On the road with Mañana: Sketching in Port Angeles and Salt Creek, Washington

My husband Scott bought an old RV that he called Mañana about 5 years ago. She is a bit clunky but functional, and very loved. It's is a relatively small RV, which makes it easier to park and travel around cities.

A couple of sketches of Mañana are shown below. The first is Mañana in our driveway in Greenwood, Seattle, where she usually sits when we are not traveling. The second sketch shows the interior, during our last trip.

Mañana in all her glory, in her usual spot in our driveway

The inside of the RV. There is a kitchen, a propane refrigerator, a tiny bathroom, and a bed, all we need where we are on the road. On the left, my running shirt left to dry after a 5-mile run on the Olympic Discovery Trail.

Last week we took a pre-Labor day trip with Manãna on the Washington coast to Port Angeles and Salt Creek. The day we left there was still some smoke lingering from the forest fires, and the weather was grey, cold, and windy. But we were looking forward to that peculiar sense of freedom that comes from packing our stuff in the RV and just go.

We drove to Edmonds, WA in the late morning and took the ferry to Kingston (no sketches on the ferry: I can't resist the free puzzles left on the tables for passengers to work on) and then drove the 60 miles to Port Angeles.

After a quick walk, we stopped on the waterfront and I found a good place to sketch the view, sheltered from the strong wind. I sat in front of the Feiro Marine Life Center where a couple of young women dressed like tooth fairies were offering to visitors free entrance to the museum and toothbrushes.

My first sketch of the Port Angeles waterfront. I found a comfortable and sheltered place to sit in front of the
Marine Life center and enjoyed the view.

We were also fascinated by the large paintings showing the life of native americans and settlers in the early days of the city. Apparently there were a lot more trees before the European arrived.

Two mural paintings compare, side by side the life of native americans and early settlers in the Port Angeles area
(photo by Scott Doran).

In the evening we drove a few miles west to the Salt Creek/Tongue point camping site. It was almost dark when we arrived, so I only managed to do a quick sketch of the tree stump in front of our RV. 

In our camping spot at Salt Creek. Even at midweek, the campground was almost full.

The second day it was much sunnier but still very windy. In the morning we went for a run on the Olympic Discovery trail, a 100-mile trail on the Olympic peninsula connecting Port Townsend to La Push.

Back to Port Angeles, I did a second sketch of the waterfront, this time looking at the City Pier and the Observation Tower. Even with the sun, I still needed a windbreaker, a scarf, and a hat to keep my body temperature at an acceptable level.

The Port Angeles City Pier with the 4-story Observation Tower.

It was a great little trip and we are planning to travel more with Mañana in the next few months, venturing farther and for longer periods of time to discover the beauty of the Pacific Northwest. Stay tuned.

UK & Ireland Travel Sketches

Back in Seattle after a few weeks traveling through the UK and Ireland. I had a blast sketching. So much to be inspired by - I could do this all day everyday!

 Blarney Castle, Blarney, Cork, Ireland

 

Gothic Church at Kylemore Abbey, Connemara County, Ireland

 

Alley in City Center, Cork, Ireland

 

Temple Bar Pub, Dublin, Ireland

 

  

London Eye, Westminster Abbey, and Big Ben on the River Thames, London, England

New England Marina

On a recent trip to Boston we got to hang out in New Bedford, some sixty miles south of Bean Town. This sketch was done from Knowles Beach looking back to the nearby village of South Dartmouth.

Pen and ink with a watercolor wash in a Moleskine watercolor sketchbook.

Boston Common - Oldest Park in the US

Wow, what a long day, or days. We caught the red eye from Seattle to Boston, getting in at 7am and we hit the tourist streets running in an effort to get on Eastern time. This sketch was done late in the afternoon of the second day without sleep. Let's face it travel to a rarely visited city makes up for the lack of Zs'

An artist's view of Paris - October 18-27, 2013

View of the Louvre through the Orsay Museum clock window

Paris Art Beyond the Louvre

You're invited...
FREE SLIDE PRESENTATIONS/INFORMATION SESSIONS
Saturday, May 4 at The Savvy Traveler 
112 5th Ave S,
Edmonds, WA
Tuesday, June 11, 6-8pm at Seattle Central Community College
Room 1139B, lower level. (Enter at 1716 Harvard Ave.)

“For a painter, the Mecca of the world, for study, for inspiration and for living, is here on this star called Paris.” Voice-over introduction by Jerry Mulligan (Gene Kelly), An American In Paris (1951)

Those who know me—even just a little—know that I have an unbridled passion for Paris. The city has over 200 museums filled with the greatest art the world has known. Art is everywhere—from inside the Louvre to historic back streets and passages.  

I have been to Paris eight times and counting; whenever I am there, I discover new and wonderful sights and sites, much of it off the beaten tourist track. I have long wanted to share my Paris experiences with other art enthusiasts, so I have organized an 8-day creative arts excursion to Paris in partnership with Seattle Central Community College and American Institute of Foreign Study (AIFS).   

Each day the group will explore a particular area of the city, with designated time for sketching, photography, writing and group discussion and sharing, in addition to planned visits to major and lesser-known museums, art venues and neighborhoods. A planned yet flexible itinerary will offer varied options to suit individual preferences.

In addition, two major arts events will be going on during our time in Paris: FIAC—International Contemporary Arts Fair and the Festival of Autumn.  And yes, we will have a guided tour of the Louvre.
 
For more information (and some cool links) please check out:
www.seattlecentral.edu/continuinged/paris
www.facebook.com/ParisArtBeyondtheLouvre
email sharon.hager@seattlecolleges.edu
call 206.934.4141

Leavenworth

We spent President's Weekend at a time share in Leavenworth, WA. Beautiful weather and scenery made it difficult to leave so soon, definitely will come back to paint here.

Am closing in on the end of the Marty Sketchbook - This was straight watercolor a rarity for me, this is looking out our back deck at the Leavenworth Golf Course and Cascade Mountains.