Jockey's Ridge

July 31, 2018 in Upon Sand

Many of my trips to the Outer Banks include a visit to Jockey's Ridge, a massive system of sand dunes in Nags Head, NC. The landscape here is one of seemingly endless sand, vast and sublime. The territory of the dunes begins at the waters of the Roanoke Sound where the towering sands protect a gnarled maritime thicket of live oaks, wax myrtle, and pine. From there it stretches east towards the ocean, encompassing almost the entire width of the island. Only the bending highway, appearing stretched by the bulge of sand, and a single row of beach houses separate it from the Atlantic. In its interior, you feel transported to a faraway desert world.

From North Carolina State Parks:

“Jockey’s Ridge is the tallest living natural sand dune system in the Eastern United States. Its height varies from 80 to 100 feet, depending on weather conditions.

Shifting maritime winds blow billions of grains of sand in different directions, constantly changing both the shape and size of the dune. Why doesn’t the sand blow away? In the winter, the winds usually blow out of the northeast and in the summer out of the southwest; therefore, the sand is constantly blown back and forth.

Jockey’s Ridge is an example of a medano—a huge hill of shifting sand that lacks vegetation. There are several prominent sand dunes in the area. Of them all, Jockey’s Ridge is the most spectacular.

Geologists believe that Jockey’s Ridge was formed when strong water currents from hurricanes and storms washed sand from large offshore shoals onto the beach. Throughout many years, the wind picked up this sand and blew it inland. These tiny grains of sand evolved into a system of dunes that now stretches for many miles along the coastline.”

— https://www.ncparks.gov/jockeys-ridge-state-park/history

Jockey's Ridge. Medium format film photo from 2014.

The fact that we can visit Jockey's Ridge today can be attributed to one person: Carolista Baum, who literally stood in the path of a bulldozer to block its destruction and was instrumental in the creation of a State Park at Jockey's Ridge. From The N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources:

“On August 15, 1973, Carolista Fletcher Baum placed herself in the path of a bulldozer removing sand from Jockey’s Ridge and refused to move. The driver cut off the engine and talked with Baum, who, after some time, left the dune unscathed. When the operator left, Baum took the distributor cap so the machine would not start.

She helped form the People to Preserve Jockey’s Ridge after her dramatic protest, raising money and organizing petition drives to capture the attention of state and local lawmakers.

In 1973, the Division of Parks and Recreation issued a report in favor of preserving Jockey’s Ridge as a state park, and a year later the dune was declared a National Natural Landmark. When the General Assembly appropriated funds to create the park in 1975, the preservation of the dune was secured for generations to come.”

— https://www.ncdcr.gov/blog/2016/08/15/jockey-ridges-patron-saint-carolista-baum

Beyond pickets of disappearing sand fencing or the occasional abandoned kite, there aren't many man-made objects within Jockey's Ridge. One of the few exceptions is the last remnant of Jockey’s Ridge Mini Golf: a concrete castle, built in 1975, now continually buried and unburied as the sands of the East Coast's largest dune ebb and flow. On a recent trip the castle had been almost entirely uncovered by a strong winter storm. Previously, only the top of the highest turret poked above sand. See below for a selection of photos from the John Margolies Roadside America photograph archive depicting the attraction in 1985:

John Margolies Roadside America photograph archive (1972-2008), Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division.

From The Mapless Traveler:

“According to an article in the July 10, 1987 edition of the Wilmington Morning Star, the state purchased the attraction that month in order to allow the sands to continue their natural expansion. Previously, sand blowing into the golf course and nearby homes had been hauled away by dump trucks periodically to allow business to continue.

According to messages and vintage photos left on online forums, the attraction included an 18 hole course, a giant cobra, an octopus, a castle (with fountain), and a pirate ship that functioned as the office and check-in building. An online poster stated in several forums and Flickr photo comments that her grandparents, the Meekins, built the course in 1975 and that the state used eminent domain to seize the course from them years later. The poster also shared that most of the structures were removed and sold with the exception of the putting greens and the castle. The ship reportedly went to a church that used it for youth group functions. Originally, the dunes buried half of the 18 hole golf course while it was still in business – necessitating another 9 holes to be built farther south on the property.”

— https://maplesstraveler.wordpress.com/tag/jockeys-ridge-mini-golf/

Jockey's Ridge is one of my favorite places on North Carolina's coast. Its massive scale and visual might seem overpowering and elusive to translate through imagery. Whenever I'm there I stay longer than I intend and leave wanting: for one more shot, a different view, the perfect scale figure. And when I return it's a place anew, reminiscent but definitely shifted, each visit a glance at a kilometer wide wave of sand, undulating between summer and winter winds.

Upon Sand in Oxford American

July 07, 2017 in Upon Sand

I'm excited to report that Upon Sand has been featured in the Oxford American series Eyes on the South. Curated by Jeff Rich, Eyes on the South is a weekly photo series that "features selections of current work from Southern artists or artists whose work concerns the South." Check out the archives to see an abundance of high quality photography and storytelling. I submitted the work after reading the excellent article "A Disappearing Pile of Sand" in the Oxford American's Summer 2017 issue by Molly McArdle. The description early in her article mirrored my own experience of the Outer Banks and why I felt drawn to photograph there: "none feels quite so distant—foreign and far away—as this shifting, ancient pile of sand off the coast of North Carolina." It's a great read that creates an expressive portrait of the place and what makes it so unique, while acknowledging its potentially tumultuous future.

Thanks Jeff Rich and everyone at Oxford American for the feature.

The Making of Highway 12 IV

November 18, 2016 in Upon Sand

This is a behind the scenes look at the making of Highway 12 IV, a fine art, black and white panoramic image from the series Upon Sand. When the prints from Upon Sand were first exhibited last year, there was a lot of interest in the techniques I used to create them. This quick video was created to serve as a visual illustration of that process, from raw capture to stitching and final post-processing.

The video illustrates everything from initial image capture using my Nikon D800e and 45mm PC-E lens mounted on Really Right Stuff panning gear and ballhead...

To image selection and RAW processing in Adobe Lightroom...

Early panorama stitching in Autopano Giga...

Correction of geometric distortion in DxO ViewPoint...

Final cropping, manual retouching, and black and white conversion in Adobe Photoshop...

To the final sharpened image, ready to print, after completing all local adjustments to tone and contrast.

Holder Goods & Crafts

October 21, 2015 in Upon Sand, Raleigh

This weekend (Thursday, Oct 22 - Sunday, Oct 25) is your last chance to see prints from my recent series Upon Sand on display at Holder Goods & Crafts. This was my first major photography show and I couldn't be more excited about the experience I had working with the team at Holder. They've created a new space so visually appealing, unique, and welcoming; my work was definitely elevated by being there. The amount of time and talent that it took to bring us this space is easily evident. Thanks to the other great artists whose work made the space come alive, Arrowhead and Wylde, and a special thanks to everyone who has already made it out to see the show, often braving some of serious weather to be there.

Holder Goods & Crafts is located at 612 W South Street (right next to Boulted Bread) and is open 10am - 6pm Thursday - Sunday. Come this weekend to see my images, and many times after that to see all the amazing work that will fill this space for years to come.

Dunes along Highway 12 in Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge.

The Road

July 24, 2015 in Upon Sand

“We flew on the wings of the wind at the varied speed of fifteen to twenty-five miles an hour, annihilating time and space.”

— Charleston Courier, December 29, 1830, remarking on a Christmas Day railroad trip

In the 19th century, the building of the railroads allowed such great distances to be traversed at what was previously unimaginable speeds, resulting in new comprehensions of time and space and the opening of a new frontier. In the 20th century, the construction of NC Highway 12 had a similar effect on the Outer Banks. In 1900, when Wilbur Wright set out for Kitty Hawk, NC from Dayton, Ohio, the train arrived in Elizabeth City, NC two days later. The last 35 miles of his journey to the small fishing village of Kitty Hawk, isolated and without infrastructure, took four days and almost ended in shipwreck. For a detailed account see Wilbur Wright Travels to the Outer Banks: Dayton, Ohio to Elizabeth City, NC, September 6-September 13, 1900.

Long before there were paved roads on the Outer banks, the teenaged brothers Harold, Stocky and Anderson Midgett operated the Manteo-Hatteras Bus Line in the late 1930s. Driving on the wet sand, dodging shipwrecks, and even swinging out into the shallow sound, the 50 mile trip to the ferry at Oregon Inlet could take anywhere from four and a half to ten hours to complete, and occasionally passengers had to spend the night on the beach due to mechanical problems. For an excellent account of driving on the Outer Banks before the road, see Anderson Midgett talks to Amy Glass about running the Hatteras to Manteo Bus Line with his brothers on Carolina Coastal Voices, embedded below.

Anderson Midgett talks about running the Hatteras to Manteo Bus Line with his brothers. He was 17 years old in 1938 when the family started the bus line.

“Nothing changed banks societies more than transportation. Transportation framed the ways the islanders related to the land and to each other, and later transformations of the landscape were linked to the anticipated paving of roads and the proliferation of cars. In 1900, villagers relied almost exclusively on boats, and horses facilitated overland travel. They employed horse carts, but the carts usually carried goods, not people. Boats were personalized. Every man owned his own skiff, hand-made and sufficiently customized that locals could recognize each other from great distance. Before cars reduced the relational space on the banks, villages seemed very far apart; Ocracoke was a distant land. Automobiles changed that sense of space.”

— LEE, GABRIEL FRANCIS. Constructing the Outer Banks: Land Use, Management, and Meaning in the Creation of an American Place. pp 109-110.

The road not only linked the isolated communities of NC's barrier landscape together like never before, but also opened them up to the growing numbers of temporary visitors that would soon transform the place and its economy. The road tamed the atlantic frontier, bringing human convenience wherever it went, but it also locked visitors, locals, politicians, engineers, and numerous governmental agencies into a seemingly unwinnable gamble with the forces of natures: how to maintain a brittle, vital ribbon of asphalt atop a strip of sand in one of the most kinetic environments imaginable.

Flooding along N Virginia Dare Trail (part of Highway 12) in Kitty Hawk.

At 148 miles long, Highway 12 is the critical element that allows people to easily experience the Outer Banks. It is a two-lane road that runs North-South along the barrier islands (in some places barely wider than the road) beginning in the south at a junction with US 70 in the community of Sea Level on the mainland and ends just north of Corolla, where the road becomes a sandy path along the beach for the last few miles, terminating near the Virginia border. The route includes two ferry trips to cross both the Ocracoke and Hatteras inlets, one major bridge across the Oregon Inlet, a presently temporary bridge over New Inlet, and the ever-present sight of both beautiful vistas and construction crews.

The road was the key infrastructure that opened the Outer Banks to profitable development, increasing tax revenues and real estate value. Its existence allowed countless Americans to easily venture to the coast, experiencing a place prized for natural beauty and steeped with the lore of a national identity built on tales of the Lost Colony and the Wright Brothers' first flight. In the first half of the 20th century, a road was not at odds with the prevailing ideas about the geology of the islands. They were considered to be constant, permanent; though damaged by poor human stewardship, capable of rehabilitation to a former pristine, forested, and stable condition. Current science gives us a more advanced view of the complex and kinetic systems of the barrier islands. The Outer Banks are naturally migratory.

A man looks out from the deck of the Hatteras-Ocracoke Ferry, part of Highway 12.

“In a natural system, storm waves wash over the islands, carrying sand from seaside to soundside. As sea level rises and the sand moves, the islands drift to the west, eroding in the front and building up in the back, but always maintaining their relative distance from the mainland, where rising sea level is also moving the shoreline west.

Major storms can cut inlets right through the islands, creating large fan-shaped deltas of sand. Marsh plants take root in the deltas, catching more sand that builds elevation and island width. Over the years, as the sand moves, most inlets fill up and become part of their islands again.

Perpetual motion is good for barrier islands, but about 78 years ago, man interrupted the natural cycle.”

— NATURE'S TOLL ROAD, http://hamptonroads.com/2013/05/rebuilding-nc-12-threatens-outer-banks-existence#

The dunes are the primary stabilizing element of the Outer Banks. They were originally built and maintained by the Park Service in an attempt to protect the islands and allow them to revert back into an imagined, idyllic state, though as updated science explained otherwise, the Park Service stopped all dune maintenance, potentially leaving the road susceptible to erosion, washouts, and decay. Instead, the job was passed to the NC Department of Transportation.

Heavy tire tracks are evidence of the dune construction along Highway 12 in Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge.

“In 1977 the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT), successor to the Highway Commission, agreed to take over sole responsibility for dune stabilization on the shoulder of the road near the volatile Buxton area. Eventually, the NCDOT took over responsibility for dune maintenance anywhere that overwash threatened their road, which extended to village shorelines. The “reversal” of Park Service policy was in reality a compromise. Rather than letting the beach revert to former dynamics, the Park Service transferred responsibility to another government body. Each year one could see state workers walking along towering dunes to plant grasses and install new sand fences, perpetuating the projects of the 1930s in order to protect private property and access to it on the Outer Banks.”

— LEE, GABRIEL FRANCIS. Constructing the Outer Banks: Land Use, Management, and Meaning in the Creation of an American Place. pp 213-214.

A particularly volatile section of Highway 12, north of Rodanthe.

“Storms have repeatedly damaged or destroyed parts of Highway 12. For the segment of road between Oregon Inlet and Ocracoke Village, the cost of maintenance and storm fixes over the past 10 fiscal years exceeds $104 million, according to figures provided by NCDOT. Bridge construction in three locations will cost up to $464 million more.

However, property values in Dare County, where Hatteras Island is located, reach into the billions.”

— NATURE'S TOLL ROAD, http://hamptonroads.com/2013/05/rebuilding-nc-12-threatens-outer-banks-existence#

To maintain the road, fixed in place, and the developed shoreline that it has created, we must stop the migration of the islands. But to stop their migration is also to rob them of the natural processes that replenish their supply of sand and consequentially they are shrinking, fading into the Atlantic. It is an expensive, emotional, and exceedingly complex issue, born of American desires for both nature and convenience, and delivered by the road.

Coastal Research Amphibious Buggy, or CRAB, is used for a a beach nourishment project north of Rodanthe to protect Highway 12 from storm damage and overwash.

“It is NC highway 12 that keeps the Outer Banks in place. Take it away, and the future is much more uncertain. If one wants to know in what direction the Banks are headed, it would be a good bet to follow the road.”

— LEE, GABRIEL FRANCIS. Constructing the Outer Banks: Land Use, Management, and Meaning in the Creation of an American Place. pp 231.

“The reality is that, in a couple of decades, I don’t think we’re going to be talking about the issues regarding Highway 12 because it’s not going to be there anymore,” said Robert Young, director of the Program for the Study of Developed Shorelines at Western Carolina University. “The idea that we are going to keep that highway there – it’s just not going to happen.”

— NATURE'S TOLL ROAD, http://hamptonroads.com/2013/05/rebuilding-nc-12-threatens-outer-banks-existence#

Condemned houses on E Seagull Dr in South Nags Head, NC. December 2014.

Condemned Houses on East Seagull Drive, Nags Head

May 18, 2015 in Upon Sand

In South Nags Head, along a u-shaped road now buried beneath sand, there stands a row of decrepit houses in the Atlantic Ocean. One leans far to the west, like a gnarled oak fleeing the ocean's spray. Another is being repaired and one has already been removed. All were severely damaged when ocean waters overwashed E Seagull Dr during a winter storm that hit the area around Veteran's Day in 2009 and have since become a source of extended legal controversy. The houses that remain and the struggles that followed are a clear illustration of the challenges that accompany living on shifting sands.

Satellite images of E Seagull Dr, March 2011 on left and March 2013 on right.

After the storm waters receded from E Seagull Dr, the legal battle began. The utility connections were damaged and due to the migration of sand the structures sat in the "wet zone" of the public beach. A portion of the damaged houses were declared a public nuisance and condemned by the Town of Nags Head. The owners were given notice to either tear down or remove the structures, which according to the Town, now sat within public trust property and blocked movement of both visitors and emergency response vehicles alike, effectively splitting the public beach, northern and southern. Considered "wash ins" and condemned, the Town would not issue any additional building permits for the structures, preventing owners from making any repairs. The condition of the houses then deteriorated greatly as they were exposed to wind, waves, rain, and looters. The Town wanted the structures removed and owners of the houses wanted the right to repair their property and make them again inhabitable. The case was argued in Dare County Superior Court in December of 2010 and initially the verdict sided with the Town of Nags Head.

“Agreeing with Nags Head that the property was a public nuisance in land held in the public trust, the court ordered the defendant to remove the structure and gave them 20 days to do so, after which the town of Nags Head could enter the property and take the necessary steps.”

— http://www.northbeachsun.com/public-trust-and-private-rights-local-case-poses-difficult-questions/

The defendant, Cherry Inc., owner of one of the houses, appealed the decision. The Court of Appeals disagreed with the previous ruling and found that local governments in NC had no power of enforcement under State public trust law and that the claims against the defendant should be dismissed. The decision shows that the Town of Nags Head had no legal basis for condemnation as only the State of NC could enforce the regulations of the State's public trusts. A door now opened, potentially allowing for repair of the deteriorating structures and possible reclamation of lost rental income. For a rundown of the legal proceedings see Public Trust and Private Rights—Local Case Poses Difficult Questions in the North Beach Sun. The decision was troubling for those in coastal communities that wanted to protect their most vital asset: the public beach.

“We believe the N.C. Supreme Court made a mistake in not hearing our case,” said Nags Head Mayor Bob Oakes.

“They essentially said the State of North Carolina is the only entity that can take action to protect the public’s rights in the public trust, which includes our public ocean beaches.”

The court decisions were in opposition to the manner most coastal communities viewed their powers within public trust beaches.

“The problem is in our back yard, and we feel that the local government is the right place to address the issue,” said Oakes.

“The decision means that we have to rely on the state to keep our beaches clean and usable by the public.”

— http://outerbanksvoice.com/2012/10/25/supreme-court-puts-local-beach-rules-in-limbo/

Roc Sansotta, manager and part-owner of six of the houses, also took legal action against the Town.

“They’ve now lost their power because of Cherry Inc.,” Sansotta said of town officials.

He said he has spent more than $1 million in legal fees over the past two years going through federal and state courts, and has lost about $250,000 a year in rentals since the 2009 storm. The Pacific Legal Foundation, a law firm that takes on property rights and government-intrusion issues, now plans to help.”

— http://hamptonroads.com/2012/10/condemned-nags-head-nc-homes-tug-war

To further complicate matters, while litigation was ongoing, a long-awaited beach nourishment project again shifted the sands.

“... in early 2011 the Town obtained permission from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to undertake a massive $36 million beach renourishment project. By August 2011, the part of the renourishment project near the six cottages was completed, resulting in 200 feet of new beach in front of the cottages. Based on the new beach, the Town withdrew the nuisance declaration based on §16-31(6)(c) in September 2011; the Town claimed that the cottages were still in the public trust but that they “no longer impermissibly or unacceptably restrict or obstruct the use of and access to the ocean beach. J.A. 784. The Town also invited the Owners to apply for permits to repair the cottages. The nuisance declaration based on §16-31(6)(b), however, remained in effect. ”

— http://www.ca4.uscourts.gov/opinions/Published/121538.p.pdf

A few days shy of Veteran's Day in November 2014, Sansotta had claimed victory. The U.S. District Court for eastern North Carolina decided that the structures can stay on the beach and be repaired. He placed American flags on the houses as a symbol of the legal struggle that he had endured and said he had plans to repair them in time for the upcoming rental season. He referred to the houses as his "troops," though neighbors employed other comparisons. In the harsh environment, the flags were soon tattered and threadbare.

“Neighbors across the road who call the area “ghetto beach” wanted the homes removed, said Larry Allen, an Arizona resident who owns a home west of the Sansotta houses.

The structures pose a danger and block access to the ocean, he said.

”People are upset.”

— http://hamptonroads.com/2014/11/nags-head-loses-5year-battle-over-damaged-homes

Previously condemned house undergoing repairs on E Seagull Dr in South Nags Head, NC. December 2014.

Despite legal victories and the possibility of repairs, the majority the remaining E. Seagull Dr houses will soon be gone. Any sanctuary gained by previous beach nourishment programs was evidently washed away by the time these images were captured in December, 2014. On March 27, 2015, the Pacific Legal Foundation, who represented Sansotta in the case posted:

“We are thrilled to report that former PLF client, Roc Sansotta, has reached a settlement agreement with the Town of Nags Head, North Carolina, to the tune of $1.5 million! Under the agreement, the Town will essentially buy Sansotta’s beachfront property and cottages, and tear them down to make the land part of the public beach.”

— http://blog.pacificlegal.org/2015/victory-in-sansotta-v-town-of-nags-head/

With sea levels rising (from 4.8 to 11.6 inches near Nags Head over the next 30 years, according to a recent report from the Coastal Resources Commission’s advisory science panel) and no signs of development slowing, this case could portend the future of the Outer Banks, one where both flood waters and legal documents are surging.

During some busy tourist season yet to come, will beach-goers be aware they spread their towels where a row of houses once stood? Will they remember the six year long legal battle that cost millions of dollars, both public and private, over a patch of shifting sand? Or will they just be in awe of the natural wonder that lies before them? My hope for this series is to depict a landscape that isn't quite so natural after all; a strip of sand that is shaped as much by state and federal governmental agencies, departments of transportation, rental rates, bridge builders, real estate agents, courts, commerce, and human interests as it is by the wind and waves. See more images Upon Sand.

Oregon Inlet, Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge

May 04, 2015 in Upon Sand

The Oregon Inlet is a dramatic feature of North Carolina's coastal landscape. The 2.5 mile wide gap in the island chain (between Bodie Island to the north and Hatteras Island to the south) connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Pamlico Sound, the largest lagoon on the East Coast.

Satellite View of Oregon Inlet, Bonner Bridge, and northern tip of Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge.

The inlet formed in 1846 when a hurricane ripped through the coast and is named for a ship that survived the storm:

“During the storm, a ship that was caught in the Pamlico Sound for the action, the Oregon, witnessed the sudden formation of the new inlet, and after the storm had passed and the crew collected their bearings, they headed to the mainland to spread the word of the new wide inlet that now separated Hatteras Island from the rest of the Outer Banks. As a result of their initial accounts, the inlet was named after the ship that spread the news, and has been called Oregon Inlet ever since.”

— http://www.outerbanks.com/oregon-inlet.html

Surrounded by abundant wildlife, the inlet is a major departure point for both commercial and recreational fishing vessels. Starting in 1883, the precursor to the US Coast Guard operated a lifesaving station on the southern bank of the inlet. The station was moved and rebuilt numerous times due to storm damage and the shifting sands until the location was finally abandoned in 1988. Also located on the southern shore of the Oregon Inlet is Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge, a popular stop along the "Atlantic Flyway" for migratory birds.

“The refuge has 5,834 acres of land in addition to 25,700 acres of water, and is approximately 13 miles long with a width that varies from a half mile, (or even less during a sever high tide), to a full mile. The environment here is wildly diverse, with ocean beaches and high and dry sand dunes, fresh and brackish soundside ponds, low-lying salt flats, and salt marshes.”

— http://www.outerbanks.com/pea-island-national-wildlife-refuge.html

Spanning the inlet is the Herbert C. Bonner Bridge, a vital automotive link that allows NC Highway 12 to continue south towards the popular tourist areas of Hatteras Island. Built in 1962, engineers have recently awarded the bridge 4 out of 100 points and listed it as "structurally deficient." Multiple replacements have been planned, ranging from a simple parallel structure very similar to the existing bridge to a 17 mile long elevated highway that would arc Highway 12 out into the Pamlico Sound and reconnect in Rodanthe, but due to political and environmental concerns no new bridge is currently under construction. For more info see A newcomer's guide to the Bonner Bridge controversy.

All images are from the series Upon Sand, a photographic exploration of the environmental and political tensions found on North Carolina’s coast.

Washington Baum Bridge

April 21, 2015 in Upon Sand, panorama

At slightly over a mile long and standing at 82 feet high at maximum elevation, the Washington Baum Bridge spans the Roanoke Sound, connecting Roanoke Island to Nags Head on the Outer Banks via Highway 64. In addition to providing vital highway access to the Outer Banks, the western terminus of the bridge also features a boat ramp and pedestrian fishing area.

Boat Ramp, Washington Baum Bridge, Roanoke Island, NC.

“... named after Wanchese native Washington Franklin Baum (1876-1967), an influential citizen of the county during its formative years. As commissioner in the 1920s he led the drive to build the first bridge connecting Roanoke Island to the Outer Bank, and when that bridge was replaced in 1962, the new one was named in his honor.”

— http://www.outerbanks.com/washington-baum-bridge-and-boat-ramp.html

These images are a part of my series Upon Sand, a photographic exploration of the environmental and political tensions found on North Carolina’s coast. Each panorama is comprised of multiple Nikon D800e vertical frames stitched together. Click to enlarge!