Monday 14 September 2009

Tower at sunrise

tower at sunrise

In a recent dog walk I was lamenting the fact there was no way to take the photograph I wished too of a landmark tower there.

Well I made a special effort to get there by 5:30am to catch the sunrise.  Sunrise always has an element of risk to it, as the day is far to young to know what it is going to be yet.  Still the weather had been settled enough and I was guessing it would hold good for another 24 hours.  The unearthly hour also meant there was a good chance I would have the place to myself.

I was wrong on that count as a couple of people were setting up one of those wind kite things.  They look fun in a “rather you than me” type way.  They were doing their own thing and fortunately were not in my way, the kites flying could have made some interesting images but the transit vans and all the paraphernalia to get them up in the air was not really going too.

The tower was built in 1720 by Trinity House as a navigational aid for seafarers.  Suggestion is it had a lit beacon on the top originally.  It stands 86 feet high.  It is now a Grade II listed building, which has an irony about it given the restrictions on what can be done to it, its future will be lying at the bottom of the cliff, toppled because government is unwilling to save the coastline it sits on.  It was on the buildings at risk register until it was purchased and renovated and opened up to the public for the first time in its history in 2004.

I got the picture and was darn glad to head back to the car, its getting colder in the mornings now, seasons are most certainly changing.

4 comments:

  1. Thankyou, I was pleased with it and was rather fortunate as it has pretty much rained every day since.

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  2. Excellent photo, Old Winter. Sunrise is a magical time, maybe even the best time of the day for taking photos. In my opinion, always worth the effort of getting up.

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  3. Excellent shot. They say that the only good times to take great outdoor photos are dawn and sunset. I don't totally agree, but the evidence is compelling!

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