Join me for a COUNTDOWN of my 50 Top Summer Pics – and the story behind each shot
#32 – Foggy Bandon Lighthouse
Editing: Camera Raw adjustments on the jpeg: Exposure/clarity/vibrance
Bandon, Oregon, is one of my favorite places on the planet, and we were able to make our way there this summer. It was foggy much of the time, except I did get some shots the last morning we were there, without fog, which I will post when we get closer to the top of the countdown. The farmers in this region grow a lot of cranberries. In fact, they film those silly Ocean Spray commercials around Bandon, where the three farmers are standing in the cranberry bogs, when they are full of water. I have always thought it would be fun to be in Bandon for the cranberry harvest in September, when they flood each bog and float all those gorgeous red berries to the surface.
Besides cranberries and lighthouses, Bandon has some of the most beautiful seascapes you will ever find. This wide shot of the lighthouse from across the Coquille River had a nice mysterious feel, so I thought it came in at about spot #32 in my summer countdown. The beaches here are full of giant monoliths, and many locals tell legends of how the rocks were formed. My favorite is how an Indian Princess was lost in a storm while she walked her dog and a basket of kittens. The next day, they all turned into huge stones. You can now see a howling dog and the princess’ head, along with several smaller monoliths all lined up in a row. This has become the legend of Face Rock, which is where our beachhouse was located (some views below).
