Gutters & Gargoyles

thanks to everyone for the good wishes on my blip milestone yesterday: I hadn't realized that was the day until I got all your lovely comments. Thanks! what a community :)))

A fun outing today organized by one of the local photo collectives I belong to: up into the eves and out onto the gutters of the National Cathedral in DC to get a close-up look at its unconventional gargoyles and an amazing view of the city spread below. The Cathedral sits on a hill in DC and offers the highest point of view around (at least from the gutters!). Here are my other shots from the day along with a couple of extras.

After a 7-floor elevator ride, we had to hoof it the rest of the way: some 400 steps on a winding metal staircase, past the bell tower and its imposing bells (taller than a human being). All of it in heat that is still in the high 90s. We literally walked in the gutters, with just enough room for one person, ducking under small archways, and squeezing past one another looking down the equivalent of a 12-story building. Great fun, but I'm spent!

To 'reward' us all, we got to sit down with a drink to the sounds of a local rock band, playing in the Cathedral's auditorium, right under the eves.