Sonoma county to Boulder

[milt]

View attachment 13593
I'm this contrary kind of older guy who has traveled quite a bit over the years. My truck is over twenty years old and my camper is over fifty. Mostly we travel in the winter and head south for comfort. But this winter my lady and I are in Boulder Colorado for a change.View attachment 13594
West Sonoma County, Ca. is near the coast and has such agreeable climate in the summer that it is nice to stay home. My lady is taking care of a new grandbaby for a year and I'm wandering that way by myself planning to take my time and follow the spirit and draw a picture every day. Just down the road I get on highway 12 and follow it east to the foothills of the Sierra. I generally tend to avoid crowds and prefer back roads.View attachment 13594

 

[milt]

My personal relationship with time, it seems to me, has always been kind of contrary to the culture. I've always found it best to go slow when following the spirit as I've found that spirit doesn't usually respond quickly. It's interesting that when I'm drawing time doesn't even exist.

Traveling alone is interesting. Time is even more expanded. In the morning I hiked a little ways above the highway at Sonora Pass and sat in my little folding chair and sketched this.

 

[milt]

I've raised a few burros over the years and had a black one for over thirty. His name is Blackjack and we would take him blackpacking.

I read a lot. We always travel with a drawer full of books. We both raised our kids without ever having a TV. I studied commercial art in college but decided to not be an artist. For me, doing it for a living spoils the pleasure of it, what with deadlines and all. Do you realize that commercials are designed to create dissatisfaction in your mind?

 

[milt]

The cop said I was going 55, what a joke. This old sheepherders wagon looks a lot like my camper.
I have these black tanks of water that I made on the cab of my truck for solar showers that work great in Mexico but here at about 10,000 ft. the cold air defeats the sun. I also have a solar panel up there that gives me lights at night for reading or finishing my drawings.

 

[milt]

I wonder about the relationship between wandering and wondering. I'm kind of a closet philosopher and have thought and written a bit about the value of wonder and imagination. It seems to me that it's those who think they have all of the answers that are doing all the damage.

It's getting a little crowded along here but an old guy in the forest service office knew what I was looking for.

 

[MarkBC]

Go, milt, go!

 

[milt]

I have one of those federal senior passes to get in free but early in the morning nobody checked. While I was drawing this several foreign tourists took my picture. Some guy back in Nevada told me about that place to camp. One cool thing about travel is that often people have time to just hang and share information.

These federal and state campgrounds sure have a lot of rules. I also have a storage place above my truck cab for firewood which comes in handy.

 

[lqhikers]

milt ,
i truly am in awe as to you story telling through your drawings.
please keep it up ,and enjoy your journeys.

drive slow and enjoy "its the Journey"
Les,lqhikers

 

[milt]

I sat here painting and dipped my brush in the puddle to wet it. I use watercolor pencils and a wet brush which I find to be easy tools for travel drawing.
There are lots of these sites outside of the park area that you can explore but the dirt roads were muddy and I would have had to have 4 wheel drive if not for my bike.

 

[Casa Escarlata Robles Too]

Great story Milt.I am following your trip and enjoying the drawings.
Thanks Frank

 

[ski3pin]

Very, very nice Milt! Such a great way to tell your story. Thanks!

 

[4llamas]

Milt,
I am amazed how much description your few words carry when accompanied by a painting. My imagination is picked by every brush stroke.
Thank you so much.
JB

 

[milt]

The Telluride gondola is free. That evening at the campground I met a guy from Australia riding his bike from Canada down through the rockies to Arizona. I built an oak bike rack on the front of my truck and usually travel with a junker bike. I like riding in moderation. I usually go slow. I find that for me about 3 mph either biking, hiking, or kayaking is the speed that my brain can assimilate where I am.
So much emphasis in this culture on doing things. My contrary self is pretty content in just being

 

[milt]

Here's my old camper. It raises and lowers so there's less wind effect. I've had it for years, I paid $500 for it, and it serves me well.
Up on Mt. Evans there was a mama mountain sheep with a youngster next to the road. This is what they call the front range. When I get to Boulder I'll not draw every day but the trip continues.

 

[milt]

Riding the Boulder bikeways is a breeze with underpasses and creeks and even art. These guys were half done. They would use 4X8 sheets of reflective backed insulation boards to solar heat this north facing wall so the paint would stick.
It's reported that during the night mountain lions come down out of the hills to get at the deer right in town.

 

[milt]

No big crowds here at this time of year.
We go to the library every couple of days. Twice a month I go to a get-together called Socrates Cafe and we talk about philosophy.

 

[milt]

Boulder is a very interesting community. People here are a hearty bunch. The trails up in the mountains are almost crowded. Only the prairie dogs are fat.
The winter continues, I'm flying home for a month to deal with things there and give the garden a little attention.

 

[milt]

Living in Sonoma County is something to be thankful for.
The garden pretty much takes care of itself during the winters. The pond is spring fed and everything you see here is either natural or recycled.
I have to find a way to do some more scanning of drawings but I'll return.

 

[MarkBC]

Wonderful, milt!
I hope we see more of your trip reports here.

 

[highz]

Great stuff. Enjoyed your view of things.