A fine boat on a dreary day

A previous entry had me whining about what a terrible day Thursday, Oct. 27, 2011, was for getting pictures along the Ohio River. It didn't help that I forgot to erase my camera's memory card and charge the battery before leaving home. I didn't realize what mistakes those were until I was driving down Ohio Route 7 just above Addison. I looked over my shoulder, and there was the O. Nelson Jones headed my way.

I got off a couple of shots there that weren't totally blurry and mal-exposed because of a weak battery and limited card space.

One thing about these pictures, especially the first one, is worth noting. That dark cloud at the very top of the picture isn't a naturally occurring cloud. It's vapor from the cooling towers at the Gavin power plant, which is out of the picture and off to the right. Yesterday was so humid and chilly that the vapor from the cooling towers hung low in the air and drifted off to the east in thick clouds.

I had a few minutes, so I went down to the Point Pleasant area to get a few pics of the O. Nelson Jones making a hard turn to the left to enter the Kanawha. I wasn't sure that was its destination, but I figured from the direction the boat was heading and the barges it was pushing, it was probably headed to an AmherstMadison dock on the Kanawha near the mouth. On the first part at least I was right. Here's the O. Nelson Jones turning up the Kanawha.

And here it approaching my position.

The light wasn't good. It got better after my battery died and my card was full. Figures.

I was kicking myself because there are few places along the river to get as close to this particular boat as this spot is. Next time I'll be more prepared.