The forecast on this morning was for freezing ground fog.  I couldn’t recall a similar forecast.  Consequently, I wasn’t sure how to choose a sunrise location.  So, I played it safe.

By first light I was out behind the historic Bodie Island Lighthouse in South Nags Head.  There’s a shallow body of freshwater and lots of marsh grasses, all viewable from an elevated wooden platform.  I wasn’t impressed with the conditions, however.  The frost was negligible and the skies largely clear and without interest.  It seemed that the action was happening over towards the beach and the Atlantic Ocean to the east.

I accessed a small, informal parking area near the primary dunes by crossing NC-12, The Outer Banks Scenic Byway.  The first thing I noticed was that my feet were crunching loudly through the sand as I walked towards the ocean.  The sand had frozen!  The second thing I noticed was all of the back dune plants, protected from sea spray and salt by the primary dune, were glistening with heavy frost.  I guess the heavy moisture in the coastal fog had frosted everything similar to a hoar frost in the mountains.  It was the first time I had seen something like this along Cape Hatteras National Seashore.

Once the sun began to rise I was without a composition, which is to say, I was running about like an idiot cursing myself.  The early light battled the thick coastal fog providing some beautifully diffused light.  I even got myself into a brocken spectre–a small circular rainbow effect around my own shadow.  But I still hadn’t really found a pleasing composition.

The sun burned the thin frost quickly upon rising.  Thus, I had to drop behind the primary dune where it was more diffuse and much of the landscape was still in shadow.  The photo above is one of those compositions where I’m not happy with the frame as a finished product.  It worked for the rush of the moment.  Now that I’ve experienced these conditions, however, I’ll better understand where to be and how to plan my shooting window next time.

Camera:  Nikon D850
Lens:  Nikkor 24-70mm f2.8 @ 44mm
Tripod:  Really Right Stuff TVC-33

Date taken:  January 13, 2021
Settings:  f11, 1/15 second, iso-64