Fall Road Trip Sketchbook – Part 2

My last post was all about our trip to the Delaware shore, but there’s more to the story. After four days in Cape Henlopen, we hooked up the camper and hit the road, headed for a park in Virginia that overlooks the Potomac River. 

All sketches done in a 5″ x 8″ Pentalic Aqua Journal

The drive turned out to be a lot longer than I had expected, but we made it to Westmoreland State Park in time to go for a blustery walk along the river before the sun set. The Potomac at that spot is so wide that you can barely see the other side. It’s 6-7 miles across and feels more like a huge lake than a river.

The next day we spent the morning just hanging out at our spacious campsite in the woods. I finished up some sketches…
while Fred worked on an airplane model he had brought along (something he never has time for at home).
Then we packed a lunch and took off for a walk through the woods,
up and down hills, 

finding interesting things along the way,

until we finally arrived at Fossil Beach, where the rock formations are absolutely loaded with fossils, and shark’s teeth are readily found in the sand along the shore.

(Click here for a larger image)

After we ate our lunch, I whipped out my sketchbook and dashed off a drawing of the broad cove framed by cliffs at both ends.

Then it was time to head back up the mountain. We stopped along the way to take a rare selfie of the two of us…

It was such a fun day, and as I thought back over our walk later, I realized how uneventful it was in many ways, but how truly special it was, too. Just getting out in the woods together, talking, laughing, and seeing new things – it’s those shared experiences that create lasting memories. 

I decided this walk deserved to be commemorated…every detail of it! So, I created this:

(Click here for a larger image)

It captures the day perfectly with its bright colors and simple drawings. I love it!

The next morning, it was time to head home to Pennsylvania. It had felt like summer all week, but as we drove into the Virginia mountains, we started to see more and more red, orange, and yellow on the hillsides. The day was overcast, but the autumn color was still spectacular.

We took a wrong turn somewhere along the way and ended up on Route 50 in West Virginia, a road that’s famous for its steep inclines, hairpin turns, and serpentine route. I’m sure Fred was silently blaming the navigator (moi!), but, to his credit, he never said a word of rebuke as he drove up, down, and around mountains hour after hour.

We finally made it back to good old Prosperity, PA, and Buckley was there to greet us with all the exuberance of a puppy. 

Even though I love going away, it’s always good to be home again. 
Thanks for following along! Check out this video of my Fall Road Trip 2020 Sketchbook…

5 Comments

  • I love your journal. Where might I find a copy of a Matilda alphabet? I like the style of the lettering and it doesn't look to terribly difficult.

    Reply
  • I usually find lettering styles on either dafont.com or fontspace.com. Here's a link to Mathilda (notice it's spelled with a "th" in the middle): https://www.dafont.com/mathilde.font You can download it to your computer and print it out, or just click to open the font on the website and take a screenshot of the alphabet. I find the best way to learn a new style is to write it a LOT. Use it for several pages of journaling, or write a letter to a friend using it. Get that muscle memory working for you. Good luck!

    Reply

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I’m Leslie. A painter, teacher, and lover of all things creative. A sketchbook artist who captures everyday life on the pages of my illustrated journals. I love sharing, connecting, and encouraging people to find their creative voice through sketchbook journaling. Read more about me, my art, and my life HERE.

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