How I Spent My Summer Vacation

To be honest I don't get summer vacations.

Working in the tourism industry like I do

where our season is from May to September 

 it is rare for me to get much time away from the job during the summer.

I worked long hours this summer, 

but I thought I would share a few of the highlights of things I did do.

WARNING - this post is full of images!

The above picture is taken from the helicopter 

as we were flying to the Lowell Glacier to do some work.

 

The images above are of the Lowell Glacier. 

The icebergs in the river are huge (many of them are the size of a house)

The area by the glacier is dry and windy

*****************************

Younger daughter and I spent a beautiful day in August hiking 

to Thunder Egg Creek

It was August

but the leaves were already starting to change colour

These sandstone concretions

are locally called thunder eggs.

They form in the side of the cliffs, 

which erodes away over time,

and the thunder eggs roll down the cliff.

It was definitely a wonderful day spent together.

****************************************************

Older Daughter and I had a Grand Adventure that I previously shared here

And we also went for our 3rd annual visit to the Alaska coast

which is only a 2-3 hour drive away. 

The weather wasn't too nice,

but we had a great time poking around 

and collecting rocks on the beach.

And since there was no one around

and the tide was high

we shed some clothes 

and jumped into the ocean

(ok - my jump was more of a slither, and I didn't stay in long

It was VERY cold!)

The coastal trees were enshrouded in fog,

which was beautiful.

until the fog came down to the road, 

and our drive home through the fog was long and difficult.

*****************************************

And then right near the end of the summer,

I went for a plane ride over the glaciers and icefields

in hope to be able to see Mt. Logan (Canada's highest mountain)

The weather was too stormy, but the mountain and glacier views were still amazing.

So even though a lot of time was spent working this summer 

I still had some wonderful adventures. 

Season of Hope

Another piece I made for the 

'I Too Will Something Make'  exhibition. 

It is called 

'Season of Hope'

and is a combination of collage, ink, paint. pastels and wax medium.

It changed so many times during its making

and buried into one layer is an image of an old cabin.

It landed here - and I said done.

I Too Will Something Make

11 members of our local art guild are presently showing a collection of our creations

in a gallery in Whitehorse (100 miles away).

All of our creations are influenced by the beautiful natural world 

that is all around us.

 Unfortunately the lighting the day I took these images was not good

But I needed to pack up my pieces and get them to the gallery,

and I didn't want this piece to leave without having a few pictures of it. 

 

The title of the exhibition

"I Too Will Something Make" 

(from a poem by Robert Bridges)

 was about the joy that creating brings to all of us. 

Close to Home

Lately I seem to struggle with words,

and giving this creation a title was difficult.

And I almost didn't title it.

But it is heading to an exhibition, 

and therefore it was said a title was needed. 

So I sat quietly with my creation. 

It's story buried within.

I knew it was about being rooted

I knew it was about the depth and strength of self 

But then I learned that self was also home - 

my body being home for the me within.

The story continued and told the tale of taking opportunities that are all around us.

Of  reaching to places that are not so comfortable -  be they near or far,

while still staying true to self,

or as the title says -  'Close to Home'.

Once Again

A new collage creation 

using my bird drawings 

once again. 

Maybe Just Maybe

Maybe as the summer season begins to wind down

I will begin to find more time to create.

But I don't want summer to end 

I just want more time to create.

Maybe there is a way to have both summer days and creative time?

Or at least I can hope.

This journal has been slowly progressing over the past few weeks

For now the pages are blank

Maybe I will fill them,

 Maybe I will put it out into the world for someone else to fill.

Maybe one day I will use this computer altered piece in another creation

Maybe just maybe.

But for now I am heading out to enjoy a beautiful summer day.

Creative Comfort Zone

My creative comfort zone lately has been working with the bird drawings 

I did at the beginning of the year. 

I have been enjoying using these drawings together with bits of 

ink, paper, paint and pencil

to create original collages. 

When I don't have too much time to create

It is so nice to have a  creative comfort zone to come back to.

Creating makes me happy

And this piece was no exception,

even if it was within the comfort zone.

A Grand Adventure

My daughter has been talking about doing this hike the past week or so.

So even though I knew it would be a long one, I asked if I could join her. 

And off we went for a grand adventure. 

First of all I should tell you this trip follows a bit of a beaten path in places,

 and a well marked trail for a few kilometers, 

but the toughest sections you are really on your own for. 

We started by spending about 3 hours climbing straight up from the highway you can see far below.

And with my fear of heights this had some challenging and difficult moments for me. 

When we reached the top the view was spectacular 

in all directions.

And we rested for a bit.

This image looks very still - but in real life the wind was howling all around us. 

There were numerous alpine flowers

the colours in the lake were spectacular

and beautiful patterns filled our camera frame.

The mountains go in all directions for mile after mile,

and are home to many Dall Sheep.

Some of which got a little too close. 

We followed the little beaten trail 

along the mountain top

many feet up above the valley floor. 

for mile after mile, until we eventually made it down again. 

Time - 8 hours 

Distance - 16 kms/10 miles

Elevation Gain -  1312metres/4300 ft

Aching Muscles - Many

Adventure - A Grand One!