61 F/ 16 C

A morning for paint
and conversation in the 
park by the river

~carliewired

I was out the door at 9:15 and on my way to Gateway Park near the downtown. The word had gone out to meet at 10 for plein air painting. 

We were treated to a fabulous morning for weather. There wasn't a cloud to be seen. The sky was that glorious blue that Arizona does so well. 

I think I counted 9 painters. We walked down from the parking lot under the interstate overpass to find locations by the Colorado River. 

The first thing to catch my attention this morning was this odd gizmo near the entrance called the Blaisdell Slow Sand Filter Washing Machine. It was built in 1902 to use in the treatment of drinking water. It is listed in the National Register of Historic Places so it rests here for posterity.

There were a few boaters on the river as well as some ducks. There was a pair of ducks I did not recognize. The female looked like a mallard, but the male was all black except for a green iridescent head. A little research suggested it could be a cross between a mallard and an American black duck. I wish I'd taken a photo!

Gateway Park sits on the state line between California and Arizona. Looking across to the California side there's the St. Thomas Mission. The main feature of the park is the Ocean to Ocean bridge with the railway bridge beside it. This bridge, built in 1915, was the first highway crossing of the lower Colorado River. 

I'm back working on my quilt project for the day. I'm trying not to get too ambitious with it.