Cummins Creek (seen here) flows from Oregon’s wild Coast Range mountains into the Pacific. The ocean is behind me just a few yards. The photo posted yesterday was taken a few minutes before and from generally the same position. The contrast of the wild, stormy ocean and this placid stream is compelling.
There was a bit of serendipity in this shot. Just as I was composing a shot of the bridge spanning the creek, a logging truck rumbled across the bridge and disappeared into the forest on the other side. I like this photo because the juxtaposition of the logging truck on the bridge, and the pristine natural setting, says something about the nature of Oregon. On the one hand, it portrays some of the beauty of the natural setting. It also says something about Oregon’s essence and history, which is closely tied to the harvesting—some would say exploitation--of its natural resources. For decades, the timber industry was a vital component of the state’s economy. It still is. Regrettably, a lot of the logs on trucks like this are headed to ports where they are shipped overseas for processing into wood products. As a result, mills and other wood processing plants in Oregon have been shuttered and their workers, laid off.
It’s a beautiful scene, but a complicated one, as well.
"The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes." --Marcel Proust ………
In school, I was a visual learner....
