394 - Smuggler’s Cave
This shoot at Smuggler's Cave was a perfect example of everything going wrong. But somehow I came out with something somewhat redeemable.
I THOUGHT this place included an abandoned pirate's tower on the water, pirate ruins, a seascape arch, and a cave. The pictures online looked incredible, and I was super amped. However, after about an hour of searching, we realized only one of those things were here.
Luckily the whole area was within 1 square mile, so it wasn't too much walking.
First off, I'd completely mixed this place up with the Pirate Tower at Victoria Beach, so the Pirate's Tower and Ruins were about an hour and a half south. Which ruled THAT completely out of the question.
Second off, the sea cave here was mediocre at best, and upon arrival, there was a 40 year old couple dining right in the middle of the shot. Literally. They set up a fucking picnic and were drinking wine around 7 tourists checking out the cave.
I appreciate the love effort on his part, but he seriously fucked up the location. You don't dine right in the middle of one of the most popular tourist attractions in Santa Maria. Jesus.
Which left me with one shot left- the seascape arch I'd seen in a few pictures of the area. I knew it was on the coastline SOMEWHERE- I just didn't know where. I walked down some eerily high bushes, and felt my hair creep up on the back of my neck. The whole area has a sketchy vibe- half the parking lot was a homeless encampment, so that may have contributed to it.
I could hear the rocks and waves crashing along the shoreline, but I couldn't see over the brush- it was just at eye level. It almost felt like I was being watched... Eventually I found a lower overlook by the water that allowed me to see the entire coastline, and I found the arch... But it wasn't there.
AKA the arch had collapsed. Fuck. My luck was just not doing it on this adventure.
Realizing I had about 20 minutes until sunset, I weighed my options. I'd come here EXPECTING to be overwhelmed with scenes to shoot, and was left with nothing interesting. Just a normal coastline and some sketchy looking folk.
I decided to get out my drone and look from above. The only thing that vaguely interested me was this island of birds, and I snagged a quick top-down shot of it.
Apparently it's bird week, folks. That's all I ended up snagging from this shoot. It's a solid shot, nothing too crazy though. Almost just an aesthetic building shot I could probably pair with another shot.
Oh well, that's how it goes some days. Shit out of luck.
I’m on a mission to explore as much as humanely possible.
Want to see my progress? Check out the Adventure Map.
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