"Up at Rock Creek" 6x8 oil

From Joe Mancuso's blog...

Available Through Coons Gallery In Bishop California. 300. framed http://coonsgallery.com/Coons_Gallery/Welcome.html

I painted this piece while I was up at Rock Creek a couple of weeks ago. This is the scene right before arriving at Rock Creek Lake. Before arriving, I had already planned on painting from this location so I was already thinking about values, colors and shapes etc. You could say I was already painting it before I arrived. I had thought about the granite on the mountains and the blue sky and how they related to each other. I was also thinking about the apsens and if the greens used would be warm or cool or both? When I first arrived and setup my easel I noticed the shadows across the road and how they would be the first shapes to change, so I quicky made shape and color notes for those as well as the shadows on Mount Abbott. From that point on I roughed in the biggest shapes and then worked more on the details later. When I began painting, the sky was clear and when I finished it looked like it might rain. Experiences like this keep me excited and motivated to paint on location often.

Benton Hot Springs

Here's an interesting bit of history on Benton Hot Springs. Might be a fun side trip next time you're in the area.

Old Benton Hot Springs by Windyscotty

More Photos!

After seeing the photos I've been posting, my cousin Jessica Roby Martinucci (Tom Roby's daughter) was inspired to scan and share some of her own on Facebook.  Since not everyone can see them there, I'm sharing them here too.  I also added them to the Slideshow (see link above)... we're slowly filling in the timeline.

Tom Roby, August 1965

Linda (Mitchell) Roby with Tom Roby and horse's behind at Rock Creek Pack Station, circa 1965 

Brothers Kib and Tom Roby behind the counter in the store, July 1966 

Tom Roby in green jacket, Bud Edmonson in blue, Charlie McNeil in glasses, Kib Roby standing, July 1966. Does anyone recognize the others?

Rear: Eric Boutwell, unknown guest, Kib Roby (standing).  L-R seated: Pamela (Hunsicker) Stadler; Hazelle, Kimberly, and Jack Rosander; Tom & Linda Roby. July 1966

June 1971

Jessica with her mother Linda, and Kib in the background, June 1971

Creek above the Lodge, 1972

Donna & Dean Miller, Leslie holding onto swing, and Jessica showing her love for cousin Kibby! July 1972

Leslie teaching cousin Jessica to fish with Linda Roby watching, July 1975

Kib, Kibby, Jessica, and Pepper, July 1975 

Cousins!  Jessica, Kibby & Leslie, July 1975

Campfire fun! Unknown boy in red, Kibby, Pepper, Leslie, and Torrey, Jessica, & Tom Roby, 1977 

Smores!  Kibby, Torrey, Leslie, and Jessica Roby (and Pepper and Sandy), 1977 

Buried Treasure

As mentioned in my previous post, my parents and I had dinner with the Von Rohr family in Mammoth last week. Ken had said he would try to find some old photos for me to scan and share, and he delivered. Here are the treasures (you can click on them to see them larger). Be sure to check out the short shorts on the boys! We all got a good chuckle about 1980s "fashion."

Leslie & Kibby Roby enjoying a campfire, 1978

I think the dog on the left is probably Duke, Ron Williams' dog. None of us knows the kid on the right, although he looks vaguely familiar. Does anyone recognize him? The funniest thing about this photo for me is what I didn't see until I pulled it up on-screen; our dog Pepper is under Kibby's chair, about to taste whatever was on my plate!

typical crowd hanging out at the store, 1981

Christopher Reavis (seated), Kib Roby, Billy Villarin, Leslie Roby, Kibby Roby, and Shirley Roby.

Eric & Mark Von Rohr and Kibby at an unknown location, 1981

Mark Von Rohr, Kibby, Jeff Williams, Ken (Ollie) Kramer, Eric Von Rohr, 1982

the old gas tank, 1986

Ken, thanks so much for sharing. I promise to get them back into your hands safely!

Robys at Rock Creek

Recognize this?

Yep, that's Kib and Shirley about to arrive at Big Tire. They were spending a week in Mammoth, so I joined them for a few days. Naturally, we had to do a bit of "hiking" at Rock Creek, followed by pie. The walk around the pond was as nice as it always is... lots of wildflowers blooming and absolute peace and quiet.

fireweed

tiger lily

We also walked around Convict Lake; I can't believe how turquoise blue that water is!

The highlights of the trip were a brief visit with Christine Ferrara Engel and dinner out with the entire Von Rohr family. What a treat to see such great old friends. Sorry there are no photos to share; we were too busy yakking to think of getting out the cameras.

I do have a bit more to share from the visit, but that will be another post...

1961 Brochure

My mom recently sent me a (slightly damaged) RCL brochure from 1961. I have a few older ones from my parents' days of running the lodge, but had not seen one from my grandparents' time. Looking at the photos more closely, I realized that they were taken by my great-grandmother. I had always assumed they were provided by a professional photographer, but now recognize them as hers since I've been poking around in family photo albums.

As you can see, the brochure was originally a tri-fold. Later, abbreviated editions lost the interior photos, but the one on the cover remained the same, just cut in half. Note the photo of the lodge before the store was added, and my dad and his siblings with their donkey. I will take this opportunity to publicly note that although I tried many methods of persuasion throughout the years, my dad never allowed ME to have a donkey. So unfair!

Anyway, here's the 1961 brochure and one from our final years for comparison. If you click on the images, you can view them full-size. 

We're Now on Facebook

Yes, that's right!  We now have a page on Facebook.  Which means that if you're already on Facebook, you can "like" our page and connect that way too.  And if you're not on Facebook, you can at least view the photos posted there - by me or others.  You'll see I have added a Facebook badge on the blog in the left-hand navigation - just click and you'll be taken to our page.

Also, now that I have a new (working) printer/scanner hooked up, maybe I will get back to sharing some old photos and stuff.  Stay tuned...