Sunset, Corn Field, Lamoni Iowa. 4:47 PM.

Four years ago this afternoon my wife sent me on a quick errand to the grocery store.  As I got close to the store I looked at the sun. I ended up laying down in a corn field instead.

With a sunset photo in mind, I headed for Home Lake, one of my favorite local sunset locations. On the road to Home Lake there is a corn field just south of the road. Sunset light was raking across the corn stubble.  I jumped out of the car, lay down in the snowy field and created four quick images with my iPhone, each with a slightly different framing. I loved the shadows of the corn stubble on the snow. The light was just about perfect.

Did I go back to the grocery store? Not yet. I decided I had a lake to visit before the light faded.

It is a 6 minute drive from Home Lake to Lake LaShane which is a couple of miles northwest of Lamoni Iowa. I was hoping to get there in time to catch the sunset glow on the lake.

Sunset, Lake LaShane. 5:01 PM.

I drove off the county road and down the access road along the lake (map below). I got out of the car and made my way some 40 odd feet down to the very edge of the ice covering the lake. What looks like open water in this image is actually ice frozen in the shape of ripples as far as you can see. Deep booming sounds were coming from the lake as ice movement created and released stresses. It sounded like distant explosions but it was coming from the lake.

It took me a while to find just the right photo spot. I lay down right on the edge where the snow covered ground meets the ice covered lake to take pictures with my phone. My head was as close to the ground as I could get and still see the image on the back of the phone. Once in position I was motionless except for the tiny finger movements on the shutter.

I saw a truck go by the lake on the county road. It turned around and drove by the lake again but much more slowly. Then the driver stopped.  I kept taking pictures. I think the driver saw me and was worried.

I was in dark clothes. I am guessing at 110 yards away from the road, my prone body stood out in bold contrast to the snow and ice surrounding me.

I think he was waiting there, seeing me laying in the snow and ice, wondering if I was ok. Or maybe he was just puzzled. Or curious. Or not exactly sure what he was seeing at that distance. I bet he was trying to decide how long to wait before he went to check out the situation.

When I had the photos I wanted I sat up, stood up, and walked to my car.  From the time he stopped until the time I sat up was probably less than a minute.

As I drove back to the county road and turned right, the truck was still sitting there on the side of the county road. As I drove by, the driver waved. I smiled my best smile (as a way of saying “thank you”) and waved back.

Yes, I did not forget to go to the grocery store.

These are two of my favorite photos and they were taken just 14 minutes apart.

Google Earth Pro: Corn stubble in the snow at sunset, and ice covered Lake LaShane at sunset.

The yellow pins mark the location of these photos in Google Earth Pro. Click the image to see a larger version. Google Earth Pro is a free download.  You can mark and name locations and save them in groups and sub-groups.