Camp Cascade NPS 2003 Expedition

Karen Schroeder karenschroeder@coupeville.net,

(360) 678-0354 or write: 654 La Fiesta St., Coupeville, WA

Article by John Knapp NPS Webmaster:

When asked to describe the kind of painting we were doing during the 2003 NPS Expedition at Camp Cascade Oregon, Gary Gumble of Bellevue said "Extreme Pastel." I believe that best put into words the experience of the gathered artists who took part in this fifth annual NPS event in Central Oregon.

Each morning the artists assembled for breakfast and made plans for the days events. The Camp Cascade staff made up sack lunches for each artist and after picking up their lunches, the artists split up for the days painting. One of the popular sites in the area is a Oregon State Park called Silver Falls. It was about a one hour drive from Camp Cascade and well worth it.

On my way to Silver Falls the morning of August 20th 2003, I wondered how the falls got its name. My rational was that some how a silver mine must have been in the area. I had no idea of why they would call it that. Earlier in the day I had packed my pastels into my small travel kit ready for a hike through the system of falls that were there. I only packed Rembrandts and Nupastels for this trip trying to keep my load light.

When I arrived at the falls, I realized that the falls are named after the mica like rock walls the water falls from. My irridescent Senniliers were back at the Camp Cascade Lodge. So I planned to make the best of the opportunity. With both digital images and en plein aie, I began my work.

Most of the artists in the group had traveled to the north falls. I began by climbing down into south falls. The hike is about 4 miles total and about a 150 foot vertical climb. The images taken from the walls of the falls were well worth the hike.

South Falls


Finishing my hike in the South Falls area, I left for the north side of the part where the majority of artists had gathered. The north falls were equally as suited for paintings, with greater accessibility. Again, I began hiking to find the perfect location. I finally decided upon a location and began painting at one of the north falls.

		On the second day, reports of our adventures at Silver Falls, encouraged those who had not painted those falls, to spend a day there. Others heard stories from Steve Hill of a spectacular rapids just up the road from our lodge. The name of the place is Three Pools and it is known for its unusual turquoise deep pools and tall rock formations. Many who had painted Silver Falls the previous day and who did not want to spend a total of two hours on the road decided to follow the directions Steve gave and off we went. Although this location was far closer, the road made up for the convenience in time. With large rocks in the road seeking the underside of my art van, going was slow on the back road to "Three Pools." Once there we knew that the opportunities would give us painting opportunities for the whole day.

Pastelists arrive at Three Pools	Above artists are set up on the rock surfaces below the rapids.	Steve Hill prepares his Wallis pastel paper
Gary Gumble set up on a rock ledge	At left, Gary Gumble is painting from a rock ledge he scaled. As you can see from the painting at the right, the effort was well worth it.
Donna Trent (NPS President at the time) asked the attending members to work on the paintings begun at the expedition and send photos of them to me for an end of September on line montage. Final Images	The days ended with supper prepared by the Camp Cascade staff, and they were very good. The meal gave opportunity to share paintings as well as discuss the plans for the day ahead.
Karen Schroeder, NPS second VP, organized this event. I would like to extend our thanks to Karen for her work in this regard. Karen would like some feedback from the participants, as well as anyone who plans to attend one of these expeditions in the future. What did you think? Where would you like to go next. Please let Karen know: karenschroeder@coupeville.net

Northwest Pastel Society 783 Port Stanley Rd., Lopez Island, WA 98261 Steve Hill, President