Beara Peninsula - Day 2 - A bit of sunshine and revisiting old favourites

On my second day on the peninsula, the weather was drier and I think I even got a bit of sunshine to accompany me on my travels. Of course, I had to stop at my favourite spot on the peninsula, looking at the Caha Mountains at the only place on the road where you can actually pull in. Next time, I want to have a camera stuck to the outside of the car so I can film the whole progress and paint and draw from these images. I know I can use Google Maps, but it's not the same!! Because every twist and turn in the road is amazing. And even with a bicycle (if I had the strength to pedal up those hills!), there is really nowhere you can pull in and take in the view. 

I was out of season, of course, so no other car came by looking for my spot. But there are large lorries driving those roads. There must be some major construction going on somewhere. The peninsula is bigger than you'd think. I still haven't reached the very tip. The furthest point I got to is Allihies, and a lady who is from the peninsula told me that if you live in Allihies and you have an emergency, you don't call an ambulance, you call the helicopter. It just takes too long to get to the main town, on the mainland so to speak, in Kenmare. 

So, back to my view. I did a 180-270 view. I started behind the car, in watercolour and ink, but then realised it would take forever if I continued in watercolour. For the next panel, I used ink and ArtGraf watersoluble graphite (in a cute little tin, which I got in Porto in 2018! I do use it often enough, so I'm surprised there's still so much left!)

When I was done, I decided to go back to Derreen Gardens and tackle those beautiful pines again, in a bigger sketchbook this time (a Seawhite of Brighton, about A4 size, it's heavy!). I saw an otter, but wasn't quick enough to capture it on camera, let alone on paper. It sounded like a dog running on the squishy seaweed! Then it slipped into the water! There was other fantastic views to be captured, but I only had time to scratch the surface. I had got cash with me this time, and paid for the two days in the honesty box!

I also did some more sketches from my room. The light coming from the West in the late afternoon was amazing! A good day!