This week the WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge is to interpret the word afloat in a photograph.
It was always a rare treat to walk up one of the main cables of the Golden Gate Bridge in the fog. We only did it in emergency situations such as this, when the elevator in the tower stopped working and people were stuck on top.
The noise of the traffic below quiets down the farther you travel up the cable. There is nothing but you and your partner on top of a moist round orange pathway and soon your vision is the same in all directions—white.
If you are really lucky, you will break through the fog when you reach the top of the tower and experience the vast blue sky ceiling above and the sea of white below. The top of the tower is your own private spaceship at this point—afloat between heaven and earth.
Problems? We ain’t got no stinkin’ problems!
Afloat in the Fog
© Allan G. Smorra, All Rights Reserved
That last line…perfect! What a great feeling it is whenever those kinds of moments come.
LikeLike
Thanks, Stephanie. I get those moments in different situations nowadays and I truly miss the daily view from my “old office”. Ω
LikeLiked by 1 person
I wondered what you would do for this challenge. You outdid yourself with by sharing a rare experience that very few of us earthbound folks ever get. Thank you.
Car
LikeLike
Thanks, Carol. Working at the GGB was one of those “life-experiences”. I am glad that I did not miss out on it. Ω
LikeLiked by 1 person
And you have the skill to tell the the story of it!
LikeLiked by 1 person
So you walked in the clouds. Breathtaking!
LikeLike
Thanks, Brad. It was a blast. Ω
LikeLike
Love the image and your prose….
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Sue. I tried to walk the line between anecdote and explanation. I am old-school in that respect: a good photo doesn’t need words, but sometimes a good story fits into a photo. Ω
LikeLiked by 1 person
I would agree!
LikeLike
Allan, thanks for taking me with you via your words and excellent photo. Those are the only ways I’ll ever be up on a structure such as this. I’m a height-wiener!
janet
LikeLike
A “height-wiener”…I love it. It is right up there with being “vertically-challenged” (short).
I am glad that you liked the photo and the essay, Janet. Ω
LikeLike
I’m not tall, about 5’5″, but don’t consider myself to be described by the perfect phrase “vertically -challenged.” However, I’m definitely a height-wiener, although I did manage to get on our roof in Cleveland for cleaning, quite an accomplishment for me.
LikeLike
Congrats on the roof. How was the view?
LikeLike
It was quite good but, from atop a second story, rather high for me. We owned an unusual house which didn’t have gutters (but not to worry, it had a system for the water to get off the roof), so we had to go up there and get the leaves and seeds out so water didn’t sit there and then get into the house.
LikeLike
Ahhh, the joys of owning a home…
LikeLike
If it had been a normal situation with gutters, it would have been much simpler…and lower. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Wow, you were definitely privileged to have the opportunity to go up there. How did you get up? I’m very afraid of heights myself, so I’m wondering how you did that. Was there an exterior elevator for the staff?
LikeLike
There is an “elevator” inside the east leg of both towers. It is about 1m square in size. We walked up the cable from mid-span that day—about a .5 mile hike with a 500 ft rise in elevation. And yes, it was a privilege to work there and be allowed to do that. Ω
LikeLike
Oh God ….walking up the cable…I’m feeling dizzy now 🙂
LikeLike
Be a butterfly and fly low… Ω
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m a crawling butterfly 🙂
LikeLike
A caterpillar, then?
LikeLike
No, I’m a butterfly that deliberately decided to walk. 🙂
LikeLike
Much better than crawling. Ω
LikeLike
Excellent.
LikeLike
Thanks, I like your entry as well. Ω
LikeLiked by 1 person