Trek Across Maine Camping

Last month Alex and I did the Trek Across Maine - a 180 mile, 3 day bike ride with about 2500 other riders that benefits the American Lung Association. We rode a Trek tandem and camped out along the way. This sketch shows our campsite at the University of Maine Farmington. We camped on the soccer fields. The nice thing about this spot is that it's close to the river where the swimming is fantastic after a long day in the saddle. Alex helped out with this sketch and colored in the tents in the background. It was a fun 3 days and he did awesomely.

We're headed to Japan tomorrow with sketchbooks in hand for 2 full weeks to explore mountains, cities, hotsprings and temples.

Camden Harbor Sketching

A sketch from down at the harbor in Camden. The night before, Alex had some friends over for a "sleepover" but it ended up they were awake all night. Amazing... Anyway, after the last kid left on Sunday, I escaped for some solitude and sketching.

Farewell to a Boat

I found a new watercolor journal a couple of weeks ago at Rockport Blueprint. It's a hand-book journal 8x10. This is my first sketch in it.

I rode my bike down to Rockland on Wednesday afternoon to sketch near the waterfront. I stopped here at the Apprenticeshop Boatyard and found a nice spot away from the wind. I loved the color of the front boat. After an hour or so, a young man and woman arrived and began working on it - evidently prepping it for being put in the water the next day. Awhile later, an older man approached and started chatting with them. I gleaned that he had just sold them the boat and I could overhear him describing the boat's peculiarities in the water. But I think mostly he had stopped by to bid farewell. To say goodbye to a boat that meant something to him.

As he was leaving, he stopped and looked over my shoulder. He asked if I was going to sell this painting. I said no, that it was going to just stay in my sketchbook. I said I'd be happy to scan it and email it to him. He gave me his card and I emailed it to him this morning.

Curtis Island