What a fun weekend for us. Rebecca picked one of the only available campsites in the Willamette National Forest, which is east of Eugene along the coast fork of the Willamette River. This is a busy season for National campsites as it is the end of summer. We car-camped as Rebecca wanted to ease us into the backpacking scene. We bought camping gear before we got married but didn't have the opportunity to use it with our busy lives in LA. This trip gave us time to spend with Rebecca's children, Liliana and Ben and their friends Meagan and Rachael. Swimming was brisk but a relief from the heat, meals were tasty, 'Cards Against Humanity' was hilarious. The camaraderie was priceless.
I brought my watercolor kit along and set up to paint on a flat spot just beyond this knoll. It was nice to watch the sunset and contemplate the difficulty of using watercolors again after a short hiatus. Plein aire painting with watercolors for me is much like fishing: Pick a good comfortable spot with a view. Do a quick pencil sketch to iron out the composition. Anticipate the challenges you encounter placing wet paint on quickly drying paper. Then,... put all those thoughts aside,... pop open a cold one, zone out at the sparkling water and then paint three as fast as you can. Hoping that one of the casts will bring in a 'keeper'. Right?