46 West Wine County is Green Again

46 West Wine Country is Green After the Rains

I had a view minutes to stop and photograph the green pastures on my way to our Templeton house today. I stopped at the Tooth and Nail Winery castle parking lot and walked as far east on the property as I could go. I took this photo from behind the winery. I love the green pastures, the fences that divide them, the oaks, and the green grass between the rows of vines.

Countryside East of Tooth and Nail Winery

When I saw the cattle enjoying one of the pastures just east of Tooth and Nail Winery, I knew I had to photograph them. I used my zoom because I could not get too close. I took the photo from the back of the Tooth and Nail Winery. The photo is divided in the middle by Highway 46. You can see a vineyard on the other side of it, as well as the oak trees.

Castle Grazing on Land Just East of Tooth and Nail Winery

This view as I looked down at 46 West from the castle parking lot drew my attention. Since I used a zoom, the view across 46 looks closer than it really is. The light is dim looking south, since I took this series of photos around 4:40 and the sky overcast.

Looking Across Highway 46 West from  Tooth and Nail Winery Parking Lot

Sky Journal 

I'm changing the location of the sky journal today. It was gray almost all day between the oak and the palms where I usually record changes in the sky. The photos around 4:40 from the castle grounds were more interesting.  This is my favorite. 

Sky View from Tooth and Nail Parking Lot, 2-6-17 about 4:40PM Looking West

When I got to the house, I had to capture this sky as I looked east on 46 toward Highway 101. It was about 4:50 and you can see just how gray the sky is in contrast to the tiny bit of light where the road meets the horizon. Notice the mustard is beginning to bloom on the side of the slope

Looking East on Highway 46 West about 4:50, 2-6-17

Lastly, we see the sky looking southwest over some of our trees as I turned in my driveway. Just a bit of sun is peeking through the gray clouds.

Sun Peeks through Clouds Over Trees on Our Land. 

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C is for Cattle in Wine Country

Calf and Cow Mother Grazing
by Venteux Vineyard, © B. Radisavljevic

When you think of vineyards, do you picture cattle grazing next door to them? Paso Robles Wine Country attracts thousands tourists every year. I wonder how many of them realize they will also be in cattle country?

We know there were cattle in Paso Robles as early as 1857. During World War I Ignace Jan Paderewski purchased land in Paso Robles for orchards and vineyards. (See Paso Robles History Timeline) Before that the mission fathers grew grapes for their wine, but most local vineyards are fairly recent. I'd guess the cattle ranches were here first. That's why my topic for this third day of the AtoZchallenge is C is for Cattle in Wine Country. You will often see cattle grazing right next to a vineyard or between  vineyards. 

The mama cow and her calf are part of a herd of cattle I saw grazing next to Venteux Vineyards on Las Tablas Road in Templeton, California. This is technically part of the Paso Robles Wine County, since Templeton is not incorporated and the boundaries between Templeton and Paso Robles are such that I'm in Templeton and the neighboring vineyard and tasting room across the fence from me has a Paso Robles address.

You can see more of the cattle below, as well as the context of the first photo. The tasting room is the gray building in the center in the middle of the vineyard. I had to use a zoom on these photos because there was a fence between me and the cattle. I enjoyed my photo walk Exploring Venteux Vineyards in Templeton and took lots of photos of places most tourists never see. Click the link to see some of them.

Cattle Grazing by Venteux Vineyard, © B. Radisavljevic

Venteux is just one winery here with cattle next door. You will see some others in the related article below. There are many more that I see when driving on 46 West between 101 and Vineyard Drive. Continue west toward Cambria and you will see more cattle and fewer vineyards. You cannot drive very far in this area without realizing this is as much cattle country as wine county.

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Related articles

• Cattle Grazing near Vineyard in Paso Robles