Vacation Sketches

Another thing that kept me busy this summer has been a few trips to some pretty spectacular places.  In late June we went to Glacier National Park in Montana for a family hiking vacation.  While I didn't get a lot of time for art because we were hiking 10+ miles a day, I did get a chance to do a few sketches in my sketch book.

The sketch to the left was of the fireweed and daisys that grew along side the deck of the house that we rented.  They were so beautifully delicate that I just had to try and capture them.  Then, while I was sketching, a little bee came up and decided to buzz around in my scene, so I added him in!  

I also tried to capture little thumbnails from some of my favorite scenes of Montana, like the night time sky, and trails that we hiked.  The top right is the view from the deck of the house that we rented, looking into the park.  The bottom right is from my all time favorite trail Grinnell Glacier.  We were not able to make it to the glacier that day because the path was blocked by snow!  In late June!  But we made it most of the way and I was able to capture the beautiful glacial lake that is formed from the run off from the glacier.  The bottom left is from St. Mary's Lake and a beautiful trail where we walked along side the lake and happened upon a mother moose and her baby! 

 

After we returned from Glacier National Park my husband and I took a trip to California with our oldest son to visit the college he will attend in the fall.  Cal Poly! It is located in the beautiful coastal town of San Luis Obispo in the central coast of California.  The golden hills of California were in full force in the middle of July and I just had to try and capture them.  There was also a beautiful flowering tree on the campus at Cal Poly that had specular purple flowers...I had to paint that as well!  And we were lucky enough to stay at a hotel by the ocean so I woke every morning to a beautiful ocean view!