Category: On Island Time

Land’s endChannel Islands National Park, CA

Channel Islands National Park sketch by Chandler O'Leary

Speaking of sunny SoCal islands, on my last book research trip I finally got to cross a big line item off my national parks bucket list: Channel Islands National Park. I made this sketch at Inspiration Point (I really should do a post sometime about all the Inspiron Points in the various national parks…there are… More

Comments (0) Pin it!

Island paradiseSanta Catalina Island, CA

Catalina Island sketch by Chandler O'Leary

One of the things I’ve been doing in my little metaphorical lighthouse lately is dream of sunny shores and road trips past. And my favorite place to remember right now is Santa Catalina Island—26 miles off the coast of southern California—which I visited a few years ago while researching my book. The centerpiece of Avalon,… More

Comments (0) Pin it!

Greetings from the Best Coast

Greetings from the [Quarantined] Coast! Hoping this finds you safe and well, and staying home to help “flatten the curve” of the virus that is suddenly everywhere at once. Here in Washington we’re sheltering in place—and as fate would have it, today I am celebrating (from home) the release date of my newest book! Greetings… More

Comments (0) Pin it!

Today’s the day!

Book cover and process images from "The Best Coast" book written & illustrated by Chandler O'Leary, published by Sasquatch Books

Today is the “book birthday” of The Best Coast: A Road Trip Atlas! After nearly three years of work and a solid decade of research, I can’t believe this day is here. I am so excited to share this labor of love with you, and I hope you’ll love it, too. With 99 hand-drawn maps,… More

Comments (0) Pin it!

Fox talesSan Juan Island, WA

San Juan Island sketch by Chandler O'Leary

Every time I visit San Juan Island, my collection of fox sketches grows. They’re inescapable there, as much a part of the landscape now as the treeless prairies they prowl at Cattle Point. They’re not native to the island, though. In the 1890s, settlers introduced rabbits here for game, and apparently failed to foresee the… More

Comments (0) Pin it!

Seaside splendorSan Juan Island, WA

San Juan Island sketch by Chandler O'Leary

You already know that San Juan Island is perhaps my favorite place on earth, and the California poppies that grow wild at Cattle Point are just one of the many reasons why. I actually started this sketch on an earlier trip, and came back to this spot exactly one year later to finish it. And… More

Comments (0) Pin it!

Purple hazeSan Juan Island, WA

Pelindaba Lavender Farm sketch by Chandler O'Leary

Here in the Northwest, we’re in the thick of my favorite season right now. I don’t mean summer, per se, but lavender season. Our climate is pretty much perfectly suited to growing lavender, so other than maybe the south of France, there’s no better place to stand on a purple hillside, awash in scent.

Comments (1) Pin it!

Sunset sentinelPort Bolivar, TX

Pt. Bolivar Lighthouse sketch by Chandler O'Leary

When Mary-Alice and I drove across Texas together last year, we knew our stop for this night would be somewhere around Houston. Neither of us fancied slogging through an enormous, unfamiliar city at rush hour, so from the passenger seat I pulled out the map to see if I couldn’t find an alternative. What I… More

Comments (0) Pin it!
« Older Posts