Wild Wonder Nature Journaling Conference 2019

NOTE: ADDITIONAL $145 FEE REQUIRED AND SPACE IS EXTREMELY LIMITED (YOU MUST REGISTER WITH AND PAY SHEARWATER JOURNEYS ASAP--do not delay! SEE BELOW FOR DETAILS). Join sketch biologist Abby McBride and veteran seabird guide Debi Shearwater for a boat trip to practice sketching pelagic seabirds and other wildlife encountered at sea. September is the absolute peak month of the entire year at Monterey Bay to observe marine life. Your trip will begin immediately upon departing from the dock with sea otters and California sea lions just outside of the harbor. Parasitic Jaegers pursue Elegant Terns along the famed Cannery Row area, once the home of the largest sardine cannery in the world. Black-footed Albatross, Sooty, Pink-footed, and Buller’s Shearwaters begin showing up as soon as we reach the edge of the Continental Shelf, and maybe the first humpback whales. Common Murre, Pigeon Guillemot, and Rhinoceros Auklet will be amongst the members of the alcid or auk family that we’ll seek out. Any number and variety of dolphins can be found during this time period, including: Risso’s, Pacific white-sided, Northern right whale, and common dolphins, along with Dall’s porpoises. It is possible that we may see blue whales or killer whales, too. The variety and abundance of marine life is at its peak during September!
DATE: Thursday, September 12
BOAT: Checkmate
DEPARTURE: Fisherman’s Wharf, Monterey at 7 am (please be at least 10 mins early)
RETURN: about 3 pm
LEADERS: Debi Shearwater + team
BOAT FEE: $145 USD ONLY. CHECKS ONLY--NO CREDIT CARDS.
CAPACITY: The boat is an excellent boat with a head (bathroom). No galley. Please bring your own food in a small day pack. The boat can take 49 people by USCG rules and our group will share the boat with others who have already registered.
NOTE: No one under 12 years old. No pregnant ladies. We cannot accommodate wheelchairs.
TO REGISTER: Send your personal check or money order for $145/person with the name, address, phone & email of EACH person booking, as required by the U.S. Coast Guard to:
Shearwater Journeys
P.O. Box 190
Hollister, CA 95024
NOTE: Your spot is not confirmed until Debi receives your check in the mail and you receive a confirmation from her. PLEASE REGISTER ASAP. PLEASE TELL DEBI YOU ARE WITH THE WILD WONDER CONFERENCE. Due to Debi's travel schedule, please register and send your check prior to June 15 in order to receive immediate confirmation. After June 15, your confirmation will be sent after July 20.
CONTACT: Debi Shearwater. 831.637.8527 debi@shearwaterjourneys.com http://www.shearwaterjourneys.com

Learn techniques, prompts, tips, and different ways of seeing nature from one of the world’s most experienced and enthusiastic nature journaling instructors. “We live in a world of beauty and wonder. Train your mind to see deeply and with intentional curiosity, and the world will open before you. Keeping a journal of your observations, questions, and reflections will enrich your experiences and develop gratitude, reverence, and the skills of a naturalist. The goal of nature journaling is not to create a portfolio of pretty pictures but to develop a tool to help you see, wonder, and remember your experiences. You can learn to do this. You do not need to be an artist or a naturalist. These are skills you will develop as you go.”

Millions of years of geology are represented at Point Lobos, where gorgeous Cretaceous granitic formations outcrop aside conglomerates deposited in underwater torrents that dumped into submarine canyons. Trace fossils of ancient marine life can be seen in the sandstones of the Carmelo formation. On this field trip we will learn about the geology and sketch the outcrops and rock types. Using a geologic map as an aid, we will use our drawing skills an a tool for interpreting and recording the landscape history of this beautiful and geologically dramatic state park.

Join local naturalist and expert guide David Wimpheimer to get out exploring and sketching on your own — this is a field trip with a focus on discovery and journaling, not instruction. Be free and explore your creativity with an expert naturalist!

Sketchnoting guru Mark Simmons will lead a local excursion to practice the art of quick, visual note-taking.

Mattias will lead a special session at Stanford University's Hopkins Marine Station with specimens from their collection. Founded in 1892, Hopkins is a center for marine research and classes in a wide array of ocean subjects. We will have a tour of the private campus and then do sketching of the landscape and of marine invertebrates in one of the classrooms.

Drawing landscapes can be awesome and overwhelming. Clare will show you simple ways to break down the essential elements of a landscape that you can happily accomplish in varying amounts of time, whether 15 minutes, 30 minutes, 2 hours. Field sketching of a landscape can include words and just a small diagram. Lengthier landscape drawings entail more consideration of perspective, pencil markings, the "language" of drawing trees, rocks, grasses, water etc. The use of color -- colored pencil and watercolor -- in the field will be covered. (As Clare's training is European, equipment she used in the field is minimal and practical.) Local naturalist extraordinaire David Wimpheimer will help guide the group's discoveries. The mouth of the Carmel River is a diverse area that includes brackish marsh, conifer and oak woodland, sandy and rocky beach.

Catherine draws on her 30 years of observation and teaching experience to tailor instruction to each participant's experience and needs, with emphases on improving live drawing skills and color perception. Come walk, look, and paint, furthering your individual approaches and techniques. Local naturalist extraordinaire David Wimpheimer will help guide the group's discoveries. Point Pinos has been a favorite area for birders for many decades. The rocky and sandy beach here are habitat for turnstone, oystercatcher and other shorebirds while cormorants perch on the dramatic rocks along the shore. Crespi Pond may offer ducks or other waterbirds while the adjacent cypresses provide cover for warblers, flycatchers and other land birds.

Asilomar State Beach is home to some of the most incredible tidepools on the West Coast -- bring your watercolors and sketchbook down to the water and learn more about the critters that inhabit this rocky environment! Practice quick gesture techniques, record details that can be used for identification, and observe the incredible diversity of adaptations for living between the tides. You will be encouraged to do a little bit of rock scrambling, so wear shoes that can get wet or choose to stay close to shore and observe from the edges.

On this field trip, we’ll explore Christine’s toolkit of creative sketching prompts to give you a bucket-load of inspiration so you’ll never run out of sketching ideas in the field.

Walk and Paint with Obi Kaufmann, naturalist, artist, and author of the California Field Atlas.

Catherine draws on her 30 years of observation and teaching experience to tailor instruction to each participant's experience and needs, with emphases on improving live drawing skills and color perception. Come walk, look, and paint, furthering your individual approaches and techniques. Local naturalist extraordinaire David Wimpheimer will help guide the group's discoveries. Laguna Grande lake and freshwater marsh area is in Seaside adjacent to Monterey. There are a variety of birds, from flycatchers and warblers in the willow and eucalyptus trees to some of the marsh species like Virginia rail. Gulls, ducks and raptors also frequent the area.

Asilomar State Beach is home to some of the most incredible tidepools on the West Coast -- bring your watercolors and sketchbook down to the water and learn more about the critters that inhabit this rocky environment! Practice quick gesture techniques, record details that can be used for identification, and observe the incredible diversity of adaptations for living between the tides. You will be encouraged to do a little bit of rock scrambling, so wear shoes that can get wet or choose to stay close to shore and observe from the edges.

Join us in a morning beachcombing saunter down the picturesque Carmel River beach. We will collect and sketch all kinds of tidal treasures that will teach us about California’s coastline. We will also take an opportunity to paint/sketch the spectacular local landscape.

On this field trip, we’ll explore Christine’s toolkit of creative sketching prompts to give you a bucket-load of inspiration so you’ll never run out of sketching ideas in the field.

Learn techniques, prompts, tips, and different ways of seeing nature from one of the world’s most experienced and enthusiastic nature journaling instructors. “We live in a world of beauty and wonder. Train your mind to see deeply and with intentional curiosity, and the world will open before you. Keeping a journal of your observations, questions, and reflections will enrich your experiences and develop gratitude, reverence, and the skills of a naturalist. The goal of nature journaling is not to create a portfolio of pretty pictures but to develop a tool to help you see, wonder, and remember your experiences. You can learn to do this. You do not need to be an artist or a naturalist. These are skills you will develop as you go.”

Sketchnoting guru Mark Simmons will lead a local excursion to practice the art of quick, visual note-taking.

Join Hannah Hinchman, one of the most experienced nature journalers today, to explore your own "Collections," of which you are the curator and the only person who is the expert in this odd field. Local naturalist extraordinaire David Wimpheimer will help guide the group's discoveries. The Asolimar pine and oak forest form an important habitat for nesting and migratory birds. The former includes Western Bluebird, Pygmy Nuthatch, chickadees, towhees, wrens, sparrows, Acorn and Hairy Woodpecker. The resident species are joined by migratory birds such as Townsend's Warbler, Pacific Slope Flycatcher Western Wood Pewee and others.

Ongoing efforts in Asilomar State Park have restored an overused landscape to a thriving sandy dune habitat. Some of the species that have benefited from this effort are the Menzies’ Wallflower, Tidestrom’s Lupine, and the Black Legless Lizard. In this class, we will explore and map the dune habitats of Asilomar, walking and recording the landscape from the shoreline to the Monterey Pine Forest, creating plan view maps and cross sections. Along the way, we will learn about dune forming processes, the flora and fauna characteristic of this habitat, and the restoration efforts both completed and underway.

Join naturalist, artist, and educator Marley Peifer for an exploration of the wilds around Pacific Grove to focus on building your nature journaling skills.

Sketch biologist Abby McBride leads this field trip about experiencing art and science in the world around you while capturing it through sketches. Abby has a biology degree from Williams College, a science writing degree from MIT, and a tendency to wander around outside with a sketchbook. She recently returned from a year-long Fulbright fellowship in New Zealand, sketching seabirds and writing stories about seabird conservation for National Geographic.

Walk and Paint with Obi Kaufmann, naturalist, artist, and author of the California Field Atlas.

Join Hannah Hinchman, one of the most experienced nature journalers today, to explore your own "Collections," of which you are the curator and the only person who is the expert in this odd field. Local naturalist extraordinaire David Wimpheimer will help guide the group's discoveries. This walk along the Asilomar State Beach coast trail will focus on shorebirds, gulls and cormorants. Common birds include Whimbrel, Black Turnstone, Willet and Black Oystercatcher. Songbirds in the nearby coastal scrub include Western Meadowlark, Song Sparrow, Western Bluebird, Black Phoebe, Song and White-crowned Sparrow. Several raptor species may be in the area as well.

Learn techniques, prompts, tips, and different ways of seeing nature from one of the world’s most experienced and enthusiastic nature journaling instructors. “We live in a world of beauty and wonder. Train your mind to see deeply and with intentional curiosity, and the world will open before you. Keeping a journal of your observations, questions, and reflections will enrich your experiences and develop gratitude, reverence, and the skills of a naturalist. The goal of nature journaling is not to create a portfolio of pretty pictures but to develop a tool to help you see, wonder, and remember your experiences. You can learn to do this. You do not need to be an artist or a naturalist. These are skills you will develop as you go.”

Catherine draws on her 30 years of observation and teaching experience to tailor instruction to each participant's experience and needs, with emphases on improving live drawing skills and color perception. Come walk, look, and paint, furthering your individual approaches and techniques.

Sketch biologist Abby McBride leads this field trip about experiencing art and science in the world around you while capturing it through sketches. Abby has a biology degree from Williams College, a science writing degree from MIT, and a tendency to wander around outside with a sketchbook. She recently returned from a year-long Fulbright fellowship in New Zealand, sketching seabirds and writing stories about seabird conservation for National Geographic.

Learn to create detailed and interesting botanical studies of plants in the field. You don't need botanical training -- anyone interested in drawing/painting plants is welcome!

On this field trip, we’ll explore Christine’s toolkit of creative sketching prompts to give you a bucket-load of inspiration so you’ll never run out of sketching ideas in the field.

Drawing landscapes can be awesome and overwhelming. Clare will show you simple ways to break down the essential elements of a landscape that you can happily accomplish in varying amounts of time, whether 15 minutes, 30 minutes, 2 hours. Field sketching of a landscape can include words and just a small diagram. Lengthier landscape drawings entail more consideration of perspective, pencil markings, the "language" of drawing trees, rocks, grasses, water etc. The use of color -- colored pencil and watercolor -- in the field will be covered.( As Clare's training is European, equipment she used in the field is minimal and practical.) Local guide extraordinaire David Wimpfheimer will join the group to as an expert naturalist in the Pacific Grove landscape.

Join naturalist, artist, and educator Marley Peifer for an exploration of the wilds around Pacific Grove to focus on building your nature journaling skills.