Preparation

And so it begins.
The packing! It's always a tiny bit of a challenge to pack for a single trip with a variety of events.

We have the Road trip: endless drives across deserts and sierras. This means a cooler,  jugs of water and snacks: (apples, celery with almond butter, oranges and tomatoes from the garden, mixed unsalted nuts.) My CD player doesn't work so I have my iPod and portable speaker that plugs into the cig lighter. I downloaded a new Louise Penny book to listen to while I drive. I have my iphone and charger, flares for an emergency and loads of maps in case the wifi doesn't work on the phone which I'm pretty certain 9/10ths of my trip it may not. 

We have the sleeping: Tents. Yes. I am bringing 2 tents. Crazy? I think not. There is about a weeks worth of single night or 2 night stays, so for those I have my 2 person REI Dome tent. My go-to tent. Easy up, small and packs really small. The other tent is a 4 person tent. A Grand Trunk tent. SO easy. Love this thing. I'll have a long extended stay in one location while I'm painting so I'm 'settling' in and I suppose - Glamping!  There's room for a tri-fold 4" japanese futon in both tents so I will be comfy. I adore my Big Agnes sleeping bag, called the Ethel. She's WARM and I'll be fine on those 48° degree nights and mornings. (Fingers crossed!) A pillow is coming with as well as a thick wool blanket JUST IN CASE Ethel isn't enough. I'm also bringing a throw rug and extra footprint and good rain fly. Apparently a nice rain storm blows through the valley just about every day. Thunder too!

Then there is the actual camping. Tents and sleeping bags are a given, but then there is a chair, my AeroPress and hand grinder and pound of whole bean coffee. (I know the requirements for camping right!) My JetBoil and fuel. Tuna and Beans and Oatmeal. The basics. Spork. Cutting board and knife. (Yes, also, 2 bottles of red wine.) (I do know how to camp right.)

Next up: The essentials. Toiletries and Clothing and Camera and Reading material.
Clothing for hiking and canyoneering.
Clothing for painting.
Clothing for everyday.
Something a little bit nice for the Art Reception and Shows.
Rain jacket. Fleece for cold painting days. Down jacket for nights.
Camera. Charger. Extra battery. Waterproof case (remember the canyoneering!)
Books. Book on Bryce and Zion. Book on Grand Canyon. A new Lee Child/Jack Reacher novel (!!) and an old Sunset magazine I found, still sealed from last year, all on the Grand Canyon!

Lastly, the painting stuff.
My OpenBoxM pochade, tripod, BestBrella, turp, extra turp, paints (not really a limited palette but still less than my normal palette, panels and panels galore. Then there are the boxes of frames! 4 9x12 floaters and 4 6x8 floaters as well as a bonus 6x8 frame that is just super cool and will look great with a colorful desert painting in it. Brushes and a big hat and wet panel carriers... that pile adds up quickly.

Now to fit it all into the car.