A Windmill on My Mind

Windmill at Castoro Cellars Vineyard

I love the scenery to be found in the Bethel Road Vineyards in Templeton / Paso Robles. One special subject I like to photograph is this windmill in the vineyard at Castoro Winery. On February 28, the clouds promised rain. After dropping off someone at our Templeton house near the time for the sun to set, I headed straight to Bethel Road, hoping to shoot the windmill with the setting sun as a backdrop. Before I could get there, it began to rain.

Did I want to risk getting my camera wet to get this shot? It seemed the drops were farther apart, so I parked along the road and sheltered my camera, trying to protect all I could of it while not shooting straight into the sun. These were not the best shooting conditions, and this is the best I could do under the circumstances. I had hoped to have the windmill in the light, but it would not have worked while the sun was still so bright -- in spite of the rain. Here's a different view I took of this same windmill and put on a poster at Zazzle.

Castoro Cellars Windmill in Golden Sunset Poster
by cawinecountry

For contrast I offer this photo taken on June 23, 2013, during the day, while the vines were green and the sky was blue. This photo shows you more of the beauty of the vineyard itself. If you ever visit Templeton, you should pay a visit to Castoro Cellars. The windmill is just an introduction to a great experience.

© Barbara Radisavljevic

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The New Clock Tower: A Paso Robles Landmark.

When people visit Paso Robles, they are very likely to spend some time downtown. Most public festivals take place in City Park, and many of the boutiques, specialty shops, and  businesses targeting tourists are found on the streets bordering the park. People who spend time downtown usually remember the Paso Robles Inn Coffee Shop, the theater, and the Acorn Building that you see pictured here. All are across from the Park, though on different streets.

This clock tower has come to be an icon of the City of Paso Robles. It is across from the downtown city park on the corner of 12th Street and Park Steet, and the original building dates from 1895. It was an unreinforced masonry building when the San Simeon earthquake destroyed it in December, 2003. Two women in the building at the time the quake struck died. This article shows photos of the damage the earthquake did downtown, as well as a photo of the original clock tower building. You can read here how this earthquake affected me and my home business and see my damage photos. For more on the history of the building with more photos, see this article from Paso Robles Magazine, our most read local publication.

It took until 2007 for the building to be rebuilt and open to the public again. I took this photo on January 27, 2015. The clock tower design is available on several products from postcards to laptops cases and postage stamps. You can see them all along with other Paso Robles landmarks by clicking the image or link below.

Clock Tower Downtown Paso Robles Post Cards