Super Sunday Traffic

This morning didn’t yield the photographs I was hoping to get for my 365.  I had a couple backup shots, but I wasn’t thrilled with them so after the big game, when I realized that I still hadn’t shot anything worth posting I got in my car and looked for something to shoot.  I did the long exposure traffic thing at the 405 freeway at La Tijera looking northbound.  Ideally, I would have taken this shot when there was still some light in the skies, but I had to finish watching the game before I took off.

405 Freeway at La Tijera

Temescal Canyon – First Attempt

A friend of mine suggested the Temescal Canyon waterfall as a subject for one of my 365 photos.  I figured that if I went when there was some rain that I might get a little more water going down the falls for a more dramatic photo.

Well, it turns out that if you get too much rain, there is a bit of a flash flood that blocks the trail to the waterfall (I’ve never been up on this particular hike).  So when I got to the water that blocked my progress, I stopped there and took a picture.  On the way back down the hill, I snapped one more of a nice part wooden fence that runs along the creek.

As for the water shots, I did drive by the beach to see if it would be worth a go-out.  It wasn’t.  It was choppy and crumbly with heavy onshore winds.

The end of the road

Wooden Fence

Dawn at El Porto

There wasn’t much in the way of waves this morning at El Porto.  At least not enough to try any water shots so I settled for snapping a few shots from the beach and then caught a few waves on my longboard.

Waves are supposed to pick up this evening and stay big over the weekend, but we’re also supposed to get some rain so who knows what the conditions will be like.  Hopefully, I’ll be able to try my hand at the water shots again tomorrow.

El Porto, looking south

El Porto, looking north

The Jetty

The Jetty.  That’s pretty much how most locals refer to it.  I guess if you want to be more specific you could call it the jetty at Middles, but if you just called it The Jetty, most every surfer from Manhattan Beach to Ballona Creek would know what you were referring to.  This is the biggest jetty between Playa del Rey and Palos Verdes and also seems to get the biggest waves in the South Bay during any winter swell.

There is no convenient parking for this location.  Wherever you park, you’re looking at about a half mile hike to get there.  Maybe that’s the reason why I’ve put off shooting this particular jetty.  Every other place, I was able to park my car and walk across the beach to get the shot.  Now that I’ve shot this one, I can take a break from shooting piers and jetties for a while.

If you want to see this place breaking on a big day, check out this YouTube video of Tyler Hatzikian.

The Jetty, Perspective 1

The Jetty, Perspective 2

The Jetty, Perspective 3

The Redondo Beach Pier

I’ve always called this the Redondo Beach Pier or the Redondo Pier.  I guess I never noticed the sign that simply refers to it as “THE PIER”.  I’ve got nothing against Redondo Beach or its pier.  It’s a nice town and the pier is a pretty fun destination every once in a while.  But I think it’s a little lame for the town to call its pier, “THE PIER” especially when there are so many other lovely piers within a short drive.  In fact, if you do a Google search for “THE PIER”, the Redondo Pier isn’t on any of the first few pages of image results.  I think the folks that decided to make the sign should have done some focus group testing or checked Google before referring to their pier as “THE PIER”.

The Redondo Pier, Perspective 1

The Redondo Pier, Perspective 2

The Redondo Pier, Perspective 3

The Sign for The Pier

The Venice Pier

Today, I drove north of the marina and stopped at the Venice Pier.  I found some easy parking right at the end of Washington Blvd and just had to walk a few steps to get to the sand.  As with the other beaches, much of the sand had been washed out by the recent swells.  This pier sits a bit shorter than the other piers that I’ve shot recently.  It seems like some bigger surf on a high tide could easily reach the pier platform.

When I walked to the end of the pier, I saw a pelican who seemed to be suffering from some hypothermia.  The amount of oil in the water from the rains probably got on the bird during feeding which decreases the water repelling characteristics of its feathers.  I hope this little guy gets back into the swing of things soon.

Venice Pier, Perspective 1

Venice Pier, Perspective 2

Venice Pier, Perspective 3

A California Brown Pelican