Tag Archives: Deception pass

Wandering Over the Bridge at Deception Pass

I have walked across the bridge at Deception Pass before and that appeared in the blog in this post.  We headed back to the area one weekend recently and stopped to cross the bridge again.  The narrow sidewalk on the edge of the bridge is ideal for someone with my lack of enthusiasm for heights.  It also isn’t a good place to loiter to try and get shots because there are always people crossing and it is hard to squeeze by in some places.

However, you can get a really nice view of the pass itself and the bays alongside it.  There is also a fair amount of wildlife that inhabits the area.  We saw seals frolicking in the waters of the pass and a bald eagle flew by and perched in a tree top near the car.  Some kayakers were enjoying the waters too.  I actually could have done with a wider lens than I had but that was back in the car so 24mm was as wide as I could go.

Turbulence in the Channel

When the bridge was built over Deception Pass, it provided a reliable method of crossing off Whidbey Island.  Prior to the bridge, a boat was needed.  I was there on a rough day – the weather was lovely – but the current running through the pass was pretty impressive.  Watching the boats fight it made the flow very apparent.  Closer to the shore, the current would churn up the water to create standing waves a short distance away from the beach.  It looked like the sort of thing that could easily overwhelm a smaller craft if you didn’t know exactly what you were doing.

Deception Pass

B11I8365.jpgWe made a transit from one location to another that involved two ferries.  It was necessary to drive across Whidbey Island to get from one to the other and, aside from the weather meaning there was no action at the Naval Air Station for me to see, it also meant that we would cross Deception Pass.  I had no idea about this pass before we drive over it.  As we did so, we could see that it was a pretty dramatic spot so we quickly turned around and parked up.

B11I8375.jpgI decided to cross the first bridge to get to the viewing area in the middle.  It was raining quite hard but it seemed like it was worth getting wet for.  What I hadn’t thought about was my queasiness with heights.  While I have no issue with flying and I’m quite happy to sit in the open door of a helicopter while photographing something, I do have an issue with heights in certain circumstances.  Walking across high bridges while very close to the edge is one of those.  This bridge has a sidewalk but it is not wide and you have traffic very close so you don’t have much scope for staying away from the railings.

B11I8362.jpgMy logical mind knows there is nothing wrong and that I am not going to spontaneously flip over the railing but that doesn’t stop me feeling very uncomfortable.  However, just like being on the top of high buildings in Chicago for photo shoots, if I want to get the shot, I am going to have to suck it up.  It was worth it.  The viewing areas in the middle provide some great looks at the structure and the colors of the bridge were enhanced by being so wet.  The water below certainly looked turbulent and I can imagine how happy everyone was when the bridge was originally built.

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