By Mineral King standards, Soda Springs is a short hike. In fact, we call it a “walk”. It is all a matter of one’s perspective. I think it is 3 miles round trip and is mostly level. If you are used to towering peaks, majestic canyons, blowing erupting fountains, roaring waterfalls and the like, this […]
Summer of Animals?
This summer is shaping up to be full of wild animals for this California artist. First, we were hiking in Mineral King and saw this: While on that hike I thought of doing these oil paintings: They are each 4×4″, and from left to right are a mule deer buck, golden mantle squirrel, yellow-bellied marmot, […]
Mineral King
As promised, Fridays are for Mineral King. The largest patch of snow is called “Bearskin”. It is on the side of Vandever Mt. and probably won’t make it until the snow falls in Autumn this year. Some years it does, and other years it does but binoculars are required to prove it. There are […]
Mineral King
Summer has arrived in Mineral King. For those of you who are new to the blog or not from the area, Mineral King is a section in the southern end of Sequoia National Park, California. It is reached by a long and winding road, 25 miles, sometimes unpaved, somewhat cliff-hanging, often one or perhaps one […]
Is There An Echo In Here??
What is the visual equivalent of an echo? A shadow? A reflection, perhaps. . . Is there a reflection in this studio? A reflection of Mineral King, to be exact? Because I see an awful lot of Mineral King Oil Paintings drying on your wall! Seems that way. Mineral King is de ja vu all […]
Memorial Day Weekend in Mineral King
Wow. Mineral King on Memorial Day weekend has a reputation for being cold. It was 27 degrees much of the time. I’m not making this up. Here, see eleven photos with an occasional comment. (What? you expected me not to have an opinion??) Loved the backpacks collecting sunshine beneath the flag. We always fly the […]
Behind the Scenes of the Sequoia Mural
The customer asked for a mural, explained the nature of her business, and I said, “A mural of a trail would be just right!” (Sequoia Outdoor Sports will be renting camping and backpacking gear to visitors to Sequoia National Park.) I brought several photos and paintings of trail scenes with me to meet the owner […]
Mineral King Bridge
That again? Yeppers. Now it is a card. You can buy them from me in person or on the cards page of my website. $3.50 each, blank inside, 5×7″, green envelope, packaged in a sealed cellophane bag. Now, I will brace myself for the stampede! Mineral King Bridge, original oil painting reprinted as card
First mural, revisited
Back when I decided to begin muralizing, I started by painting Farewell Gap in oils and increasing the size each time. After I completed a 24×36″, it was time to paint it on my workshop doors. This was the first time I painted large and it shocked me how quickly it went. Michael stood back […]
Weird Winter Walk, part 3
As we descended the non-maintained trail from Monarch, this was our view of Sawtooth Peak. If you aren’t familiar with it, the view here might help you. Michael referred to this as the “moonscape”. “. . .miles to go before I sleep.” Nice light, eh? Sometimes we lost the trail because we were avoiding stuff like […]