Timber Cove

William Seltzer Rice

William Rice spent a great deal of time in Sonoma County, California, capturing the widely varied landscapes of the region in watercolor and in blockprint. One area of particular interest to Rice was the Russian River watershed, which leads from the arid, grape-growing eastern region of the county to the Pacifc Ocean.

Here, he’s portrayed the town of Timber Cove’s namesake, a small, gentle curve dipping into the jagged-edged cliffs of the Sonoma Coast. The scene is much the same today, and the fence line he’s painted now marks the property of the Timber Cove resort. On any given day you can see the bending cypress, the golden sandstone boulders, and the ever-changing fields of iceplant whose colors turn from green to red with the seasons, vibrant and glowing beside the wild Pacific waters.