The Back Roads of Westfort

Even though it was a bit of a chilly day, I decided to go for another quick walk after lunch. Whereas in the morning I was in Port Arthur, the afternoon brought me to the depths of Westfort. It had been a while since I took photos on the overpass so I decided to head there. After spending a short amount of time getting some photos in and around the overpass I walked all the way across and explored some of the road on the other side of the tracks. 

As far as I can remember I had never been back there so it was quite interesting. I immediately tried to get down to the river to get a photo of the big ship but it was sadly all closed off. Even an area where you could normally go down the water was also locked down. My plan for next time is to bring my long zoom lens and find an angle somehow. Hopefully the ship is still there. 

Regardless, I headed to the James Street Swing Bridge. Even though it's closed off to traffic, you can still walk across. I was able to get some decent angles from the bridge but I did have to shoot through the fence. Actually, one of my favourite photos of the day was of the old mill in the background, which was shot through the fence. It almost looks like smoke is on the outer edges of the fence but it's part of the fence which is blurred. I just like how it ended up looking, almost vintage, by accident.

Once I was done on the bridge I made my way back to Gore Street which would eventually take me to my car. Before I got there though, I managed to get a few more cool looking photos. Along the way, I was warned by a friendly neighbour that there had been a black bear roaming around the day before. So, I think I will take a break from Westfort for a bit. 

In case you are wondering, I took all these photos with the Fuji X-T1 and the 35mm 1.4. I shot in both JPG and RAW. Lately I have been using the RAW images mainly because they are more forgiving with the the highlights, especially with the bright winter skies. 

Exploring Gore Street

I decided to head on over to Westfort the other day and walk down Gore Street. Aside from living on in this area a long long time ago I don't really get the chance to explore it too often. So I set out with my Fuji X-T1 and my 16mm lens this time to capture some photos. Of course, most people know that The Wayland is on this street so I made sure to get some photos of that place. 

Aside from the Wayland I simply looked for things that stood out. These might not be things the the everyday person sees but that's the beauty of photography, I get to choose what strikes me as interesting. As I mentioned above, I hadn't really explored this area so I was surprised to find a road called Mountdale which leads right down to the water. It offered a fantastic view of Mount McKay. I'm sure anyone who lives in the area knows about this spot, but it goes to show you, even in a small city like Thunder Bay, there are still little gems to be found.

It was quite an overcast and foggy day so the photos I captured of Mount McKay aren't the most colourful, but they did have a certain mood to them which I kind of liked. All in all, it was a fun 30 minute walk through my old stomping ground. I'll definitely have to go back soon before winter sets in to see what else I can find.