In Praise of Idleness Drawings 3 and 4

Anemones

Crow

Road Trip: Three Ocean Beaches in Olympic National Park

Pacific Ocean at Rialto Beach

“That far-resounding roar is the Ocean’s voice of welcome.  His salt breath brings a blessing along with it.”
— Nathaniel Hawthorne, from “Footprints on the Sea-shore”

Olympic National Park has several beach access points to the Pacific coast.  On this road trip, we stopped at three beaches and walked barefoot in the sand.

Rialto Beach was the wildest shore with stretches of pebbly sand and sea stacks jutting up from the water.

Ruby Beach was glorious in the morning light.  We descended a short trail down from the parking area to the beach.  Old tree trunks littered the shore above the tide line.  This beach, too, had sea stacks.  But it also had tide pools to explore and fine sand to walk on.

Arriving at Ruby Beach in the early morning

Sea stacks

Kalaloch Beach seemed tamer, with a wide expanse of soft sand down to the water’s edge.

Kalaloch Beach

“The heart can think of no devotion
Greater than being shore to the ocean —
Holding the curve of one position,
Counting an endless repetition.”
— Robert Frost, “Devotion”

 

What’s in Bloom in October? Anemones

Anemones in a neighbor’s garden

I like the sprightly little balls of these anemones.  They look like the antennae of insects or invading Martians.  The delicate petals retain a faint pink blush.

A few cut anemones in a vase

Lovely window light

All of my attempts at painting these flowers seem too heavy-handed.  Sigh.

First watercolor sketch of anemones

Second watercolor sketch of anemones

Third attempt — ink drawing with watercolor highlights

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Road Trip to Olympic National Park (Part 5): Ruby and Kalaloch Beaches

“Listen!  you hear the grating roar
Of pebbles which the waves draw back, and fling,
At their return, up the high strand,
Begin, and cease, and then again begin,
With tremulous cadence slow, and bring
The eternal note of sadness in.”
— Matthew Arnold, from “Dover Beach”

Sea stacks at Ruby Beach, Olympic National Park

“The seashore is a most advantageous point from which to comprehend the world.  The waves forever rolling to the land are so far traveled coming home and leaving again.”
— Henry David Thoreau

The next morning, we stopped at two more beaches before completing our road trip to Olympic National Park:  Ruby Beach and Kalaloch Beach.  Ruby Beach was less wild than Rialto Beach, and Kalaloch Beach seemed tamer still.  I loved seeing how different the beach landscapes were from one another.

Ruby Beach in the morning

You could walk for miles.

Sea stacks and tidepools, Ruby Beach

Caves in the cliffs, giant logs

Ruby Beach

“To me the sea is a continual miracle:  The fishes that swim — the rocks — the motion of the waves — the ships, with men in them.  What stranger miracles are there?”
— Walt Whitman

The tidepools around the barnacle-covered rocks teemed with anemones and star fish.  The waves carved artistic patterns in the pebble-strewn sand.  So much to see and explore!

Anemones

Brilliantly colored star fish

Beach art in the sand

Lovely pattern in the sand

Ruby Beach

Piles of driftwood, Kalaloch Beach

Walking along Kalaloch Beach

 

 

 

 

 

Autumn at Lakewold Gardens

Patch of tiny cyclamen on the forest floor, Lakewold Gardens

The visual rewards of gardens may be less obvious in fall or winter, but they are still worthy of a visit.  I returned to the Lakewold Gardens this past weekend to see what it had to offer on a gray, damp autumn day.  Here are some photos:

Green canopy of dappled leaves

Cyclamen encircling an old tree

Anemone in bloom

A variation of pale maple leaves

Looking up yielded some of the best sights in the garden

We are seeing a second bloom of crocuses this year (one in spring and again this fall)

For sale in the garden store at Lakewold Gardens

Watercolor sketch of white anemones