April 29, 2016 – We perched ourselves on this overlook close to a thousand times to watch the tides come and go, stroll along the coast, race our boys and dogs on the driftwood gathered on the rocks, and photograph the ever-changing scenery. The rocky area is almost entirely exposed at low tide, making it accessible on foot, but watch it; this natural breakwater nearly disappears at high tide. Half the time, we never left our truck; we were only there to see the view of Clarence Strait.

Stormy weather lured us to this place to be awed by the raging waves crashing onto the rocks. Seawater sprayed high into the air before being captured by the fierce wind.

The rainbow is shining on Lesmesurier Point, where the residents of Meyer’s Chuck call home. Nestled behind the point is Union Bay—the setting of the memoir Raised in Ruins. From the rainbow and to the left is Earnest Sound. The mountains in the photo are on the Cleveland Peninsula along the Inside Passage. The ray of color shines right between the peaks of Mt. Burnett on the left and South Mount on the right. Cannery Creek drains between the two peaks into the Union Bay Cannery ruins, which burned down in 1947.

Somehow, I lived on Prince of Wales Island for half of my adult life and never knew the names of many of the geographic features surrounding me. I know some of them now that I am retired and have time to study the map in detail.

Now, for the rest of the story.

I played the song, “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” for my dad when he was passing away. Whenever I see a rainbow, I think of him. He had just passed when this picture was taken so I was choking back tears at the time.