A Well-Watered Year, adventurous plein air painting

Cascades of the Middle Fork Feather River, Lucinda Wood, Watercolor
Cascades of the Middle Fork Feather River, Lucinda Wood, Watercolor

My husband and I hiked an hour and a half and waded a rushing creek to arrive at this beautiful spot. I found an out cropping of rock to perch on and paint next to this cascade.

Lucinda Wood painting Cascades of the Middle Fork Feather River. Photo by Dave Wood
Lucinda Wood painting Cascades of the Middle Fork Feather River. Photo by Dave Wood

Wildlife encounters always spice up my day when I’m out painting. Here, I looked up from painting to see a handsome gopher snake, soaking wet, drying off about three feet from my foot, having apparently come down the falls. Once he warmed up enough he slid back into the river and ran the rest of the cascade! A Whitewater snake! Happily, I have never been uncomfortable around snakes.

Grizzly Creek Falls, Lucinda Wood, Watercolor
Grizzly Creek Falls, Lucinda Wood, Watercolor

A flash of white through the forest seen on a drive led me to this waterfall. After some bushwhacking and rock climbing into a narrow gorge, I perched on the rock below to paint.

Lucinda Wood painting Grizzly Creek Falls, photo by Dave Wood
Lucinda Wood painting Grizzly Creek Falls, photo by Dave Wood

A merganser cavorted below the falls I was painting, then rode the rapids down stream, shot off the lower falls and hit the pool running, on water!

Merganser below Grizzly Creek Falls, photo by Lucinda Wood
Merganser below Grizzly Creek Falls, photo by Lucinda Wood
Hourglass Falls, Lucinda Wood, Watercolor
Hourglass Falls, Lucinda Wood, Watercolor

This waterfall I found by ear. I heard rushing water in an unexpected place and followed the sound. Thanks to the record snow and rainfall we had this year, this gorge had a boisterous waterfall instead of its usual trickle!

Hourglass Falls in progress, photo by Lucinda Wood
Hourglass Falls in progress, photo by Lucinda Wood

These paintings and 17 more of my new watercolors which feature the bountiful snow and water we were blessed with this year, are on display for November. Join us for the opening reception of my show, A Well-Watered Year, this Friday, Nov 3, 5-7pm!

2 thoughts on “A Well-Watered Year, adventurous plein air painting”

  1. Hi , we love your work ! I have many prints 💚, we got at Art Etc . In Chico , and would love to get one of , cascades of middle fork of Feather river ❤️ Thanks for posting all these , Grace

    1. Thank you, Grace! I do have prints of Cascades of Middle Fork Feather River. I can bring one to Art Etc. on my next trip to Chico, which will be after Thanksgiving weekend. If you need it sooner, I could ship one to Art Etc., but you would need to cover shipping which would be about $15. I would text Caleb at Art Etc. the exact price of shipping, when I know it, and he could forward that to me from you.

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