Sketching the Denver Skyline

Ashley had a week-long training in Denver, a work-paid rental car and hotel room, and I had nothing pressing going on… so we spent a week in Denver! It was a great opportunity to explore a city without the pressures of finding parking and squeezing an RV around traffic and was generally relaxing.

Here’s the view from our 12th floor balcony, looking downtown.

Waiting for water to boil – Jetboil stove sketch

While backpacking in the Upper Yosemite Valley, I was sitting and waiting for water to boil (at least with the Jetboil’s lid on you can’t actually watch!) It made sense to sit and draw the stove itself (at least to me) so that’s what I did. This workhorse was purchased about 10 years ago and has been going strong ever since!

Continue reading Waiting for water to boil – Jetboil stove sketch

Trees and Shadows

When in the National Parks, it’s not always the grand vistas that capture my interest. Often, the small details invite me to come closer, to explore in more detail. Though you wouldn’t know it if I didn’t tell you, this is almost Yosemite. The RV was parked just outside of the park (free camping, woohoo!) and one afternoon the sun created these slashing shadows from the trees and it caught my attention. As is always the case when trying to capture natural light, I had to work fast, since the shadows were changing by the moment!

Prints, coffee mugs, and more available here.

Charcoal drawing of trees casting shadows in the forest

Wizard Island in Crater Lake

After exploring Yosemite, we also visited Crater Lake National Park in Oregon. It was also snowed in, so Rim Drive was closed. It was really cool to walk in the shoveled-out 12′ deep paths from parking area to visitor center, and the view from the edge of the peak down to the lake was amazing!

I didn’t waste any time sketching out Wizard Island, since it quickly gets chilly sitting in the snow. And a steaming hot chocolate afterward certainly helped to thaw out my stiff fingers. 😀

Prints and other items available here.

Charcoal drawing of Wizard Island in Crater Lake National Park
Wizard Island, Crater Lake National Park