Foggy San Mateo Coast or Clouded Mind?

The night before I got the shots that I’d always wanted so I really didn’t have any plans for Sunday. I contemplated going over to Mount Diablo State Park, San Jose Mission, and the Pleasanton Ridge. Last time I hiked the Pleasanton Ridge with my friend Marc, we got lost off-trail and had to do a seven mile hike up and down numerous ridges before finding our way out. Allergies did me in about halfway through the hike because I’m allergic to grassy and dusty places that have weather above 75 degrees. I saw some great scenic photo opportunities on that hike though so it definitely weighed on my mind.

I sat in the parking lot trying to pick up a wi-fi signal on my laptop and did the whole morning email routine before deciding to drive over the coastal mountains on Highway 92 to the James Fitzgerald Marine Reserve in Moss Beach. Since I’ve almost exclusively photographed coastal subjects this year, I figured I might as well stick to the plan on this trip and thus ended up on the San Mateo Coast. That direction looked clear from Redwood City so I figured that I’d go to the reserve then perhaps head down to the Santa Cruz Boardwalk afterwards.


Picture: Foggy Monterey Cypress Trees at James Fitzgerald Marine Reserve, Moss Beach, California

I should have known better because as soon as I arrived in Half Moon Bay it was overcast. It was somewhat foggy but cloudy more than anything else. The ranger had told me on the phone the night before that it would be overcast and that in summer the fog often doesn’t lift for two or three months straight. I hadn't taken him seriously so my mood instantly dropped. I held my hopes up initially because I’d photographed bush lupine there in July of 2004 under clear weather. What I did find interesting at the reserve however was a colony of sea lions on the beach. I’d been to the Fitzgerald Marine Reserve several times and had only seen sea lions frolicking in the water off-shore. Plus, I’d only gone to the reserve during minus tides previously. Given that this is the California Coast, the beach was roped off way too far out of reach for my lens.

I got bored of the reserve pretty quick after taking some photos from the bluffs so I took a leisurely drive up to Pacifica. When I lived there, I used to either go to Rockaway Beach or the other parts of the coastline in town at least once or twice a week. Sometimes I brought my camera while others times I didn’t. Usually the weather was pretty bad but I have a high tolerance for cold weather given that I’m dressed accordingly. The reason why I prefer cold weather and moist coastal areas is because I generally do not have allergies in that type of environment. I have severe nasal and eye allergies in most other types of conditions.

Naturally it was overcast in Pacifica as well. The main beach was crowded with weekend warriors and surfers. It took about five minutes to find parking at the Taco Bell lot. Not seeing anything photogenic, I went over to Rockaway Beach to take a short walk thru the wetlands. I was surprised to see how the place has evolved since two years ago. Previously the tall grasses were short and you could see all sorts of birds in the creek. Now the tall grass is tall and it’s difficult to spot wildlife in there though you can hear the birds. I took the trail up to a higher bluff and got a good view of the foggy wetlands. I left the camera in the car for some reason so I didn’t get any photos from that perspective. I took a few shots from the parking lot then sort of just drove around San Francisco aimlessly for a while.

What I did next is kind of hazy to me now because I was bored, but I recall heading over to Alamo Square in the late afternoon to try photographing “Postcard Row” in warm light. There were no open parking spots on the streets so I drove in circles probably four or five times around the neighborhood. I found a spot on a steep downward hill that required parallel parking. Well I tried my best. :-) Some old curmudgeonly guy across the street was cussing at me for being incompetent while simulaneously I was cussing at the concept of having to parallel park. After five or six attempts, I gave up and skipped Postcard Row on Sunday afternoon in warm light.

Feeling so dejected from the parallel parking incident and gloomy weather, I vacillated between thinking I was a hack photographer or a competent one merely having a bad day. Then I started questioning if the trip was a waste of money. Finally, I started to mentally calculate the Economic Law of Diminishing Returns as it related to my California Coast photography trip. That was a sign that it was time to call it quits for the day.

For some reason I felt compelled to go to Rodeo Beach despite the bad weather. So I went and waited to see if there would be a sunset. It was quite foggy up in Marin when I got there but it burned off by the time the sun set. The problem though was that it was extremely windy and water vapor was flying everywhere on the beach. I coudln't get good photos of the sea stacks because my lenses and filters all fogged up and were soaked by vapor. I saw the sunset and couldn't do anything about it. That was my real sign to call it quits for the day.