Little Rock

Over the past two weeks, a few snow storms have moved through Little Rock. And since everyone panics at the mere mention of a snowflake, the city was shut down for a few days. I headed out one evening, trying to get a few pictures before all the snow had melted. I was a little too late, since it was above freezing and the city was slowly thawing.

The first stop was the state capitol, where most of the snow had already melted.


No doubt from all those politician's hot air....am I right, people?

From there I headed over to Union Station, the city's old trail station. Union Station was built in 1921, and still serves Amtrak trains.

St. Boniface Catholic Church

One day after work, I avoided the rush hour traffic in Little Rock and instead drove off west towards the old St. Boniface Catholic Church. This is one of the prettiest old churches in the state, and is located along Hwy. 60 between Conway and Perryville (it's not far from the metropolis of Toad Suck). When I got there, the light from the setting sun was pouring onto the church.



The first church here was built in 1901, and featured a high alter that was imported from Germany. But the church would unfortunately catch fire a few years later during a service. The building was destroyed, although the alter was saved. When the church was rebuilt in 1906, the alter returned and is still a part of the church.



And a view of the old cemetery that flanks the church...



I have recently become obsessed with star trail pictures. So after it got dark I set up the camera with the hopes that I might be able to get a decent shot from here. The camera took photos for about two hours, while I awkwardly sat nearby in my car (much to the concern of someone driving by, who asked if I was ok). Over that two hours, I got about two hundred pictures, which were later stacked together. I ended up with this view of the church, looking towards the North Star.

Scott Star Trails

It's a snow day here in Little Rock, which means my work is closed! But after sleeping in and goofing off, I guess I should do something productive today. So here is a shot that I've been meaning to post. Awhile back I headed back to Scott to try to take some star trail pictures. I drove to one of the old churches there just before dark and set up the camera. I sat out there for a little over two hours, taking about 250 exposures. Luckily, you can see the north star above the church.



I've become slightly obsessed with star trails now. Hopefully I will have a few more to share soon...

Scott

From Mount Holly Cemetery, I headed out east to the small town of Scott. Located only about 15 miles from Little Rock, Scott contains a great little collection of old historic homes, churches and barns. I like to make the short drive there since it will consistently provide some different photogenic locations.



This is just up the road from Cotham's, which has some good burgers that make for another good reason to visit Scott. I headed south, deep into the flat lands that surround the town. There are miles and miles of fields here, dormant for the winter. A few homes and farm buildings dot the landscape, and a few old churches. This old church, along the amusingly named Wampoo Lateral Road, looks like it has been empty for awhile.





Down the road is another church, in a much worse state of disrepair. The roof is sagging, and probably won't be standing too much longer.



Next I headed towards the small town of Keo, which also has a nice collection of old buildings. This place is colorful, but also empty and abandoned.



I drove out again, driving near Bearskin Lake and the Marlsgate Plantation. I randomly found a huge flock of birds, nesting in one of the fields. I wanted to get a bit closer, but it would have meant either driving or walking through someone's field. So instead I tried to take a few pictures while hoping the birds would decide to fly closer to me, but for some reason they never did.

Mt. Holly Cemetery

Located in the shadows of the downtown skyscrapers, and next to the roar of a busy freeway, sits the old Mount Holly Cemetery. The cemetery dates back to 1843, and it now contains the final resting place for several notable people in the early history of Little Rock and Arkansas. They include eleven Arkansas governors, thirteen state Supreme Court justices, four United States senators, four Civil War generals, a Pulitzer Prize winning poet and twenty-one Little Rock mayors.



There is a grand collection of old Victorian grave markers here, which makes it a popular place for photographers wanting to take moody black and white pictures.

Fort Roots

Fort Roots sits on the top of the "Big Rock," a few miles upstream from the site of the little rock that gave the city of Little Rock its name. And while it's no longer a fort, it provides one of the best views of downtown Little Rock around.



In the 1890s, the Army moved to the top of the hill along the Arkansas River and built a small base. It served as a base for a few decades, until the Army decided to move to a larger location during World War I. When they left, the barracks and buildings were transferred to the Public Health Service and converted into a veterans hospital. Today, the Fort Roots site is home to the VA Hospital.

It is a great view, although it was cold and windy the night this was taken.



I headed back out to Fort Roots a few nights later when it was a little bit warmer and clearer. I wanted to try to take star trail pictures from there, which might be a little tricky since you apparently want to avoid city lights in any star pictures. But I set up the camera, and waited for the camera to take over two hundred exposures of the skyline. After stacking all of the images together, I had to do a few extra steps in Photoshop (due to photographer error), and ended up with this. I was surprised that there were a few more stars out then what I expected: