We’ve been spending a lot of time lately on Marrowstone Island. Specifically at Fort Flagler State Park. Before the state purchased the fort for its park system, this fort was part of a trilogy of state-of-art ship killing machine. However, the island apparently has much more than the old fort to offer. While perusing the local store for some forgotten items I found a set of fossilized mammoth morals on the shelf; right next to the baked beans. According to the card it was found on the east side of the island on a beach named appropriately enough, East Beach.
Of course once I read that I had to head over to try my luck at fossil hunting!
Camera
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Behind the Photo
No fossils to be found on this trip, but I did like the texture and detail of this root ball. Then once I started to frame the shot I notice the play of colors and contrast be the log, the middle ground and the clouds in the background.
A small f-stop to limit the depth of field, and a quick application of the rule-of-thirds was all that it took for this shot. It might not be the most dramatic I’ve taken but it has interest and will have to do until I find some mammoth fossils.
Marrowstone Island
Marrowstone takes its name from Marrowstone Point, the northernmost point on Marrowstone Island; it was given that name in 1792 by British explorer George Vancouver, supposedly for the deposits of marrowstone in its sandy cliffs. Captain George Vancouver claimed Puget Sound for Great Britain, while exploring the Pacific coast along Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia.
Fort Flagler, on Marrowstone’s north end, was completed in 1907 and in operation until 1953. It became a state park in 1955 and is a popular destination for campers and kite fliers. Mystery Bay State Park is another state park on Marrowstone Island, located about a half-mile north of the Nordland General Store.
The Nordland Township was plotted in 1889, and soon after the area was settled by families newly immigrated from Norway. The attraction to the area was the similarity of the land to the Norwegian fjords, the abundance of fish, and the cannery which once existed two miles north of Nordland. Most of the descendants of the families still live on the island.
