Quick Sketches

It's been about three weeks since I posted.  Spring is just too nice a time to year to be sitting at a computer.  This posting will be brief -- just a few of my recent sketches so you can see what I am up to.

The first one is of Mt. Hood in northern Oregon.  It's a 'car sketch,' i.e. I painted it while Dale was driving on the interstate.  The blush of springtime was just too pretty to ignore, and Mt. Hood is still covered with pristine snow.

Spring comes early to western Oregon.  Bumblebee queens overwinter is protected spots.  As soon as the weather warms, they are buzzing about looking for a good location for their new colony.  Often they use an old rodent hole.  She'll raise the first brood and then she'll have helpers to assist with subsequent broods.  

A red-tailed hawk perched in a maple.  I sketched this when the maple was in full bloom.  The tree was full of blossoms and the leaves just unfurling.  

Ravens know it is spring too.  We often see them soaring together.  I envy their ability to play in the sky.