Top Memorable Sunsets

1) Last sunset of the summer, Antarctica March 2010
2) Sunset after vehicle fire, Winfly Antarctica August 2010
3) April 2005 on a cruise ship in the Bahamas
4) Boston skyline August 2007 on the Tobin on my motorcycle
5) Spain, 2 March 2011
6) Mt Bond, 30 Sept 1999 which is also the last day that I went hiking
7) Florida Keys with Green Flash while sailing, February 2003
8) Craigville Beach while walking Monday, winter 2008/2009

So I am sitting here looking out at the sunset that is happening across the airfield here at work (in Spain for those that do not know) and it is absolutely b-e-a-utiful! I attempt to take pictures but it just isn’t happening on my iPod Touch camera. Granted the camera comes in real handy but it just does not work for things that are long distances away. I mean it is only a 2.3 megapixel camera with no zoom so what can you expect. It works great for stuff that happens close to you. I would say anything over 10-20 feet away is the limit depending on the size and detail. Anyways I have compiled a list of my Top Memorable Sunsets. It makes the list if I can vividly remember what is happening during the sunsets. It is usually sparked by an event or a person or the way the sunset made me feel, oh geez here I go talking about my emotions again. So I hope I can vividly paint a picture for you as to why I have them on my list.

1) Last sunset of the summer, Antarctica 20thish March 2010
Well this was a very bitter cold time and it was also the last time I would see the sun for 5 months and light for almost 4 ½ months. So yea it is a big deal. I of course was working but we are half way up the hill outside of town that goes to the windmills that are used for energy. The weather is -20 or so but the wind is 15 knots so that makes it even more blistering cold. I am accompanied by my fellow winter-over firefighters. I don’t think that describing it as “AWESOME” would do it any justice so.

About this picture: Last sunset in Antarctica March 2010.
Left to right: Virginia Price, Corey "The Duke" Walsh, Peter "Fire Falcon" McHargue, Scott "Danger" Beu and Grant "Mini-Soda" Hanson. The picture was taken by Robert Weidman who is a personal photographer of mine and one heck of a photographer to begin with.

2) Sunset after vehicle fire, Antarctica August 20thish 2010
This is one of the first sunrises and subsequent sunsets that happened in Antarctica after the above mention sunset so other than that significance it also happened after a vehicle fire. Although I did not participate directly in the vehicle fire I was still involved and the overwhelming vibe from a job well done was contagious.

3) Bahamas on a cruise ship, April 2005
I remember this in particular because I was on my first cruise of my life and I was with an unbelievable person when the sun set. It was also one of the last times that I felt truly comfortable being myself but still being in pain. I would go in for back surgery 2-3 weeks later to fix my 3 herniated discs in my lower back. We were walking along the outside of the cruise ship, going to dinner I think or meeting up with the other part of the group we were with, and we stop to admire the sunset. There was a warm breeze coming from our backs and at that moment I was completely and utterly happy. There was nothing that could change the way I was feeling.

4) Boston Skyline on the Tobin on my motorcycle, early August 2007
I remember this because I had just come through the Tobin bridge tolls, first time through the tolls on my motorcycle, and the way the sun set over the skyline in Boston was absolutely gorgeous. I sat there on the side of the highway for what felt like 5 minutes admiring the sunset until a MSP Trooper asked if I was ok. I said I was just admiring the sunset and figured it would be better to do that parked then while riding. He agreed and shortly after that I left.

5) Spain, 2nd March 2011
Looking out over the airfield, which is nicely dotted with aero planes, onto the fields and rolling hills of southern Spain is absolutely gorgeous. The sun, although in the process of setting, is warm as ever. There is no breeze tonight which keeps the warmth local and not off heating the green grass covered rolling hills that can both protect and hide or enlighten and boaster anyone of the small towns that are within its mists. A few weeks ago I was driving and it was more prevalent that the landscape is as much a part of the culture and the language is. I look at this sunset and I can be transported to almost anywhere I have been before. Be it the exceptionally warm Cape Cod during the summer, the flat and dusty but yet nurturing fields of central Illinois during the spring and fall, or the humid rolling hills of Florida during the winter. This sunset brings all the places I have been within my reach again, if only in my mind.

6) Mt. Bond, 30 Sept 1999
This would end of being the last time that I went hiking. I have been on hikes since but this would be the last time that I truly enjoyed hiking. It was also a funeral with the spreading of ashes on the top of the mountain. The actual sunset would take place down the trail but it would be the last day that I truly enjoyed hiking. Philmont, which I would hike in 2 years, was just not the same. Neither were the training hikes and the friendship that came along with spending 40+ days of hiking with the same 14 people. The last time I was at Philmont I knew that one of my good friends was enjoying the incredible heat, beautiful scenery, rich history and long miles just as I was, but from another section of the ranch. I would still be in New Mexico when Ben passed away in his home. I would also still be in New Mexico when the wake was held so the spreading of the ashes was all the closure that was afforded to me.

7) Florida Keys with Green Flash while sailing, February 2003
Although I was not much of a sailor I managed to go to Sea Base twice during my Boy Scouting career as a scout. I first went in 1999 and the second time in 2003. It was also the first time that I saw the coveted “Green Flash” that happens just as the sun sets over the horizon. You are supposed to watch and right as the sun dips below the horizon you may or may not see a green flash. If you do actually see a green flash it is supposed to bring some mythical … something or another to everyone that is watching it together. Be it what it is but I was having an exceptionally fun time with the company I was keeping and I did not want it to end. Well end it did! When we flew back into Boston it was in the middle of a snow storm and I was wearing shorts and a t-shirt but luckily I had my sweater which was promptly put on after we left the terminal. I have since gone on to unfortunately lose contact with all but one of the people I was traveling with then but I hope to hold onto that friendship for as long as I can.

8) Craigville Beach while walking Monday, winter 2008/2009
This is the last sunset that I can vividly remember. It wasn’t the coldest sunset that I have experienced, that would be Number 1, but it was with my dog Monday. Being the winter on Cape Cod the sun often set early and while I was working and commuting which accounted for 80 hours a week sometimes Monday and I did not always get a chance to walk on the beach since we were not living on the beach anymore. But this day we did and as luck would have it there were no other dogs on the beach this day so I could let him off the leash without thinking about chasing him. Plus we were playing with a tennis ball and at the time he loved it. Although I do not remember the sunset specifically I do remember that the sun was up when we got to the beach and when we left it was set. But what I do remember is that for the 30 minutes or so that we were on the beach Monday was having the time of his life. He would be covered in sand by the time we left but it was ok since he was getting into my truck to ride with his head sticking half out of the window. When I think of it in my mind I play it back like it was an iconic movie scene. I remember this even more since it would be the last time that I would play with him this much since I would leave the state in March of 2009 and not see him again to this day. He is in good hands and gets to play a lot more, more that I could have with him.

So that is the list of the top sunsets that I can vividly remember. I know there are more but they are fleeting and so they do not make the top memorable sunsets. I am sure that there are more to come and I hope that this post is a catalyst to remembering your sunsets and they bring you joy as mine do to me.

About the picture: This is in Lisbon, Portugal. I was there in Feb 2011 with Natasha, one of my personal photographers, Ryan Walsh, my cousin, and Dave Rothstein, my roommate.

Stay Frosty
-C