Rock Island State Park

Summer is here? Well, at least the summer weekend getaway part has officially started. This Memorial Day weekend we spent three days camping on Rock Island, off the tip of Washington Island in Door County, Wisconsin. It's interesting how two islands so close to each other can be quite different when it comes to weather... Washington Island was green and booming with signs of Spring, yet on the 15 minute boat ride to Rock Island we felt the temperature drop immediately and green leaves had not quite started budding on the trees. We were very lucky to have three gorgeous days camping on the island, despite the cold and windy mornings and evenings, the days were sunny and calm as we went about exploring the island.

The sketch above is of the iconic boathouse that greats you as you dock on the island. Much of the Islands history and structures owe their existence to a wealthy Icelandic inventor/settler who lived in Wisconsin and used this island as a retreat. With the exception of the roof, the boathouse is made from materials derived from the island itself. Quite impressive given the small scale of the island.  

In support of Wet Paint's summer travel sketch postcard initiative, the above sketch was sent to them for a window display. 

Waking up in the morning is always my favorite. With few people up, it's almost like having the island to yourself, if only for a few moments.  Our campsite was right next to a white rock beach where I drank my coffee, enjoyed the sound of the waves lapping ashore, and sketched a bit of our surroundings.

TRNP/Maah Daah Hey Trail - Part 2

With thunderstorms, achy feet, and a washed out river this is where we decided to take a bit of a detour from the trail and explore some of the other sights in the area. This is also where I was brutally attacked and the reason for the delay on this post.  I sat down on a bench quite unsuspectingly, opened by sketch book, laid out my crayons, and began sketching the teepee, fence, and barracks across the way.  A few minutes later I heard a loud obnoxious shout from across the lawn in a deep southern drawl, "Oh, my gawsh, look everybody, she's going to sketch!"  As I had suddenly gathered the attention of um, every single human being within a 10 mile radius, 5 people came running straight at me. Looking at what I had on my paper, barely a few lines, I mumbled a few words to them and humbly packed up as soon as I could get them away.  Don't get me wrong, I like talking to people, just not being called out unsuspectingly in front of a crowd and descended upon like a flower that a swarm of bees are heading straight for.

Back at home, I looked at the sketch I had and the frustrating memory that went along with it and decided to erase it all and start over and draw the fort instead.

 

 

Off the trail we had the chance to explore other parts of Theodore Roosevelt National Park that we would not have otherwise seen.  In this case, doing a few of the day hikes in the northern unit, I fell in love with the rock formations of cap rocks, flutes, and cannon balls, all signs of the erosion of wind on rock with varying densities. 

 

Heading back down to Medora we stopped at this small town of 100 people whose claim to fame is a sod post office.  It no longer functions as a post office, but instead has an interesting array of historic items inside.

We spent our last day back in Medora just looking around and relaxing.  Here I was sitting at the motel pool enjoying a beverage whilst watching no one swim. After all the running around we had done the previous 9 days it was nice to sit down and relax for a day before heading home.