Gray squirrel drawing & photo: First Friday Art

Today I’m sharing a gray squirrel drawing and photo I created. I drew the squirrel with a charcoal pencil.

It’s fun to work with charcoal because you can change its appearance by using different techniques. You can “stump” it by using the side of a charcoal stick, your finger, a chamois cloth, or other materials to spread it. Since it lifts easily from a surface, you can erase or scrape parts of it off. Some artists mix charcoal with water or other liquids .

Gray squirrel

I’m also sharing a photograph I took of a gray squirrel at Three Island Crossing State Park in Glenns Ferry, Idaho. I like this picture because it looks like the squirrel is giving me a fist bump. The diagonal streams of water from a sprinkler in the background add an interesting detail to the photo.

fist bumping rodent

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Pair of puffins: Birds of the Week

Here’s a picture I took of a pair of puffins at the Oregon Coast Aquarium. This photo shows them in breeding and nonbreeding plumage.

pair of puffins

This bird lives most of its life at sea, but they nest in burrows that can be more than 5 feet deep. A pair of puffins will feed their young tiny fish, which they line up crosswise in their bills. Sometimes they will carry as many as 20 fish at a time to their nests.

seabird

Birds of the Week

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Chiwen roof decoration: Monochrome Monday

This chiwen roof decoration is at Lan Su Chinese Garden in Portland, Oregon.

Chiwen

These dragons, placed on both ends of roof ridgelines, are thought to protect the inhabitants from fires. Fengshui theory says they also protect against floods and typhoons. Chiwen translates to ‘hornless-dragon mouth.’ This dragon likes to swallow things, including evil influences.

Monochrome Monday

A High Desert playa: LAPC & SSPC

I awaken on the shores of a High Desert playa

Dust devils on the distant shoreline dance across the flats

a high desert playa

Dry soil at my feet cracks and crumbles

The funnel of a dust devil hovers over me and carries me a few miles away

a high desert playa

I drift over a lake of summer and a ridge of winter

Water meanders its way through marshlands of green

Summer Lake

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Bozeman wall art: 1-to-3 Photo Challenge

I really liked this Bozeman wall art at the recently remodeled Bozeman Hot Springs. The facility was remodeled with a more modern style. I mention this site briefly in a recent post and will feature it in a more detailed post in the future.

I used Corel PaintShopPro 2021 for different photo processing effects. In the original image I slightly increased the contrast and fill light and cropped the edges. Use the slider to view each effect compared to the original.

This one shows the original photograph and the same picture with a Retro effect. For this image I went to Effects>Photo Effects>Retro Lab>Light cold. I liked how this effect makes the green color stand out. The blurring around the edges focuses your attention on the artwork.

Bozeman Wall ArtCold filter

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Hot springs of the West: LAPC & WPWC

On our recent trip we stopped at several hot springs of the West. Each site was special in its own way.

Hot springs occur when geothermally heated groundwater emerges onto the earth’s surface. In areas like Yellowstone National Park, magma is present at shallow depths below the surface. Temperatures in Yellowstone’s hot springs may reach 198 degrees Fahrenheit. At the developed hot springs of the West we visited on this trip, pool temperatures are constantly monitored and modified with colder water.

Lava Hot Springs is located in the town of Lava Hot Springs, Idaho. In this picture, the scenic Portneuf Range mountains tower in the background. This post gives more details about the site.

hot springs of the west

Bozeman Hot Springs is in Bozeman, Montana. Remodeled in May 2024, this facility includes 12 indoor and outdoor pools. It’s gorgeous! The stage behind the outdoor pools will host future entertainers. Pieces of columnar basalt serve as seating and landscaping. Here is my description of this facility.

Bozeman springs

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Maple leaves in the rain: Wordless Wednesday

maple leaves in the rain

Maple leaves in the rain at Crystal Springs Rhododendron Garden, Portland, Oregon

Wordless Wednesday

High Desert Voices June 2024 newsletter

Here’s the High Desert Voices June 2024 newsletter for your reading pleasure. Lots of nice photos as well! This newsletter is published by and for volunteers at the High Desert Museum in Bend, Oregon, where I volunteer.

High Desert voices June 2024

Articles this month include one on accommodating visitors with disabilities, one on facts about local wildlife mothers, one on the High Desert Ranger Station, and one on a birding event at the Museum.

Please enjoy this month’s issue!

Magical moment with wildlife: LAPC

I had a major magical moment with wildlife while visiting Crystal Springs Rhododendron Garden in Portland a few weeks ago. I took a little used side trail and paused briefly in the pouring down rain.

This Great Blue Heron walked right up to me before turning to stand near a pond. I could have reached out and touched the bird. WOW! I stopped snapping pictures when it was really close to me because I didn’t want to scare it.

Magical moment with wildlife

I’m working on a book where the main character is a girl born with the powers of several animals. One animal is a Great Blue Heron. Was this heron showing its appreciation of my efforts so far on that book?

Great Blue Heron

I had another magical moment with wildlife at Yellowstone National Park this week. We were at the end of the road at Slough Creek and saw a small critter weaving its way through the sagebrush. A badger!

Magical moment with wildlife

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Sturgeon sculpture: Sculpture Saturday

I recently saw this white sturgeon sculpture at the Oregon Coast Aquarium in Newport, Oregon. They are the largest freshwater fish in North America.

Sturgeon sculpture

A couple months later, I watched these white sturgeon swimming around at the Oregon Zoo. These fish were three or four feet long, but this species can reach lengths of over 14 feet and weigh more than 1,500 pounds. Sturgeon can live more than 100 years.

Sturgeon

Here in Oregon, white sturgeon live mainly in large freshwater streams and estuaries along the coast. They occasionally travel into the ocean.

Here is a picture of a much younger white sturgeon taken at the High Desert Museum several years ago. I wouldn’t mind having a sturgeon sculpture of this size fish. The other fish pictured are trout.

White Sturgeon & trout, High Desert Museum, Bend, Oregon 20February2018

Sculpture Saturday

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Old Farm Machinery: Wordless Wednesday

old farm machinery

Old farm machinery at Museum of the American West in Lander, Wyoming

Wordless Wednesday

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Jenday conure up close: Macro Monday

A Jenday conure up close at my house. I sometimes take care of my son’s conure when he goes on vacation. It has beautifully colored feathers and a very LOUD voice.

Jenday conure

Macro Monday

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Brown Pelicans drawing & photo: First Friday Art

Here’s a pen and ink drawing I did of a Brown Pelican. Brown Pelicans are big seabirds with a unique appearance.

They capture fish by diving into the water and scooping them up in their stretchy throat pouches.

Brown pelican drawing

I saw several Brown Pelicans perched on posts at Seafarer’s Park in Warrenton, Oregon last summer.

brown pelicans

Seagulls and cormorants perched and flew nearby. This park is at the mouth of the Columbia River. It’s not far from Fort Stevens State Park, a popular destination for campers.

Do you have artwork you would like to share? Be sure to include the First Friday Art tag.

First Friday Art 

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Montpelier ranch under cloud-filled sky: Wordless Wednesday

Montpelier ranch

Montpelier ranch under a cloud-filled sky in Idaho

Wordless Wednesday

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Family Mural of Flowers & Birds: Monday Mural

This cheerful mural, Family Mural of Flowers & Birds, was created by artist Denae’ Manion of Manion Studios. Manion is a talented mural artist and honorary member of the Wall Dogs, an international mural painters group. Besides murals, her work also includes logos and designs, face painting, hand painted gifts, custom shoes, and she hosts PaintNite events. She also creates “entertainment paintings” live at various events.

Family Mural

Her Family Mural of Flowers & Birds mural is one of 33 murals in The Dalles, Oregon. We visited The Dalles in August of 2022 during their Northwest Mural Fest. It’s a great place to see the work of many mural artists.

Monday Mural

Brasada Ranch view: Pull Up a Seat

Last weekend, we drove to Brasada Ranch resort in Powell Butte, Oregon for a BBQ and art show event. They have spectacular views of the Cascade volcanoes from their restaurant. These red chairs around a firepit were a nice accent in this scene.

Brasada Ranch

Here’s a closer view of some of the marvellous mountains.

This beautiful resort has received recognition from Condé  Nast Traveler, Travel + Leisure, Golfweek, USA Today, and other sources. Since we live close by, we did a staycation in one of their cabins a couple of years ago and it was great!

Pull Up a Seat

Seastacks before the storm: WWE

Seastacks before the storm in Tillamook Bay, Oregon.

seastacks

This landmark is known locally as The Three Graces.

Water Water Everywhere (WWE)

Crystal Springs Rhododendron Garden: LAPC & FOTD

In early May, I visited the Crystal Springs Rhododendron Garden in Portland, Oregon.

Rhododendron

The 9.5-acre garden contains more that 2,500 types of rhododendrons, azaleas, and companion plants. This site was donated by the Jackson family in 1950.

Close up rhododendron

After paying admission, you’ll enter the garden over this beautiful bridge.

Crystal Springs Rhododendron Garden

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Kayaking East Lake, Oregon: FOWC

I decided to try kayaking East Lake, at Newberry National Volcanic Monument, on a spring day a couple of years ago.

“It’s spring,” I thought to myself. “The weather will be fine.” See how beautiful it looks in the photo below near the East Lake Campground?

However, the shoreline is at 6,400 feet in elevation and the weather can change fast. Be prepared!

kayaking East Lake

I was captivated by the cliff-lined north shore and set my sights on reaching it. “It’s not that far away,” I thought. Later, I determined it was a 1.25 mile trip across the lake.

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Black-necked stilts parade tanka: LAPC & BOTW

black-necked stilts parade

black-necked stilts parade
on pink legs, slender yet strong,
in search of magic
hidden beneath the marshlands
in iridescent ripples

stilts

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge (LAPC) – Delicate

Bird of the Week (BOTW) LXV

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What they use to make brews: Monochrome Monday

This post shows what they use to make brews at Deschutes Brewery in Bend, Oregon. Last year we went on the Barrel House Tour at this brewery. I highly recommend this tour that focuses on their barrel-aged beers.

While on the tour, I thought some of the sights seen in the factory might look good with black and white processing.

to make brews

Monochrome processing highlighted all the angles and straight and curved lines of the equipment.

Beer making equipment

However, I admit, the high alcohol barrel-aged samples consumed on the tour may have made everything they use to make brews look special to my slightly blurry vision. ;D

Monochrome Monday

Lion at Portland Japanese Garden: Sculpture Saturday

This lion at Portland Japanese Garden was guarding the entrance to the gardens. This statue shows a female with a lion cub under her paw. These statues represent protection and compassion.

lion at Portland Japanese Garden

They are known as komainu in Japan. In other parts of the world they may be called Fu Dogs or Foo Dogs.

Sculpture Saturday

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Buena Vista ponds: WWE

The Buena Vista ponds are a great place to spot birds at Malheur NWR in Oregon. In the middle of this picture, you can glimpse three Trumpeter Swans foraging for food.

Buena Vista ponds

In the distance, you can see Steens Mountain. This 50-mile long mountain rises majestically over the Sagebrush Sea in southeastern Oregon.

Water Water Everywhere (WWE)

Hope may be… : LAPC & WPWC

Hope may be bright spots in the darkness

curving tunnel

Or at the end of a twisted and turning path

hope may be trail

Hope may be something we wish and pray for

otter praying

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Lan Su Chinese Garden seating: Pull up a Seat

Lan Su Chinese Garden seating in Portland, Oregon on a rainy spring day.

Lan Su

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Pull Up a Seat

Magnificent mountain goat: Wordless Wednesday

magnificent mountain goat

Magnificent mountain goat at the Oregon Zoo, Portland, Oregon

Wordless Wednesday

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Giant jaws of Megalodon shark: Monochrome Monday

Giant jaws of Megalodon shark at the Oregon Coast Aquarium in Newport, Oregon.

giant jaws of Megalodon shark

Monochrome Monday

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Cedar waxwing drawing & photos: First Friday Art

Cedar waxwing birds are one of my favorite kinds of birds. This month, I’m showing a simple pen and ink drawing I did of one.

cedar waxwing drawing

When you first see a cedar waxwing, you might think of it as “simple” looking. They don’t have bold markings. Instead, their markings blend together smoothly.

Their tail feathers are tipped with a yellow wax-like substance and their wingtips are tipped with red.

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Peaceful Prineville paddle: Wordless Wednesday

peaceful Prineville paddle

Peaceful Prineville paddle on Prineville Reservoir, Oregon

Wordless Wednesday

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Soda Springs Scene: Monochrome Monday

The dramatic cloud formations caught my attention in this Soda Springs scene.

Soda Springs scene

Soda Springs is a small city in Idaho known for its geyser and mineral springs. The Soda Springs Geyser is on a timed release valve and it goes off once an hour. Yes, really!

Monochrome Monday

Morning breaking over the High Desert: LAPC

Morning breaking over the High Desert

morning breaking

Blackbird singing praises over a playa

Yellow-headed Blackbird

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Mt View Orchards mural: Monday Mural

This Mt View Orchards mural is located in Parkdale, Oregon. The plants growing around the mural make it blend into the background.

This is one of our favorite businesses to visit to buy fresh local fruit in the fall. You can pick your own fruit and flowers or buy what they’ve harvested. They also produce beer, wine, and cider. This beautiful 50+ acre site was featured on a Top Chef episode in 2021.

Mt View Orchards mural

This business is part of the Hood River Fruit Loop. There are 28 farms open to visitors along the 35-mile route .

Here’s some of the fruit we bought last year. Yum!

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Seeing the softness of nature: LAPC & WPWC

Seeing the softness of nature

Walking behind a wall of water of a woodland waterfall

Seeing the softness of nature

Regarding a heron ruminating over rippling reflections

great blue heron

Spotting the strength of steel softened by a spring snow

snowy fence

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Skink among the stones: WW & LAPC

skink among the stones

Skink among the stones near Bend, Oregon

Wordless Wednesday (WW)

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge (LAPC) – Rock Your World

Rocks I remember: LAPC & FOWC

The rocks I remember may rest on the slopes of extinct volcanoes

Rocks on Pilot Butte 26Oct2016
Volcanic rocks on Pilot Butte, Bend, Oregon

And show cryptic carved messages created years ago

reveal petroglyphs
Picture Rock Pass Petroglyphs Site, Oregon

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Winter tree from 3 perspectives: TTL

These photographs show a winter tree near Bend, Oregon shown from 3 perspectives .

Western juniper trees are great to photograph. I show this one from a distance, looking up its trunk, and with a close up view of its rough and wrinkled bark. These trees’ unique characteristics are enhanced by a light snowfall.

Close up of bark

Thursday Tree Love (TTL)