You are here

Flag Soars Above USS Arizona Memorial

Flag Soaring Above USS Arizona Memorial; Merryland photographer
Jon Merryman
Monday, October 29, 2007

Can you name the park where this photo was shot?

I was sent this photo in email, and thought that it was a really great shot considering the park it was taken. There are three elements here that tell the story; the flag, the sky, and the structure. Considering those elements, can you guess where this shot was taken?

I'm guessing we'll get the answer here pretty quick, and when we do, I'll post the answer and other details here.

UPDATE --

Well, that didn't take long at all. Before 10 people had viewed this page, Beamis came up with the correct answer! I guess I shouldn't be surprised that it was guessed so quickly. This photo is taken at the USS Arizona Memorial in Hawaii. A frequent reader / commenter, Jon Merryman, sent in this photo. He describes how it was taken -

Our family visited the USS Arizona last summer (2006) after catching the connecting flight from Kauai to Honolulu and we had the morning to ourselves before the 11-hour flight home. It was VERY crowded out on the memorial – annoyingly so, and very hot that day. I was also disappointed at the lack of photo opportunities when looking down into the water and how little you could really see. I had always envisioned the memorial as having an underwater viewing window like so many polar bear and aquarium exhibits I’ve seen, so between the crowds and lack of much to see, I was rather disappointed after many attempts to catch the oil droplets rising up and wallowing around on the surface. I thought of them as tears from a crying ship, but as romantic or poetic as that sounds, they still weren’t very photogenic. Then, while waiting behind a mass of people to make my way back to the shuttlecraft, I looked up, and wow… it was one of those spine-tingling things that’s rather indescribable. A perfect blue sky, the flag snapping in the stiff breeze, and all those people waddling around me looking down or at each other, elbowing their way from spot to spot. They almost need a sign that says “Don’t forget to look up,” but then it wouldn’t be that special moment for anyone else…

Great shot Jon, thanks for sharing it with us. I mentioned it last week, and I'll mention it again this week, if you've got a really great photo of the National Parks that you think others would enjoy, please let me know about it via the 'Contact Us' page.

Yup, sad place.
I couldn't hang there long.


Add comment

The Essential RVing Guide

The Essential RVing Guide to the National Parks

The National Parks RVing Guide, aka the Essential RVing Guide To The National Parks, is the definitive guide for RVers seeking information on campgrounds in the National Park System where they can park their rigs. It's available for free for both iPhones and Android models.

This app is packed with RVing specific details on more than 250 campgrounds in more than 70 parks.

You'll also find stories about RVing in the parks, some tips if you've just recently turned into an RVer, and some planning suggestions. A bonus that wasn't in the previous eBook or PDF versions of this guide are feeds of Traveler content: you'll find our latest stories as well as our most recent podcasts just a click away.

So whether you have an iPhone or an Android, download this app and start exploring the campgrounds in the National Park System where you can park your rig.