The End of the Rainbow, Pacific Grove, CA

Earlier this week we had dire predictions of very heavy rain sweeping in off the ocean for days on end. We went to Pebble Beach for Caroline's riding lesson and found that the overnight rain had canceled all lessons. So, on the way back to PG, we stopped at some of the usual touristy spots along 17 Mile Drive.
Pebble Beach was very busy as there were crews dismantling the support logistics for the AT&T Pro Am the week before. Fortunately all the crowds had gone and we had a pleasant drive along the ocean.
We naturally had to stop at the well known Lone Cyprus. The light was favorable but we could see the storm clouds building off-shore.

Further along 17 Mile Drive we stopped to watch the beginning of the rain sweeping in off the ocean.

Another view of the approaching storm shows Bird Rock in the foreground. It was a menacing sight.

As the storm got closer, we could see through the veil of rain revealing the blue sky and puffy clouds further out over the ocean. An unusual sight.

Further on I stopped in the middle of the road, car door open and caught this White-tailed Kite hovering over the edge of a fairway just off the road. The light wasn't the best but I did recover some detail by "processing" the image using the iPhoto tools.

The rain finally reached us as we were getting back into PG but it was a brief deluge - followed by an almost immediate clearing and an impressive double rainbow. I got a little wet but this kind of shot doesn't come along every day. Maybe only a few times in a lifetime. 

The rainbow faded quickly and I got a final shot of the brighter inner band. It was all over in a few minutes. Only the vivid memories and these few photos record the event.