Morning at Puerto Natales

Lapwings yell from a small, rocky mudbank a little way from shore; two black-necked swans cruise in the distance; a Magellanic oystercatcher probes among the stones; a few crested ducks float quietly. A cool but pleasant breeze wrinkles the water shortly before brief, light drizzle.

Voices in the distance; the continuous, deep hum of a boat engine; gently lapping water; the sulphurous smell of decaying sea lettuce. I walk back towards town along the waterfront past an almost collapsed fence — three thin rails on leaning pickets, what remains of the white paint now scaly and flaking, streaked with orange and red from the rusting nails — and cut up towards the centro under a hazy sky streaked with cloud and patches of blue. I love this beautiful, flawed, impermanent world.

[24 November 2011, Panasonic Lumix GH1, 14–45 mm at 45 mm, ISO 200, 1/200 at f16]

 

All content © 2011 Pete McGregor