River to the Sea
Second Beach, Olympic National Park, Washington Coast
I was sitting in my home in Olympia on a clear winter day, something that is rare in western Washington. I envisioned this very image in my mind. I jumped in the car, drove 3.5 hours to LaPush, hiked the 0.7 mile trail to Second Beach, set my tripod in a small stream that comes from the uplands, and "got the shot" right at sunset. After about 10 minutes, I did the entire trip in reverse. This was one of the few times that I had a specific image in mind as I set out; usually I just wander, guided by light and the weather. Ten hours for a single image, and to me it was worth every second. This is one of my favorite images. Photo © copyright by Stephen Penland.