Never mind that the wave god got me last Saturday. I still got a number of good shots of the big waves at St. Joe's, among other interesting things. I'll add a few of these this evening as I scan some of these slides.

This first shot is a low angle perspective shot from near the surf line on the north beach, and yes that's a bout a 5 foot wall of water headed in to douse me again...



Gary

We amend your sacrifice on our behalf! Keep the wonderful pictures coming – we don't mind you getting wet once in a while as long as you keep whetting our appetite with your Lighthouse pictures! :p

Gary, that picture is awesome!! Thanks for sharing!

Ahhhhhemmmmmm.... well, gee, BonnieJean, I sure am glad you don't mind ME getting wet once in a while so long as I can keep whetting your appetite for lighthouse photos!

But,since you mentioned that you're headed up to Michigan, THIS MONTH no less, with your hubby, why don't you let me know when you can make it and take a run over for a jump in the big old COLD tub!!! Pick your lighthouse, we have lots!

Just kidding, of course, but wow was that lake cold, and it's only getting colder by the day. Seems like we always have a gale come in from the southwest around turkey day and I sure hope this year's no exception. I got really wet from last year's event, no reason I should quit now!

Anyway, I've been continuing to scan. If you go out to the lake often enough, you eventually start to see shipping, and occasionally, your timing is good for one of the lower lakes freighters entering or leaving port past one of the lighthouses. I hit it lucky last Saturday not once, but twice. First I caught the self-unloading notchback barge McKee Sons, pushed by the tug Invincible, both owned by Grand River Navigation Company, coming into St Joe's to unload. She's 579 feet long and hauls about 19,000 tons of freight and has a 250 foot unloading boom. This shot of her coming in was taken from the north beach across the heavy surf that was running last Saturday.



More coming in a bit...

Gary

ANOTHER WINNER!!! I'm glad that you aren't a member of the FLA - you would blow everyone out of the Photo Contest running with your photos!

About coming up there - now my hubby isn't sure if he will be sent there this month or next. That's the part I hate so much about his job - they change their employees scheduled at whim! Three days ago they called him and stated that he needed to go to Fort Myers, FL. So, he packed his bags and left. He was suppose to come with me to Palm Beach for the HL event, but now he has to work. Luckily I am use to this, so I usually just plan my trips without him and am surprised when to CAN actually make it. He will be in Fort Myers anywhere from two weeks to three, maybe less, maybe more! Ugh! :rolleyes:

He is suppose to be sent to Detriot after that, but isn't sure - he may get sent back to Hillsborough instead. The part that I hate about all this is that Kenny (my hubby) wants me to travel with him all the time. I have a full time job of five years (in January) and I have to give them about a month's notice to take time off. How can you do that with a company that doesn't know where to send their employees from one day to the next?

Kenny has asked me Several times to quit my job and travel with him, but those that know me know that I am a VERY independent person. I know that at times it upsets him that I won't quit my job. I've told him that he would need to buy me a laptop before I would quit - I need to fill my forum addiction and continue my duties as FLA Secretary!

Well, enough complaining. I will keep you posted Gary as to when I will be in Michigan. Kenny keeps telling me to prepare for a white X-mas - who knows we may be there sooner than that.

As I was driving across the river getting ready to leave St Joe's to haul my blue hide home, I noitced that the freighter Alpena had gotten up steam and was starting to back out of the channel. Hard right, down the hill, out of the car, load another roll of film on the run... Well, you get the idea...





While we're at it, so there's something here for Dave to remind him of the trip that the two of us didn't get to make out of Sturgeon Bay last June...



Another shot of the McKee Sons, keeping things in perspective looking down the length of the north pier...



Gary

Thanks for the compliments, BonnieJean. As for the FLA photo contest, hmmmmm... I've got a number of shots of Florida lights from business trips to Florida over the years. Gee, does one have to be a resident of FL to belong to the FLA?

Gary

Ummm! For you Gary, you will have to be a Florida resident for at least 20 years to become a FLA member. Sorry, I guess you won't be able to submit your photos after all. :p

No, you don't have to be a resident - we have a few from other states (i.e. Shortcake from Alabama, IMoopies5 from New York, and others). You just have to send in your membership dues. The photo contest is $5.00 each picture to enter (only open to FLA members), and must be of a Florida Lighthouse. Check out our website to join: FLA Website

Anyway, aside from the lower lake freighters and the Coasties out for a quick romp on the waves, my real reason for going to St Joe's last Saturday was to photograph the big waves coming in from the northwest. So, it seems apprpopriate that I should post a couple more of those photos. My main reason for taking them was to expand my collection of stormy lighthouse shots since Storm Swept Lighthouses is one of the submission categories for this year's Lighthouse Digest Photo Contest (see the following URL for info on that contest: http://www.lighthousekeepers.com/cgi-bin/forumscgi/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=40;t=000195 )

This first shot was taken from on top of the dunes to the north of the north pier, handheld with a 300 mm f4 lens. I was shooting Fuji Provia 400F slide film so shutter speed wasn't a problem. This was shot at 1/1600th sec at f8 handheld.



The wave going across the pier in this next shot is about the size of the wave that gave me the bath. From the current aveage lake level, to the crest of that wave is probably about 8 feet, which is what the marine advisory was calling for last weekend near shore...



and once more...



And finally, in the I don't do weddings dept for all of the romantics out there, this couple was having wedding photos shot by some bozo... meanwhile, she was evidently freezing to death in her strapless gown... and we won't talk about how I felt at the time just having had my unanticipated bath...



Gary

One last shot... This one was taken September 10th, 2001 when Terry Forrest was visiting here for the first time. Once again, it's the Alpena although on this occasions, she was steaming into port.



Gary

Great shots here Gary. All are well done. My personal favorites are shots 3 and 5. Good separation of the light and the freighters. Well done man. JB

I think there's nothing more appropriate than getting a lighthouse picture with a ship in the composition. After all, without the ships, there'd be no need for the lighthouses. Great shooting, Gary, can't wait to set some of those myself.

Great shots as usual, Gary! You certainly have a wealth of possibilities to submit to LH's contest again. I have just last year's from South Haven, and I don't know if I want to send some of the same photos again to this year's contest. I do have some nice daytime ones at St. Joe's with the motorboats and sailboats that were zipping up and down the channel when we were there this year.

This was one of the ones from this year with boats in it: