Living in the South is a photographer's dream. Foley, Alabama is no exception. We generally have mild winters and hot summers. This winter of 2009/2010 has been more severe than normal but even so, our growing season is very long. About a mile from my house is the Cedar St. Park. It has tennis courts, a basketball court, ball fields and swings but the best thing, in my opinion, is the cypress pond stocked with 18" koi. The pond is away from the street and a lot of people have never noticed it. Ever since I got into photography it's been my "fall back" location to shoot. Things have changed; now it's toward the top of my list. Somewhere along the way an alligator took up residence in that cypress pond! We've seen the "Beware of Gator" signs posted and most of us have thought someone was pulling our leg. About 6 months ago I happened to spot the gator in the water and have been on the lookout since then! One warm winter day I got lucky and spotted the gator sunning on a small island. I advanced slowly and carefully and got several good shots before he went back into the water. I was so excited! I rushed home and sure enough, I had some winners! Since that day I've kept my eyes peeled but no more sightings--yet. I've spoken with people out enjoying the park and they've almost all said they thought the signs were a joke. I've testified to the fact that they are not a joke and there really is an alligator in that cypress pond. During another discussion like this last week I decided I'd just compile photographs taken at this park and then people could see for themselves. Oh, by the way, in one of the turtle shots you'll see a long streak of orange in the water: that's one of the huge carp.
