A Gray Coast During a Morro Bay Camping Trip

A Small Cove Below the Bluff

On September 11, 2021, we stopped at a coastal trail during a Morro Bay camping trip. The first frame looks down toward a small cove, a sea cave, and pale cliffs extending beneath low cloud.

A small cove and sea cave beneath pale coastal cliffs and low cloud.

A Bird Above the Water

A few minutes later, a raptor rested on a wooden post in the coastal grassland. With almost nothing between the bird and the ocean, the gray horizon reduces the scene to a few quiet layers.

A raptor perched on a wooden post with the ocean behind it.

The Trail in Fog

Farther along the trail, fog covered the top of a low mountain. People paused beside the split-rail fence, giving the weather and the open ground a human scale.

A split-rail trail with the top of a low mountain hidden by fog.

Two people walking a gentle trail through low coastal vegetation.

Back Toward the Cliffs

The final frame returns to the water. A long rock formation lies between the waves while the cliff enters from the left, and the low sky nearly erases the horizon.

A long rock formation between gray water and coastal cliffs.

All five photographs were made between 1:44 and 1:56 PM. Rather than documenting several stops or a long route, they hold a brief walk through one overcast section of coast.

Record

Photographed: September 11, 2021
Area: San Luis Obispo County coast
Trip: a short coastal walk during a Morro Bay camping stay