A few years ago, I wandered off to Colorado by myself. All the many times that I went before, I was with family or friends, and my wanderings were tempered by the group's need for regular meals and sleeping patterns, and semi-compromised schedules of sight-seeing, and shopping.
As I drove out the straight red line map-course of my Garmin, along the top of Oklahoma, through the panhandle, I feared that I would be plagued by loneliness, and the disorientation of being alone. By the time I got to the end of the panhandle, I began to be excited at the prospect of doing what I wanted when I wanted. I stopped at Alabaster Caverns, Folsom, New Mexico, Capulin's extinct volcano, and everything else that caught my attention. I slept in a tent in a road-side rest stop close to Clayton, New Mexico, downwind of the massive cattle feed lots (not recommended), with a howling panhandle wind, and broke my lantern on the first night of my exploration. Finally in Southfork, Colorado, I planned on camping in the mountains, but a friendly lodge keeper let me sleep in a room over the laundry, saving cash for other things. Later I camped at Silverton, and Chaco Canyon, but for now it was nice to have a bed and home-base. To the point, on one particular day of exploration, I made it to Big Meadows Lake, a favorite place for my family and extended family to visit and fish on every visit. Being unencumbered, I decided to hike around the lake. It sounded like a giant proposition, but having water and time, I wandered at my own pace, and made lots of sketches. This painting is from one of those sketches. The original path was a little less defined, but still maneuverable. The rocks were bigger, and sometimes hindered a straight line hike. The forest hugged me in a tight embrace. I thought I saw the trees, then i looked up and saw that there were more, and looked up further to see even more, and realized that one step off the path and I would be in wilderness. "Forest Path" 8 x 10" acrylic study on canvas
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Micheal W. JonesThoughts and work from a mid-career artist working his ass off every day Archives
October 2021
My Facebook page and
Instagram page Categories
All
|