FortyOne: Afternoon Sun

Continuing the ‘Creeks and Rivers of Silicon Valley’ year long quest.

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San Thomas Aquino Creek which flows north through the cities of Saratoga, Monte Sereno, Los Gatos, Campbell, Santa Clara and San Jose before its confluence with the Guadalupe Slough in south San Francisco Bay (close by where ThirtyThree: Sin City was painted). Historically, San Tomas Aquino Creek formed the eastern boundary of the 1841 Rancho Quito and the western boundary of the 1840 Rancho Rinconada de Los Gatos land grants. It now forms the border between the towns of Saratoga and Los Gatos.

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Here is the basic scene I painted. I took quite a bit of the undergrowth out to see the creek a little better.

I painted on a pedestrian bridge over the creek.

Here is the pedestrian bridge I painted on along Quito Road.

It was painted right where Mistletoe Creek joins San Thomas Aquino, at the corner of Quito Road and Old Adobe Rd in Saratoga. I wrote about Saratoga in TwentyEight: Tollgate. Even though you are in the middle of upscale suburbia of Silicon Valley, Quito Road meanders through a wooded area along the creek. You would never know you are right by a large metropolitan area.

There was a slight flow to both creeks, and with the severe drought that is becoming harder to find as the summer wears on in the valley.

Click this link for a map of all painting locations along with each painting.
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