Waves of Awesomeness

I decided at 4:30 that I wanted to go to the beach to watch the sunset.  I was looking outside and saw this:

I mean, that sky is just begging to be photographed...Right?! Maybe not to you, but to me? Totally. The more I watched it the more I thought "Self, this sky is downright perfect for viewing a sunset. You should be at the lakeshore right now." 

So, I got my stuff together and hightailed it out there. I made the mistake of following my gps and it got me a little lost (should have just gone with my instincts!!) so unfortunately I missed the actual sunset. I could see it while I was driving, and it was a big, pink sun (favorite) and there were no clouds and it was absolutely gorgeous. But by the time I got there, I decided to just watch what little of it I got to witness and not bother getting a picture. I literally missed it by one minute. So annoyed. Next time I will make the decision to go a little earlier, so I can be there and see the whole thing and not just the tail of it.

Anyways. After the brief sunset, the sky was still pretty and everything was iced over even more than the other day, so I figured I would still go take some pictures. Plus I made the drive there already... might as well get some practice out of it. (Just kidding... you so do not have to twist my arm to take pictures!)

It was beautiful. The sky was a combination of pink and orange and the waves all had whitecaps. Basically, there were huge waves and it was awesome. 

Case in point?

Pretty cool, huh?! I remember my parents taking us to the beach in the winter when we were younger to see the waves all frozen over, and I vaguely remember seeing huge waves like that, but it was really cool to see it again. And even more fun to have a camera that can capture the waves like that and not just be a blurry mess. Nikon love. My settings were a little off, and the pictures could have been better... but for a spur of the moment capture I was pretty pleased.

The waves were crashing everywhere, and everything was completely iced over. It's actually pretty amazing, since in front of this railing is probably 6 feet of rocks, and yet the waves were going another 6-12 feet beyond the second railing and onto the sand. It was windy, yes... but it didn't feel like it was that windy to the point of throwing water everywhere like that. 

I happen to think icicles are really cool... so I played around with that a little bit and admired all the different ice chunks and whatnot. I didn't dare to venture out onto the pier at all, as it was obviously really icy, but also the waves kept crashing up over the ledge and I really didn't want that water splashing my fancy beautiful camera.  No no no. Must keep Nella safe! Plus, I went by myself and I didn't think I should be doing anything dangerous sans Husband. Some people were being brave and walking almost all the way to the pier, but I didn't want to risk it. (And Husband would have killed me!)

I have decided that when we move next (in 500 years because let's face it... it won't be any time soon) we need to live closer to the lakeshore. It's my happy place. Although a 45 minute drive is really not that far. Except when it's 4:30 and you decide you want to make it there for a 5:24 sunset.... ;)

A few parting shots:

Michigan really has a lot of beauty to offer and I love it. I can't wait to explore more of our gorgeous mitten state!