PAINTING WITH FRIENDS AROUND THE MURRAY. March 6-10, 2023

Artists at work.

March 6-10, 2023

Meandering around the Murray.

I have always wanted to paint around the Murray River and it has now become a reality. Four friends and I did just that in March 2023. Some flew into Mildura and two of us travelled by car, out from Canberra, along the Sturt highway, though the wonderful Hay Plains with an overnight stop at Leeton.

It is BIG country out there on the plains and one feels so small under a BIG sky!

Joining up with the other three and Jeanie and Peter from Murry Offroad Adventures we headed off to paint at Kings Billabong. The recent floods certainly had left a mark on the landscape and I was amazed by the marks on the trees, at just how high the flood waters were. The Billabong was quite dramatic with dead trees and dark grey covering. There were lots of birds, and hundreds of dead and dying carp - too much salt and not enough oxygen for them! We also had a tour of the Psyche pumps  which the local community were restoring. We also visited Red Cliffs- a stunning place to paint. This is how it all began and we revelled in each day visiting Perry Sandhills, Australian Botanical Gardens, Sketched on a paddle boat cruise along the Murray, and visited the salt lakes in Murray Sunset NP. We painted a lovely lake with red gums and water in Hattah- Kulkyne NP, visited a Pioneer village,   painted by the Murray where the soil was still damp and cracked from the floods.

It was a wonderful week with great company, and great guides. The weather was perfect for painting, and No rain!  It is the way to go with just a few like -minded  friends I have known and painted with for years, and who  just love painting out there wherever it may be.