They say history repeats itself. In the case of Galveston Island, it did just that. In 1943, an amusement park on a pier called Pleasure Pier opened until it was destroyed by Hurricane Carlain in 1961. After that, the Flagship Hotel was built over the water in 1965. For a while it was the place to stay, but time took its toll and it lost favor with visitors. Due to heavy damage, it was demolished after Hurricane Ike in 2008.
In 2012, the new Galveston Island Historic Pleasure Pier opened in the same location, 1,130 feet over the Gulf of Mexico. This image was taken out on the jetties. Of course I forgot my flashlight, so the walk out onto the rocks was fun. Though it was dark, I was surprised at how much light was coming from the pier and the shore. Still, the water was choppy and it was very windy. The water only looks calm, due to the long timed-exposure that smooths the water out.