This weekend I did something a little different. The wife was out of town visiting her parents. Lately, when she’s done that I’ve tried to take the time to work on my photography. It occurred to me that there were two outstanding lighthouses on Block Island that I had not photographed yet. An overnight trip would allow me to shoot each lighthouse at least once during sunrise or sunset. I decided I had to take the opportunity.
Block Island is really appealingly empty during the off-season. There were very few cars on the road, and the weather was warm and beautiful. There were no crowds in town; on the other hand, there were few amenities available. That wasn’t a huge problem for me, since I was planning to spend most of my time out of the main town. I had discovered on my previous photo trip (ie, Montauk) that I need to take food with me on a lighthouse shoot. Lighthouses generally are not located near restaurants, and shooting at sunset means I don’t get back to town until after most places are closed. Along with my usual energy bars and Lipton Cold Brew tea bags, I took along a microwaveable Asian meal-in-a-bowl, a bag of mini-bagels, and some canned fruit. This, in addition to the camera gear and extra clothing for standing around outside on a coastal evening.
This was all a lot of supplies to take, considering that I planned to bike. Bicycling offered some advantages — namely, cheaper ferry fare — but also created some practical problems. It was a tough haul to carry all that gear, and forced me to leave at home some clothes and gear that would have improved my comfort level and given me some photographic opportunities. Plus, riding a bicycle was quite limiting on my mobility. With a car, I could have driven back and forth between the two lighthouses several times during an evening. With a bicycle, I was limited by my own stamina.
Still, cycling offered the great advantage that it was fun. I really enjoyed pedaling along the main road, especially since it was early enough in the season that there was not much automobile traffic. After a few round-trips, though, it did become a bit tiresome!
I stayed at the Water Street Inn. It is a modest little place in the center of town, right near the ferry. It’s operated by the proprietors of the nearby Harborside Inn. If you’re looking for luxury, it’s not the place for you. The room is tiny and the walls are thin. But if you want a clean bed for a decent price, it’s not bad. The room includes microwave oven, refrigerator, TV, one double bed, bathroom and tub/shower in the room.
