Day 03 – Gorgeous Beginning and Dramatic End

After days of Hurricane Sandy and the aftermath, it was a treat to awake to sun. What a concept. None of us would have traded the hurricane and the photographs we got from it for the world, and we have been in touch with relatives and friends along the eastern seaboard to make sure they are OK, happy to know that thus far, they have all survived, some with challenges along the way, but none that weren’t insurmountable.

We headed across the road to the beach, and the sun and water sparkled. A lone fisherman cast into the now-gentle waves. People were out enjoying a walk on the beach. What a difference from the last few days. The sun felt good on our faces. Here, a temporary tidal pool caught my fancy.

After imaging, we headed north to the only lighthouse on the Outer Banks currently accessible. Sure, there is one over in Manteo, but technically, that is not on the Outer Banks. And yes, we could have gone to Bodie, but funds have become available again to continue its restoration, and it is once again enshrouded in a construction “tea cozy,” hardly the coat for beautiful lighthouse photography. The road down to Hatteras is still out from the storm, so there is no access there. We were glad that there was a detour around the flooding in Kitty Hawk so that we were able to head north to Corolla.

We stopped along the way to grab some lunch (a crab cake for me with no fillers, only delicious crab). Fully sated, we continued north into stormy skies. Clearly, we weren’t going to get any stunning sunsets of workshops past, but one makes the best of anything.

There were soft, fuzzy shrubs that begged to be photographed. I chose to make mine high key.

I always love to photograph around the little marina, and Arnie and I pointed out different approaches and subject matter. Because of the storm, there were vestiges of spume making pleasing patterns on the surface of the water. The orange leaf was a nice autumnal accent.

Everyone had done photographs of the lighthouse when we first arrived, but Arnie and I had something else in mind for them. We had hoped for a sunset, but since that eluded us, Arnie worked his magic so that everyone could get his shot. I managed to get one, too.

“Awesome!” and “WOW!” were the comments I heard.

After making sure everyone got a shot they loved, we headed back south for dinner at our favorite restaurant on the Outer Banks, Kill Devil Grill. The food, as always, was delicious, and the Key Lime Pie up to its usual, to-die-for standards.

With an early morning tomorrow, we all packed it in.

Next: Sunrise and Afternoon Dunes

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