Source: Rob Gonsalves
The Black Pearl was hanging around these parts for the last few weeks of the summer. They’ve been filming Pirates of the Caribbean III.
Kona and Vive got a few good looks at it at various locations along the peninsula. The first time was at Cabrillo Beach, where it was docked.
We’ve recently been getting our walks in during the early mornings, and on a few occasions we’ve seen the Black Pear out at sea and in action. Sails up, cannons going off, the whole thing. In the dawn mist on the glassy ocean, it looks just like the ride. Bad ass.
One late morning we caught it at Point Vicente on the Palos Verdes Peninsula. I happened to have my camera on me. I regret being cameraless on another occasion near White Point, when the orange cannon fire against the ocean mist was a sight to behold. Bummer. I guess you’ll have to see the flick.
↑ Not exactly sure what it was, but a prop was being lifted out to sea and lowered down to the ship by helicopter. From left to right: A bird, Helicopter-A, Helicopter-B, and some sort of prop hanging by a cable from Helicopter-B.
Shitfuckdammit.
Thursday night. The wolves and I are taking our nightly walk, which for the past few weeks has tended to be at the old Nike Missile Base, now turned into White Point Nature Preserve. While Vive was chasing a tennis ball, Kona ran off into the twilight and got skunked.
This is normally amusing, but I’m sooooo not in the mood for it now. See opening sentence.
Anyhow, Kona’s now out drying from her emergency deskunking solution as I sit here fuming on my fourth Sierra — and smelling like skunk myself — looking for some sort of bright point to the whole thing. It occured to me that I’ve got some photos laying around of the Nike base that I’ve been intending to post for months.
During the Cold War years, the United States utilized a detached part of the Fort MacArthur Reservation for the Nike Missile Program. It became virtually unused open land over the decades, and recently was established a bona fide preserve called White Point. it’s a unique mix of natural habitat and military structure of old, all left untouched, with a view of Catalina. Great place for the dogs. Great place to clear the mind. Great place.
So there it is. A random Thursday night inconvenience turned into inspiration.
From an otherwise uneventful day in 2006, one of our countless strolls through the preserve, not a 5-iron shot away from our crib. I had my camera on me:
