously uncooperative creatures.  Pretty, though!

 Of course, the crabs were totally cooperative.

 Okay, if I can't buy the lighthouse, maybe this little build-to-suit island is on the market.

 Ibis?

 Seeing pines and palms together always intrigues me. I have no idea why.

 Lone palm, watching for hurricanes or exploding oil rigs.

No, Camaro, it's not what you were designed for.  Relax - a little sandy off-road driving won't kill you!

Thanks for enduring a picture-free June.  More coming soon!

Pensacola Light At Dusk

 October 2011.  Gulfapalooza continues.  We got to the Naval Air Station at Pensacola, Florida with about an hour left before closing time at the lighthouse grounds.  The light was perfect.  Above, the tower from the west side.

 Cupola!  Tall lighthouses can be tricky. Get too far away - your view will be obstructed, while staying too close will result in a severe upward angle.  Pensacola Lighthouse is very tall.

 

 Clear shot of the cupola, with a bit of the massive Fresnel lens visible.  So.  Tall.

 The beach is awesome, here.  You can't just shoot the lighthouse and leave without going down to the water.

 The tower in the waning light, shot from the beach.

 Tiny bird footprints in rippled sand.

 One last look at the tower.

Gulls!

Thanks for stopping by!