Trinity River, Camp Kimtu Beach

When starting a journal entry on-site I don’t always finish it until months later when I am in another location. This entry was started on the Kimtu Beach in Northern California, July 16, 2021 and included everything except the map and drawing of the shelter. I finished the entry in Nebraska, September 16. Fortunately I ALWAYS record metadata on site – an invaluable tool for recalling information about that day. In this case, it brought back the windy, warm conditions and I realized that I had to include and image of our sun shelter “Big Agnes”. She is “windproof” and after the addition of rocks on her guy wires she did remain in place instead of flying off into the Trinity River.

I am trying to get away from tightly organized layouts by adding more white space. Instead of drawing a rectangle to enclose a painting I used narrow double-sided tape to prevent the watercolor from straying. I got this great idea from nature journal instructor, Roseanne Hanson. I also like to include maps; in this case I needed to record the torturous path of Highway 299 (aka Vomit Valley)! The narrative includes what I saw, heard, smelled, tasted, and felt – another way to relate and relive my experience that day with my  beloved family.