WAWONA - Sketching in the Sierras

Old cabin in the Forest

Wawona - the place we always stay at in the summer when we go to Yosemite. It is so much quieter than the Valley in August - and Yosemite was particularly busy this year!
The swimming hole below is a special place for my family - we have spent many hours of solitude and fun at this special spot on the Merced! - It truly is a magical place to have a swim especially around 5:30/6pm as the sun starts to dip below the Wawona Dome.
We come and swim here every summer and I never want to leave this particular spot on the river. Many of the rocks still show the grinding holes where the local Indians sat to grind their acorns. You can almost feel their spirits watching.....

                     

Wawona swimming hole

The Merced

High Sierra Painting.

Meadow Path-Yosemite Valley

Me
Some sketches from my week in the High Sierra's! ---- I found painting in watercolor quite demanding this time, mainly because the temperatures were so high and the paint would dry instantly, leaving no room for moving the paint around the paper, doing a successful wash or even sitting for very long without feeling really uncomfortable.
We did have a wonderful time as always - some beautiful hikes with stunning views - and swimming in lakes and rivers which I think as I get older is one of the most liberating and enjoyable ways to enjoy nature! - The snow pack must have been less this past winter because the Merced was low enough for us to hop the rocks at the swimming hole. My son and daughters favorite rocks to sit on were exposed once again. When ever I visit our favorite swimming hole I am aware of the passage of time - my children couldn't even swim when we first arrived in Yosemite - now they snorkel,  duck and dive and jump the rocks. My daughter will have one last summer with us next year! - How time flies - but Yosemite will always be the same......

My sketchbooks!

                                                      Half Dome from Sentinal Dome.

Me at Taft Point

Tenaya Lake