A Day In Yosemite

Posted on March 9, 2012 by Paul

After a relaxing night in our condo at Bass Lake we enjoyed a perfect day in Yosemite National Park. Temps were in the 50’s, but in the sunshine it felt like 75! Skies were clear and the tourists were much fewer than I experienced the last time I visited during August.

Our first stop was the Mariposa Grove. This was a bonus as the road is usually closed in the winter. However, this winter has seen much less snow than normal so the road was open. We walked on snow-covered trails through these ancient giants.

Most of our day was spent in Yosemite Vally. From our first sight after emerging from the tunnel to our last view from Valley View Vista we were enchanted by the play of sunshine and shadows on the mountains, trees, and meadows. Officially it is still winter here. The meadows are brown, having just emerged from the snow. Deer are returning to feed. Squirrels scamper in the trees. And we came upon a collection of blue jays screeching in the trees in some apparent mating frenzy, turf war, or expressions of joy at springtime. We explored Curry Village, walked around Yosemite Village, stopped to eat our bag lunch and explored the Ansel Adams Gallery. Then we went to Yosemite Falls and hiked to the lower falls.

What a day! Here are a few photos.

Paul

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Photos!

Posted on March 8, 2012 by Paul

Yesterday we had a cold, windy, terrific day in Joshua Tree National Park. The temps were in the low 40’s. The winds were about 40, putting the wind chill in the upper 20’s. Sunshine blessed us and the photo ops were everywhere. We visited an ocatillo forest, a cholla garden, hiked into Hidden Valley, and drove to a 5,000 foot view of Coachilla Valley (Palm Desert) and The Sultan Sea.

Today we drove to Yosemite via the Mojave Desert to Mojave CA, then to Bakersfield, on thru Fresno, and are staying in Bass Lake at one of our Worldmark condos. The drive through the Mojave was interesting. I had no idea that the Joshua tree was so widespread. I guess that’s why it’s the indicator species for the Mojave Desert! The hop over the mountains to Bakersfield took us from desert, through oak forests and into farmland. From Bakersfield to Fresno we drove through vineyards, nut orchards, and vegetable fields. My allergies felt it. At Fresno we headed north into the mountains. It’s a beautiful drive. Tomorrow Yosemite National Park.

Here are a few photos from California that I didn’t post and some from Joshua Tree. As I said in the previous post, I didn’t take any photos in Arizona. It will be up to Jean to share hers with you.

Paul

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Arizona Offline

Posted on March 6, 2012 by Paul
Transferred from English Wikipedia Original De...

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We’ve been in Arizona since Friday, but internet connections were tough to come by. Therefore, no posts to document the 70-80 degree weather, sunshine, and good times. Today we returned to California and have a connection in our motel near Joshua Tree National Park so I’ll try to get caught up.

Saturday we drove down to Tucson to spend the afternoon with the Wilke-Wills family. We simply sat on the patio and chatted. There was news to catch up on since we hadn’t seen them since December. What better place to do it than in sunny Arizona?

Sunday we attended a wine and art festival in Carefree, Arizona. It’s all in the name! We saw some interesting art and chatted with several of the artists. This was part of the Thunderbird Artists traveling festival. We didn’t sample the Arizona wines due to the cost and the fact that we had just arrived from the central CA coast where the wines are great.

Monday we visited Biosphere 2 outside of Tucson. This futuristic greenhouse was home to an experiment in living in an isolated, “self-supporting” environment back in the early 90’s. After the experiments the management of this site changed hands until the University of Arizona took it over as a research facility. The tour was interesting and informative. It’s about science and you don’t see much of the rain forest, desert, or other environments. If you want that my suggestion is the Mitchell Park Conservatory in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Today we left Pat’s, crossed the Mojave Desert, slipped up the mountains into Joshua Tree National Park and spent the afternoon exploring. One adventure was a 6 mile one-way drive on a dirt road in the eastern part of the park. We have always done this with our four wheel drive, but we’re traveling in the Nissan Sentra so it was a bit risky. However, the Nissan performed well under adverse conditions. The wind blew hard all day, blinding us in sandstorms on I-10. It caught up with us late in the afternoon in the Park and now as I sit in our room the window is pulsing with the gusts. We hope it calms down enough for a hike to Hidden Canyon tomorrow. It also is significantly cooler here. Tomorrow’s high is to be in the 50’s. It’s back to wool and fleece!

I hope to post some photos tomorrow. Jean has been taking all the pics. My camera has hardly been out of its case on this trip.

Paul

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Sunny Days in SLO (San Luis Obispo)

Posted on March 2, 2012 by Paul

No posts in the last few days because we have been busy having fun with friends Norman and Janet. These are the friends that visited us for a week in Ireland last summer. One of the things we shared was to show them the “beta” version of our movie about our Senior Citizen Semester Abroad. It has some rough spots and only contains London, Wales, and Ireland so far, but we enjoyed looking back at the places we had visited together.

One day we drove up the coast to Morro Bay and visited a marvelous art center and gallery. It’s an artist cooperative with some very talented artists. We enjoyed a long visit with artists and dropped into a paint-in that they have every Wednesday. If you’re ever visiting the central California coast, this gallery is worth a visit.

After the art we needed sustenance, so we we a bit further to the Brown Butter Cookie Company. This is a small bakery that makes only one product – cookies. The cookies are all the same basic recipe, but come with different added flavors. In addition to the original recipe of vanilla with sea salt, we tried cocoa, cocoa mint,  and bourbon (my favorite).

Yesterday we took a walk along the beach between Arroyo Grande and Pismo Beach to a monarch butterfly grove. It is the largest such wintering site in the state. On a cool and windy day the monarchs were mostly clinging to the trees, we didn’t see many in flight. However, it is an impressive sight to see so many orange butterflies coating the eucalyptus branches.

Last night I cooked basque chicken for our friends, which we enjoyed with a bottle of Tempranillo wine. This is a Spanish wine that is being produced in this part of the state. It was a fine combination.

We have had a wonderful time with Norman and Janet, but it is time to move on. Today we drive to Tempe!

Paul

 

 

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Sonoma Sunshine

Posted on February 28, 2012 by Paul

Here are a few of my pics from our sunny days in Sonoma County. Although it has been cold at night and sometimes brisk during the day, the sunshine has been glorious. The yellow of the mustard fields paints the vineyards and hills like a Monet canvas. Bodega Head is always a favorite and it didn’t disappoint this time. The bluffs, birds, trees, and ocean all were magnificent.

Enjoy,

Paul

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Sonoma Sunshine

Posted on February 25, 2012 by Paul

A beautiful day in the wine country with our friend Emily. We attended the winter wine tasting party at Bartholomew Park Winery. We had joined their club last winter, but this was our first opportunity to attend one of the functions rather than simply enjoying the wine we get each quarter. This little winery only sells on location, so you won’t find it in your local store. There were about 8 different wines being sampled and wonderful snacks.

After the lunch and tasting we roamed the grounds, which are managed by a non-profit foundation as a park. There are hiking trails, picnic areas, and lots of fantastic scenery. We ambled about a bit without doing any serious hiking. The flowers are just beginning. Jean especially enjoyed the mustard fields. Emily and Jean chased a little blue butterfly for several minutes, but I’m not sure they captured it in their cameras.

This evening we returned to our condo and I cooked one of our favorite travel dinners – vinegar chicken. It’s a French dish we learned from Emily’s Mom and have adapted to travel because the ingredients are available anywhere – chicken, onions, potatoes, vinegar, and spices. Now it’s time to kick back and plan tomorrow. No photos this evening as we haven’t downloaded them yet. Perhaps tomorrow.

We heard it snowed in Seattle last night and the forecast doesn’t look good for several days. Our sincerest condolences to our friends in Seattle.

Paul

 

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Sunny California

Posted on February 24, 2012 by Paul

We arrived in Sonoma County this afternoon to temps in the mid 70’s and susnshine. The locals would have us believe it’s like this all the time, but we know better. When we were here in the same week last winter it was 50 and raining steadily. That was on a good day.

Today’s drive was beautiful down through the Siskyou’s, past Mt. Shasta, through fields of pink-blooming almond trees, over the coastal mountains to Clear Lake, over the next set of mountains to Calistoga, and finally over the next set of mountains to Windsor. We crossed so many summits I lost count. Mt. Shasta was stunning with sun glaring off the ice fields. The blue hazy mountains behind the blooming almonds were an impressionist’s dream. We surprised an elk herd browsing in a meadow in the mountains near Clear Lake. The icing on the cake were the blooming mustard fields as we entered Windsor. Those bright yellow blossoms made Jean smile.

Here are a few photos from our visit last evening with the Rogue River geese and one photo of Mt. Shasta. Tonight we’re settled into our condo. Tomorrow brings more adventures.

Paul

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On The Road Again

Posted on February 23, 2012 by Paul
English: Lower Rogue River, Oregon, USA; view ...

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Yes, we are on the road again. Winter in Seattle became too grey. It was time to head for sunshine and warmth. Of course we have some art supplies so sketching and painting are on the agenda.

Tonight we are in Rogue River, Oregon. The Best Western here is across the road from the river where geese and ducks roam. We’ve been here before and wanted to return. We arrived just in time for a sunset walk along the river and a “chat” with the waterfowl. Then it was off to The Station Restaurant. If you find yourself here we highly recommend The Station. The food is fresh and delicious. We will be returning when we are on our way north again.

Tomorrow Sonoma County! Wine, art, food, and sunshine!

Paul

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Art This Week

Posted on February 9, 2012 by Paul

This week I varnished and began framing the two paintings I featured last post: the red-winged blackbird, and the arch at Etretat, France. They are newly posted on my art site: www.paulbauck.com.

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I began working on new paintings as well. One is another in my series entitled Les Parisiennes. The other is a still life. This is something I have not worked at. However, I’m taking a class from Liz Wiltzen in July that will be 60% still lifes so I thought I should do a few before then. I’ll post pics of these when they are done.

Part of doing still lifes was finding a light setup that would produce good shadows. I looked at art supply stores and found what I needed for $90. Before plunking down that much I went to our local Home Depot and talked to a fellow in the lighting department. After I explained what I needed to do he took me to a display of work lights for mechanics, plumbers, etc. The result was a very good light that takes anything from 100 to 250 watt halogen bulbs. The 100 watt bulb produces beautiful shadows even with all my other studio lighting on! And…the whole setup (with 3 bulbs) only cost me $25.

Manual labor filled out my week as I continued to reset and add new paving stones to our backyard. I limit myself to five pavers a day to save my back from too much stress. Perhaps I’ll post a picture of our walk when it’s completed.

Paul

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Completed Paintings

Posted on January 31, 2012 by Paul

I completed three of the paintings posted as works in progress a couple of weeks ago. You may have to look closely to see the changes from the previous images. Those last days of work are sometimes minute dabs of color. After looking at them in my studio for the last several days I declare them finished!

Paul

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