bears

I almost hugged a bear!!!!

Well, I didn't almost, but I did see a wild bear few feet away. Last month I was up in Jasper and Banff National Park in Alberta, Canada. My friends and I were planning to do a backpack camping trip, but it was too cold at night to do tent camping. We ended up staying in a hostel and a forest lodge. I wish I'm still there. Snow didn't completely melt yet, this is late May. There were also a lot of bear and predator warnings, 'cause its spring and they all just woke up from their long winter naps. I had to buy a bear whistle for precaution, and we did encounter a bear but we were in my car. Anyways, here are some photos from the trip. They look so vintage 'cause of my 60s yashica mat LM camera.











With all that hiking and tons of stuff I had to catch up when I got back... I can't help to do paintings and drawings. So I've got tons of artwork to post later in the month. But for now, this is the latest. I've also cleared out my harddrive for more space, so I can work in bigger format without crashing my computer.



and some sketches leading up to the painting



Ever since I got back I have strong urges to go hiking. Thank goodness Portland is close by mountainous terrains. I went to the Columbia River Gorge yesterday and hiked onto top of the Hamilton Mountain to get a glimpse of the gorge. The upcoming July 4th weekend I plan to make a trip up to Mount St. Helens to do the 12mile hike. I really hope I encounter sheep or wild goats. Though... that's how you get ticks. Did I mention I found ticks on my neck during the Banff trip? They looked like ladybugs, not that gross.