Oh, what a day. We wake up with severe burns from all the sun the first real day of our vacation, and I have work, so I send the kids to town for a couple of hours to shop while I grade essays and catch up on emails. Then we have some lunch, a sunscreen application ritual, pool activity...then, what???
I tell the girls we are "going to the Fort." Sigh, sigh, sigh. I'll tell more about the Fort in my other photo for the day (in my second album), but I want to go to Fort Clinch State Park, with a REAL fort, fishing pier, and beaches! Woohoo!
After our tour of Fort Clinch, we go to the pier (and the rock jetty) to see what is there. Oh, the winds really picked up, and clouds rolled in--rain was in the late forecast!
Out on the "point" of the beach sat TONS of birds: pelicans, varieties of seagulls, and some small sand birds. I approached slowly, hoping not to disturb the crowd. Then I got as close as I could to the pelicans--here is one I followed--but he was about to "takeoff!"
Oh, I have so many cool shots from this time, so I can say it was not easy picking the best shot. The kids liked the super up close of a bird in flight, but I liked this one in the end.
Never let kids stay "inside" when they sigh and moan. They end up loving being outdoors--I needed the time out, and my time with my camera. I can't believe I'm saying that, but it's a great feeling. :)
@vskolnik Thanks Vee. When I arrived on the beach, I had no clue that all the "mess" in the distance was actually tons of birds and not things sticking out of the sand (with the pier and rocks nearby, I thought they might be old man-made installations). Birds, tons and tons of birds. Never in my life have I seen it like this. Once I got my shots, I gave the kids the go ahead to "rush into them" -- again, what an amazing sight! The birds came right back, really--it was like they were up for "the show." But, yes, one bird sent a little "dirty note" to one of the girls after they rushed them--I thought that might happen. :/
