Sometimes the most interesting photographs are found somewhere between where you started and where you intended to go.
On a cloudy winter afternoon, I set out to explore the north shore of Grays Harbor. After stopping along the Humptulips River, I turned onto Burrows Road, following the map toward the shoreline of Grays Harbor.
I never made it there without getting sidetracked.
Along the way, the still waters of Jessie Slough caught my attention. I stopped to photograph the quiet water and the trees lining its banks before continuing toward the harbor.
The reflections nearly double the forest, while bare branches and darker evergreens create layers of texture across the scene. In black and white, the separation between water, reflection, and forest becomes less distinct, giving the photograph a quiet, almost abstract quality.
Jessie Slough wasn’t my destination that afternoon. It was simply something I encountered along the way, which is often the point of exploring unfamiliar roads with a camera.
Further Explorations
North Shore, Grays Harbor, Washington
