2011-07-05 09:52:28
Red, White and Boom!
In the previous years I went to the St. Paul for the 4th of July fireworks. This year I decided to go to Minneapolis. Based on previous experience, I was hoping that arriving half an hour before the show at the Stone Arch bridge would be adequate, but that proved to be false - as I exited 35W I saw many groups walking towards Hennepin Ave and Stone Arch bridges. I drove by, but the parking lots were full, there was no available on-street parking and people were still driving slowly looking for a spot. I quickly switched to plan B and drove to the UofM campus which was busy, but I could find a parking spot then walked over to the Northern Pacific Railroad bridge which was moderately busy with people and set-up my tripod.
The moon was hanging nicely over Minneapolis:
Unfortunately when the fireworks started, I realized why the area was not as busy - the smoke-stacks of the Southwest Steamplant were partially blocking the view.
I managed to get a few decent shots, but next year I'll be parking near the Stone Arch bridge at 7 PM!
