A Painted Horse

Well as many of you know we are excited to have not one, not two but three new horses. It has been grand fun to be back riding and working with horses. We have a lovely nine year old Arab and a five year old Quarter horse and Morgan cross.

The last one that we purchased is a 3 year old colt who is a purebred Canadian. This is not a breed that I was familiar with but when we studied, it did sound like a horse that we would love....so we said yes and bought the youngster with high hopes that he will become a great riding horse.

Now these high hopes were in part started by seeing his father, who is a totally beautiful black stallion. Like every little girl (now grown)...I love black stallions..

So here is a  painting of the black stallion, who is the sire of our new  horse. This painting is called "All Canadian - A Waiting Beauty." It is acrylic on canvas and is 35x42" framed. This painting is heading out to Art Walk this weekend in Lake Country......stop by my booth in the Memorial Hall and check out the Canadian horse.

Yellowstone as Painting Inspiration

 Here are two recent paintings that were inspired by my trips to Yellowstone  - a buffalo and grizzly painting hot off my easel and ready to go.

Top Buffalo memory from Yellowstone -
That day the buffalo were wandering in the meadows beyond the river. They were grazing and resting in groups with the occasional bull prodding them to move. It was September and the bulls are aggressive as they are full into the rut - their mating season. Cows quietly grazed while the bulls grunted and chased each other. The various groups mixed and mingled.  The calves were no longer small but had filled out to be a good size ready for winter. It is always interesting to just watch these iconic creatures.
Then I had an incredible encounter with a big bull. I could hear it coming through the bush, snorting and huffing as it broke small trees and branches.  It stamped its feet and it stepped out of the trees in front of me with just an open trail between us. We had a tense moment when he first saw me.  I stood still, we stared at each other  for a long minute before he decided that I was not a threat. He brutalized a small tree just to make his point and then moved  on. Standing quietly I took a few photos as he moved back into trees. They turned out to be terrible photos but it was an experience I will remember not in the least because it was foolish of me to be that close to a bull in rut.

This particular painting is from a far more peaceful meeting with a shedding buffalo in the spring.

Here also is my painted account of my meeting with a Yellowstone grizzly. He had just swam the river and wandered the far side allowing me to study him in relative safety. I kept pace with him on my side of the river for a short time, took photos and truly enjoyed seeing him.

Kangaroos in BC

As a wildlife artist I am constantly watching the woods, the mountain trails and the back yard for animals both big and small. Canadian wildlife is amazing and impressive but I also love to see the creatures that are in other parts of the world.

Had a wonderful opportunity to visit a Kangaroo farm in Lake Country not long ago. It is a real surprise to discover kangaroos right in the middle of the Okanagan. Kangaroo joeys are the sweetest little cuddly creatures that love to be held in a fuzzy fabric pouch.  The farm also has some other exotic animals like these huge rodents. Thanks to the great friends that accompanied me that day.

Mountain Hiking

The hiking around Salmon Arm right now is great. Warm weather and blue skies.  The flowers are blooming and because of our wet spring the foliage is really thick and beautiful. It does make it a bit more difficult to see the wildlife but there are advantages like the great wild strawberry crop this year. On a warm day like today up on Larch Hills the air smells like wild strawberries. Every day at the high point of our hike...I have to stop to eat a handful.of those tiny tasty beauties...too soon they will be all gone.

The daisies, clover and many other flowers are blooming. It is a real jungle of growth.  Some of the alfalfa and bracken fern are taller than me. There is a tree on Larch hills that I am calling a wedding tree that is blooming with lovely sprays of white dainty flowers right now. Looks like a soft babies breath spray.   In several spots it overhangs our hiking trail making a delightful wedding like arbor....makes me feel like royalty to walk beneath it. While searching for wildlife we often just head out cross country hiking  the over and under method....over streams and under hung up trees etc. But I have to say it is nice and definitely easier to use a good trail system and we have lots in our area.

Last week we headed to the top of  Enderby Cliffs  and that is a simply fantastic view. If you have not been up there you just have to make time to go. It is a decent hike but not hard if you take your time. We walked at a fairly steady pace and  it took about 3 hours total up and back. Plan to take a bit longer if you are not hiking much.  The Trail Alliance have altered the trail and made it much easier than it was 5 years ago. The rope railing portion is no longer used.  Definitely make it a part of your hiking plans.

The view from Mt Ida is also spectacular. You can see right  to Blind Bay. Mt Ida is a great hike that you can adjust as you like it but you do need a truck as the road has been decommissioned and has those interesting ditches that would rip off a car's muffler.

Rose Swanson is another hike that gives a great views towards Vernon..

Well we have done those ones so I think we might head to the Balmoral - Blind Bay hiking trail system this weekend....It is a nice walk in the shade of the trees...It is supposed to be hot.  What is your favorite hiking trail  or spot in the area?

Our Old Horse

One of the main reasons I paint is my affection for animals. All of my life I had an intense connection with animals and this has been fostered by numerous wonderful pets. Those pets have ranged from mice to horses with many wonderful assorted creatures in between. All of them have brought something great to my life. But of that long list there have been a few that have been extra special.

One of those was Sunder, our horse of 31 years that just passed away last week. Some of you may say you thought his name was Thunder...well that was my fault...never in 31 years really understood the name Sunder so I for the most part called him Thunder.

He was such a part of our lives that we feel a void now, an empty spot that just keeps reminding us that someone is missing. Our field is empty and our routine broken...each morning there is nothing that needs to be done before having breakfast, no trips to the barn are needed at the end of the day. Also it is so very strange not to have his welcoming nicker whenever we come home. 

He was in deed the most clever and kindly horse that we ever had. He adjusted his approach to a ride to suit the rider....for little kids he was so gentle and careful but for myself or my husband he was a delightfully energetic ride. As a part Tennessee Walker he had the long smooth walk that could make our Norwegian Fjords want to cry trying to catch up.

He loved to go hunting and camping with Neil. When the horse trailer would come into the yard...he was ready to go. He took my girls to their riding lessons when they were little, taught them all things horsey and  how be brave and caring.  Every person of my family spend endless happy hours riding him on the mountain trails above our home.

He had an amazing life, outliving all of his contemporaries even though he was the one with the health issues.
Over the years we enjoyed taking that extra care that made that long life possible: buckets of special soaked feed, vegetable and juice pulp, special hay and vitamins. 

We will miss Sunder/Thunder always, but also feel so lucky to have had such a long wonderful friendship with him.

Badgers, Beavers, Bear and Elk

It is a great day when you can see a badger in the wilds. Badgers are not common in our part of BC yet I was lucky to see one the other day, just at dusk. His curious, distinctive face as well as his low slung style of walking quickly distinguished him from some of our more common creatures.  We often see marmots, rabbits, raccoons and coyotes. Less frequently are weasels, beavers and martens. But this is the first time that I have ever seen a badger in the wild. We were delighted to have a few moments to watch him as he watched us. He was cautious but not alarmed by our presence. 

Also last week it was a pleasure to have an up close encounter with a beaver. Hiking past a beaver pond I was lucky enough to spot the resident beaver within 10 feet of me. He looked up at me and continued to eat new shoots of bull rushes. Other than the occasional glance to confirm that I was still non-threatening, he paid me no mind. It would have been wonderful time to have had my camera. Yet it was a great opportunity to study that beaver...he is clearly caught in my mind's eye waiting to become a painting.  

Now I have to say that my bear sightings are at an all time low....not one bear sighting for 2013.  Seems like everyone has seen their first bear of the year and their second bear of  the year and so on. My husband has been doing some mountaineering and is up to 15 -20 bear sightings. Not one yet for me. I am going strong seeing creatures of all types...........but still waiting on bears.

Now I want to share another favorite animal of mine, Elk. They are a creature that is a combination of grace, elegance and power.  Here is one of my recent paintings of an Elk.  I  look forward to creating a large scale painting of an elk sometime soon.
                                          

The woods are Alive.

Spring is my favorite time of year. Everything is growing, coming out of the winter dormant stage and coming alive....just love the feel of this season, the smell of the air and the chance to see the animals all out and about again.

My top animal sighting this past week is of a 2 year old moose. I had the opportunity to see him while we were on a hike up the mountain.  He crossed the trail just in front of us and loped up the hillside. Second interesting sighting on the same hike was of a large garter snake swimming across the creek. Always cool to see how well snakes can swim.

But have to tell you this week is full of animal sightings...here are a few more. Baby mallard ducklings (13 with one mother,) painted turtles, blue herons, eagles, pheasants, squirrels, flock of quail, marmots, kestrels, magpies, red winged black birds and a multitude of other birds at both the feeder and the lake. The year will only get better with more and more animal sightings now that weather is warming. It is, as I said, my favorite time of year!

In celebration of my first moose sighting of 2013, here is a moose painting I painted a few years ago. This big painting has found a wonderful home in northern Saskatchewan.