So we took off to Chincoteague after the little ones woke up from their nap, planning to ride bikes and pull them in their bike trailer that they love so much. But driving into the beach area, we noticed that we could see the waves as we were coming over the bridge just before the beach parking lot. One NEVER sees the waves until one has exited one's car and stepped up onto the dunes that block the view! So we hurried on over to the parking lot to see what was going on. Well, apparently, Hurricane Jose is what was going on! WHO KNEW??? Clearly we haven't been paying attention these past couple days!
Jose is still way down the coast to our south, and far enough off shore to not really be a threat, but I don't think Chincoteague believes that! We were there as high tide was washing in, and the tide was taking down the dunes, as it does in the big storms, and the south end of the parking lot was becoming a lake. This past summer, at the spot where we were standing, the layout of this section was parking lot, dunes, maybe 25-50 yards of level sand, then a dropoff of maybe 6-8 feet down to the actual surf. (And so you see why I say you can't see the waves without getting out of your car and ascending the dunes.) This little birdie is about 15 yards out on what used to be the level sand before the dropoff. To the right of this photo, maybe 25 yards or less, the dunes have been leveled, and the tide has spilled into the parking lot. Vehicles that were parked further south had to drive back thru the waters to exit the beach.
We had a great time playing on what was left of the dunes. Only once did we have to grab the babies and run as the tide tried to breach the almost nonexistent dune we were on. We never did get around to riding our bikes.
On a different note, I was wearing my reading glasses for this trip! I have two pairs of glasses: my everyday bifocals, and my reading/working/playing-music bifocals. I was balancing a client's checkbook while the babies napped before we took off. And when dh said it was time to go, I just grabbed my stuff and we left. But I forgot to change glasses!!! Furthermore, I was reading an article last week about how to get better bird/wildlife shots, and it recommended using a different focus setting than what I normally use. So I thought I would try to remember that next time I was out and give that a try. WHY????? WHY would I try something like that on a day when I couldn't see ANYWAY???? To make it an even stupider decision, in the back of my mind I was thinking I had already tried it before and found that it didn't really work for me. DUH!!!! So my bird shots were pretty much NOT IN THE LEAST BIT sharp! Daggone SHAME because this could have been an AWESOME shot!!!
I like how the crashing waves are a stronger focal point in this. The addition of the sandpiper gives a very cool perspective. One really doesn't see birds that close to tall crashing waves. Hope Jose turns to the east and just becomes a memory soon.
I think this an awesome shot anyway. But I sympathize with you re: your glasses. It's hard when you're wearing the wrong pair for what you're trying to do.
September 25th, 2017
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