Last week I was fortunate to spend some time in Astoria, Oregon. It’s a small port town on the Columbia River, near the Pacific Ocean. It’s a great place for great views, and here are a few that caught my eye:
It’s been a while since I’ve had a chance to participate in a weekly photo challenge, so I’m happy to have had a few moments today to find these sunset captures to share with you.
In February, I took a few days of quiet retreat in Astoria, Oregon. Astoria is a fishing port sitting on the mouth of the Columbia River near the Pacific Ocean. It has a great downtown for shopping as well as a boardwalk right on the river. These pictures were taken at the end of a peaceful and reflective evening walk – with peace and reflection being the essence of “sunset” to me.
Yesterday was opening day of the Dungeness Crab season on the Oregon Coast. We wandered around the Bayfront in Newport Sunday; crab pots were in abundance in anticipation of the day.
I loved seeing the colorful crab pots lined up everywhere:
Every boat has its crab pots
The Redeemer with its crab pots
Anticipation is palpable
What a great day at the Bayfront, with the sense of excitement and anticipation for this late season to start. Wish I had been there to see the boats come back in with their hauls!
My husband and I took a day trip to the Yaquina Head Lighthouse, a graceful historic lighthouse on the Oregon Coast. In particular, I admired the lovely, elegant windows.
As we walked around the structure, parallel windows on either side of a passageway caught my eye, and I attempted to capture the view of the sea on the other side.
This challenge really struck a chord with me. The evanescence – fleeting existence – of the tableaus I find on the beach is part of their charm and attraction for me. Here are a few more Oregon Coast still lifes:
Soon passing out of sight, memory, or existence; quickly fading or disappearing.
The Daily Post, Krista Stevens
The still life tableaus I find at the beach are evanescent; I have to capture them at that moment, before the wind and the surf sweep them away. Their fleeting existence is part of what intrigues me and inspires me to look for interesting juxtapositions of color, form, and texture.
Last weekend, I spent a couple of beautiful, stunningly clear and warm days happily exploring this fabulous bridge and the area around it. It’s a lovely bridge and I had a happy time searching for different views of it – from the North, from the South, walking across it, directly beneath it, through foliage…
All right! I love this week’s photo challenge! I have wanderlust, and I have it bad. I’ve had it since childhood, when my parents would drive the three of us across the country in our camper from Kentucky to California each summer to visit my grown sisters and their families. I would spend the hours mesmerized by the changing landscape or playing navigator for my dad. Such wonderful memories!
These days I don’t have to travel far to satisfy my need to wander. As you know, if you follow this blog, trips to the Oregon Coast often provide the opportunity for solitary rambles and new discoveries.
However, for this week’s challenge, the first image that popped into my mind was the iconic PDX (Portland International Airport) carpet. Locals often take pics like these when leaving for new trips or when arriving home. The carpet was replaced a few years ago, but if you know where to wander, you can still find a section of the original pattern. This is the original design.