The Pleasure Pier at Sunset

The “Accidental Tourist” in Galveston

Shortly after arriving back in Houston from Belize, the weather back in southeast Texas turned cloudy, cold and grey. For several days the Houston weather included several inches of rain to go along with what we would call January temperatures (50’s-60’s).

Monday afternoon, the sun decided to make an appearance in the Houston metro on what was the official beginning of spring break. Deciding quickly, I picked Galveston as my destination. I’d seen sunset photos around the so-called “Pleasure Pier” and wanted to see how I’d measure up against some seriously good photographers in the area.

After packing up much needed travel supplies, I hit the road. Keep in the mind, today was the second day of longer days of sunshine. The annual “spring forward” initiative began extending sunset by I hour. On this day, I took off around 5:15, hoping to see the beach by 7pm. Camera, tripod, remote trigger, were packed and ready to go and I was off!

Traffic was not an issue, which is usually the norm. I arrived at the coast shortly before 7, only to see a very ugly and rusted pipe extending the entire length of the beach, for miles! Little did I know, Galveston was in the middle of a beach replenishment program and I would have to work to keep that “pipe” out of my photos.

After driving a bit, I located a suitable (and free) parking space just north of the Pleasure Pier. Walking up to the beach, I was thinking about where I would set up, and how much trial and error I’d have before the golden hour would give way to the blue minutes and then night. After a few trial shots on the nearby jetty, I moved in closer to the Pier. The sun was setting behind and to the south of my subject. My goal was to capture the lights of the pier, the sun in the distance and any reflections the water may provide. I set my ISO to the lowest possible setting in hopes of flattening the water and perhaps giving me more reflections from the pier. I managed to snap a few decent shots and then moved directly under the structure for more linear photography. And then the phone rings! My son in Maryland was on the line. They were expecting up to 10-12 inches of snow tonight. For Glenn Jr. (and his sister) there’s likely no school tomorrow in the region. We talked a bit longer, I told him how much I love him and we said goodbye. The sun was completely down now, and I was snapping more pictures, focusing clearly on reflections before I was out of time.

Done with photography, the next order of business was dinner. I started of over at the “Strand” and was in the parking lot of a commercial/tourist eating destination. But driving over, I noticed a restaurant called the “Black Pearl.” They had lines out the door on a Monday. I circled back, found a seat at the bar and the evening was now complete. This place is locally owned and the food was fresh while the atmosphere was vibrant. Yes, I ordered steak in a seafood establishment and it was awesome. To my right was a lady who was in town from Seattle to give a presentation at UTMB (University of Texas Medical Branch) and the couple a few seats down appeared to be locals.

Wrapping up dinner and the 80-minute drive (including a petrol stop) was uneventful.

I learned last year from someone very special that the best excursions are often right around the corner. Never, take for granted the joy you can have locally while waiting for your “big” vacation.

The “Accidental Tourist” is always looking for the next adventure.

Until then, “live now, make now the most important time. Because now will never come again.”
~ Captain John Luc Picard