Adventure strikes again!
I have always found it amazing that when you least expect it an adventure can find you wherever you may be. I found myself in the midst of a mini adventure on Friday night. Peter and I were getting ready to call it a night when we went outside to enjoy the night air for a moment. When I looked up the moon was full and the sky was perfectly clear!
I had been waiting for a night like this for the last two weeks, I had made a little quick drive down to Shoshone Falls one night to get away while Peter stayed with the baby and I heard and saw how strong the falls were flowing but I didn’t have my camera with me…I know bad move on my part but since baby girl’s birth I haven’t spent much time taking pictures.
I looked at the time and was disappointed to hear that it was 15 minutes before the gates closed at Shoshone Falls. However, Peter knew someone who worked for the security company that manages the Falls. After making a phone call saying he was going to hook me up, I was rushing to get my equipment and ran to towards the door!
Blazing down the back roads of Twin Falls I made my way to the falls. Thankfully, our house is only about 10sih minutes from the Falls…I made it in 5. My heart was racing, I couldn’t believe how excited I was just to go out and take pictures. But there I was, grinning from ear to ear surrounded by the darkness, the only illumination came from my headlights reflecting off of the signs and lines painted on the road.
As I nearly drifted my way down the winding road leading down to the falls, music blaring I felt a feeling twinge in my stomach that I haven’t felt in a long time. I finally felt like myself again, not a wife, a mom, employee or student but just me. The last year I have had a difficult time feeling stalled, I wouldn’t call it trapped because to me that word could be associated with a bad situation. However, I felt very…stalled. I was only taking pictures for work and school, I didn’t go on many adventures and I always felt obligated to do or be something else for someone else. Tonight…was just for me. 
When I parked the car I felt like I nearly fell out of the car, I was so excited. I could hear the massive gushing of the falls just over the hill, the moon was full and I had the entire park to myself…picture perfect! When I breached the crest of the hill to look down to the falls I was shocked to see that there was a rainbow! I have never heard of a rainbow being seen in the middle of the night! Scientifically, I how it could happen, since the moon sends out UV rays just like the sun though not as strong, but how often do you see something like that?
I plugged my headphones in, pushed play and disappeared into my own little world. This is the space I love, it is a corner of my mind that I can only tap into when I am on these kinds of adventures. There is a level of peace that comes over me when I disappear into my own little world, where there is only me lost in music and looking through a camera viewfinder.
I knew I was short on time, the security guy was going to be rolling down the road at any moment but I tried to not let that distract me from my adventure. Even with the roar of the water rushing over the falls and my music blaring in my ear, I would turn and look over my shoulder every few moments to ensure that I wouldn’t get startled or seem rude by not being able to hear someone talking to me.
As my shutter clicked open for various lengths of time, I was scouting where I would be shooting from next or how I could change the exposure or what angle I wanted to shoot from to ensure I was making the most of my time since I knew that any moment I was going to have to wrap things up and leave. 
I have missed these moments. This was only a 40-minute adventure but even with it being so short it was still a moment that was all mine. Like I said, finally I was in a place where I wasn’t a mom, a wife, an employee or a student…I was just me.
And I was able to find a way to have a simple photo adventure where I could explore the area around me, I was able to be artistic in the way I love and all the while I had the added bonus of not having to be away from my baby for very long! I call that a win
Traveling Photographer Out…
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