Beach Art

The rock formations on the Washington Coast are spectacular.
I shared some photos from my recent coastal trek in the last blog.

Now, rock formations on a smaller scale. Beach art!

Northwest Coast of Washington Trek

I have dreamed of visiting the most north western portion of Washington and walking the coastline. It is claimed to be one of the most spectacular places to see in Washington.

It lives up to its reputation!

Shi Shi Beach

My good friends, Maxine and Ray, are seasoned hikers and invited me to join them on a three night - four day trek from Sand Point to Shi Shi Beach. Having been there before, they knew the ropes (pun, tee hee). Although this is not a long hike in miles, it is very tedious and challenging scaling the cliffs, climbing over rocks, walking on rocks and in slippery tide pools, fording a river, and knowing the tides and terrain necessary to cover so as not to be trapped. Definitely not the average hike!

Here I am ready to go......

You might notice that I do not have a huge backpack.....

Instead, I had Sherpa George.*

Ray, George, Maxine at Ozette River Bridge

We were graced to share this beautiful place with many of the coastal wildlife. Eagles nested in the trees by our campsites and flew overhead, even displaying talon grabbing behavior. The first evening we watched whales swimming South. We walked along side of deer, and shared the river with an otter. There was a plethora of starfish of various sizes and colors, two octopus sightings, and an array of sea critters and sea plants.

Sea life.....

The ropes......and there were MANY!

More fabulous scenery.....

Eagle posing for photo....

*George's backpack broke before departure. In order for all of us to go on the adventure, George and I had to consolidate our stuff.

The "Maxinator" decided what goes and what does not. The next thing I knew, I had my own personal Sherpa :)

Thank you, Maxine!

Sunday Sketches

This watercolor and ink painting completes my Sketchbook Project 2012!

As we were knee deep in snow, I drifted to the ocean images.

Sand Canvas

While humankind has surely been creating artworks out of sand since long before we have been able to preserve any trace of their fleeting existence, few sand artists can have worked on such a scale as Peter Donnelly.

Sunday morning when the tide goes out, Donnelly cycles down to the beach below New Brighton pier in New Zealand, with a rake and stick for paintbrushes and creates.

Elaborate patterns integrate seamlessly with more recognisable forms as Donnelly's works come to life beneath his dancing feet and the deft movements of rake and stick.

Peter Donnelly has been the subject of an acclaimed documentary, directed by Valerie Reid, extracts from which can be seen below.

Seagull or Penguin?

Before Thanksgiving my friend, Elaine, and I spent a few days at Rockaway Beach on the Oregon Coast. It was stormy at times, but we managed to get in a couple of beach walks despite the weather.

I enjoyed watching the huge waves and was delighted by our frequent visitor we named, Arthur. I think he wanted to come inside out of the storm.


For additional entertainment, we decided to visit some of the thrift shops in the small beach towns nearby. My unique purchase was this metal sculpture; at first sight I thought penguin. He became our table center piece. Arthur would join us at the table (we pushed it next to the window), and it became clear to me that the sculpture was a seagull.

What do you think? Seagull or Penguin?


Elaine asked me if I found this metal sculpture at a thrift store in Olympia, where we live, would I have bought it? Probably not!

Or.......maybe as a humorous gift for a friend or relative?

Driftwood Sculpture

As we was walking the beach at Fort Worden, the northeast tip of Port Townsend, Washington, there were fabulous piles of driftwood.

I was talking about the addition of a tall sculpture in the orchard at home. My good friend, Shelley, suggested that I make one.

As we walked down the beach through the driftwood maze, I came upon a piece of driftwood that looked like the body of a bird. It was rather heavy, so I stood it up hoping that we would find it on our way back. At least a mile down the beach I found the perfect head for the bird. The picture was formulating in my mind. I needed two flat, small driftwood pieces for feet.

Carrying the driftwood selections, we traced our steps back hoping to find the body part. I was about to give up when, amazingly, Shelley found it!

The driftwood pieces were piled by my garage for about a week waiting for assembly. I did have to retrieve one piece of driftwood from the jaws of my dog!

The final product.....


Closer view......


I am thinking of a name for the bird. Any suggestions?

Return to the Beach

I am back at Paradise Beach on the east shore of Santorini in Greece. At least that is what it feels like when I paint a scene from my travel photos.

The day I walked from the town of Oia at the southern tip of Santorini to Paradise Beach (approximately 5 miles), it was one of those beautiful Greek days of sunshine and warmth. I left early in the morning so that I was not walking in the heat of the day. At least that was what I thought. Little did I know how quickly temperatures rise even along the shore. I walked the shoreline cliffs and could not wait to get in the water when I finally reached the beach. There was NO WAY I was going to walk back! Lucky for me there was one bus returning to town. I planned accordingly and learned that these remote buses do not consistently run on schedule.

I saw my first sand orchids as I walked the shoreline cliff.
The view.....


First glimpse of a beach, but I had to walk further.


On Paradise Beach looking south


Looking north


The sculpted cliffs


I spent the afternoon swimming and sketching. My memories linger while I painted this watercolor rendition of the rocks along the shoreline of Paradise Beach.

PERFECT!

Here in the Pacific Northwest we were recently treated to two full days of SUNSHINE. I happened to select those two very days to visit the beach and Seabrook.

Synchronicity!

AND PERFECT, I might add.

Imagine days and days of rain, a decision to go to the beach, and presto! Sunshine and blue skies. Washingtonians would say, "It's a miracle!" Especially since the weather is back to rain once again.

Here is what a Washington beach looks like on a rare sunny day:


This is the beach at Seabrook, a lovely little beach town near Pacific Beach, Washington.

Wind swept trees looking North.....


I was welcomed back home by these two Iceland poppies.

Fascination With Rocks

My grandson, Haeden, came to visit me the other day, and he was fascinated with the pile of river rocks boarding the deck.



What is it about rocks that is so fascinating?

The colors and shapes attract me. When I was in Greece not only did I take photographs of rocks, but also brought some home from various locations, especially beaches. I have these small piles on a counter and not sure what to do with them.

Rekindling my love of rocks with Haeden, I began a watercolor painting from photographs of one of the beaches on the island of Antiparos in Greece.

This is just the first day painting:


A close up:




To be continued.......

New Year's Day

Another glorious, but cold, day in Olympia, Washington. I could NOT stay indoors. But unlike yesterday, Today I put on sunscreen.

Imagine, sunscreen in January in Washington!

Our early morning walk was on the Chehalis Western Trail, where my friend, Linda, and I came upon a ruby-crowned kinglet feeding on the side of the trail. The bird was frantically looking for food in the frozen foliage and did not care that we were so close to it. I tried to get photos, but the little guy was moving too fast.


This is what he looks like when not on the hunt.


At the ponds today, the hole in the ice was much smaller. I gather the Bufflehead ducks must have moved elsewhere to swim and dive.

A great view of the Olympics from the Trail.


When I returned home from walking the Chehalis Western Trail, another friend, Maxine, called wanting to go for a walk. Why not? It was such a beautiful day! Lunch was outside sitting in the sunshine soaking up some vitamin D. A picnic in January!

We decided on a beach walk from Burfoot Park. Check out the Olympics this time!


A blue heron was fishing along the shore.


We met Kitty out in her handmade kayak. Kayaking in January, another winter time miracle!



What a fabulous start to the New Year and an incredible January winter day in Olympia, Washington!

Second Day in Plakias, Crete

At the Plakias Youth Hostel, Chris, the manager, has many "off the beaten path" hikes to share. I decided to hike to One Rock, a secluded beach....sounded perfect!

I was excited to get started instead of waiting for others who were still sleeping off the previous evening's fun. This might have been a mistake, because the "easy to follow" printed directions from Chris were not so easy to follow. I missed the first stone marker; good thing I knew which direction to go. I learned that it is very easy to get lost in an olive grove.


Damnoni Beach is the first beach you come to after hiking through the hills and olive groves.



One Rock Beach from above (see the one rock?).


I climbed down and spent the afternoon swimming and painting.


I must admit, there were a few other people there too swimming and sun bathing. I waited for this photo.

My watercolor rendition......


Could not resist another sunset!