There really is nothing better than watching three horsemen ride past an abandoned, partially collapsed gas station during a driving thunderstorm.

Well, you could always take pictures of the scene developing.




Yes, folks, it's NCBBQII Part X.

Rob L. and I were drifting about the rural byways of coastal Carolina on a sweltering Sunday afternoon when we happened upon this gem: Latinos Gas Station in Chinquapin, NC. Where is Chinquapin?


Does it matter?

Probably not. What did matter, though, was the the station seemed to be retreating into the earth. The canopy over the pumps had collapsed, tearing the pumps from their moorings and, in fact, tearing one of them apart We ditched the car in the thick grass on the side of the road, and I began shooting from many different angles.



Almost instantly, the sky turned dark and opened up. Gigantic raindrops began pummeling the hot asphalt. Rob pulled the car closer to me, but I just kept shooting. My hair, shoulders, and camera got soaked, and I tried to keep the water off the business end of my lens. But the darkness provided an eerie feeling and I wanted to capture it.



I had just wiped off my lens and gotten back down low to the ground when a cry came from up the road: "Hey! Take a picture of us!" Three soaking wet horsemen emerged almost silently from the woods via a side street, and rode on past the abandoned gas station without ever once looking at the lens.



Yes, it was slightly surreal, but surreal is what these trips are all about.

Rob and I reached the ocean a few hours later, then spent the night in Wilmington as the rain poured down. When we awoke, it was Monday and we had to get home. Our northward route, which we planned to take us back to the Skylight Inn, also took us back through Chinquapin. There, Latinos Gas Station was basking in the sun once again.