Summer Solstice at Albany Bulb

Instead of my painting group meeting in my studio as usual tonight, we met at a little nearby beach on San Francisco Bay to paint until sunset. I did these quick watercolor sketches of the giant eucalyptus tree we sat under and  the beach with San Francisco in the distance (it's further away than I drew it) on the other side of the bay. This area is known as Albany Bulb because it's a little piece of Albany in the shape of a bulb that juts out into the bay. Albany is next door to Berkeley.

People brought drums down to the beach to celebrate the Solstice and it was fun painting to the sound of drums and cymbals. Tonight is the longest day of the year which surprises me, since it seems like it just barely became summer here. I'm only four days into my two-week vacation and already I'm worried that it won't be nearly long enough.