Angel Island Sketchbook

Angel Island and San Francisco Bay

My favorite place to stay in San Francisco these days isn’t in San Francisco. It’s across the Golden Gate Bridge in Tiburon. I painted the sketch of boats at the Corinthian Yacht Club from the deck of the Water’s Edge Hotel. The location of the hotel is pretty much perfection. It’s steps away from restaurants and the ferry that heads over to Angel Island State Park.

Angle Island cove and view of TiburonThe ferry arrives on Angel Island at Ayala Cove. This is also where thousands of Asian immigrants arrived in the early 1900s. There are exhibits on the island that speak to the difficulties they endured. I painted this view from one of the picnic tables overlooking the cove and Tiburon.

View of Tiburon from Angle IslandMy favorite spot on the island is on the western side past the Civil War Era Camp Reynolds. There used to be heavy gun batteries here. What remains are concrete forms and a breathtaking view of San Francisco, the Golden Gate Bridge, Sausalito and Tiburon.

These watercolor sketches were made with very limited gear … just a water pen and a few colors. I can’t wait to head back.