On the Road to Who Knows Where

The Photo Walk that Wasn't

I was in Templeton today for a doctor appointment I didn't know had been cancelled. But I decided to make the most of it and take a photo walk. I started at the construction site on the corner of Posada Lane and Las Tablas that I started photographing last week. The plan was to then go to rural east Templeton and take some pictures, so I headed off on Templeton Road. I parked along the side of the road and hadn't walked far when I found this lost glove in the bike lane. I don't want to even think about what's on that glove.

Lost Garden Glove on the Road, © B. Radisavljevic

Construction

When I visited the doctor a week ago, I noticed construction was underway to replace the medical building that had burned down a couple of years ago. Last week the foundations were almost finished. This week framing was off to a good start. I took several photos, but I'm just sharing these two now. I took these shots from Las Tablas Road.

Construction on Posada Lane in Templeton, © B. Radisavljevic

Below is a new trench. I noticed when I uploaded the photo that I'd shot past this olive tree which is loaded with olives.

Olive Tree Loaded with Olives near Construction Site on Posada Lane, © B. Radisavljevic

East Templeton

When I'd finished shooting my construction photos I drove over to Templeton Road in rural East Templeton, where I intended to shoot a lot of rural photos. Here are the only two I have to share. First this odd shaped oak tree caught my eye. It's had quite a pruning job. It is currently sharing its space with some trailers, trucks, and heavy equipment.

Grotesque Oak Tree in Rural Templeton, © B. Radisavljevic 

The horse properties were a bit prettier. I took several photos at this farm, but liked this one best.

Horses Grazing in Rural Templeton, © B. Radisavljevic 

After I shot this, something strange started happening to my camera lens. It zoomed and wouldn't come back. then I got the message that there was a lens error and my camera would shut down automatically and I'd have to restart it. So I put it back in its case and decided to take the scenic route home to Paso Robles via El Pomar.

I got as far as Finley Family Nursery and decided to park there and see how the camera was doing. This is how it was doing.

Blurry Photo Taken When Lens Malfunctioned

I kept trying to get it in focus and couldn't. Then I got the message that it was shutting down and I needed to charge the battery. Fortunately when I finally got home and charged the battery, the camera started to work again. Meanwhile, I missed a lot of good shots, including a spectacular sunset on the way home.

Getting Home Was a Nightmare

I thought I knew how to get from El Pomar to South River Road. I've done it. I wrote down the instructions for my husband. But I didn't have them with me. When I got to Creston Road, I turned south instead of north and got lost.

I drove for miles trying to figure out the way home and my gas tank was getting dangerously close to empty and the sun was going down. All I could see were vineyards and farms and no people. Finally I found a couple of men near the road and stopped. They told me to turn around and go the opposite direction on Creston and I'd finally get to Paso Robles. I guess I had driven all the way to Creston. Maybe it is time to get a smartphone -- or at least carry a map.

It's awful to be going full speed who knows where until one can find the way home. But I finally got to territory I recognized again and made it home without running out of gas. I've not been so happy to get home in a long time. It's what we think we know that we don't know that can get us in trouble.

Have you been lost lately? How did it make you feel? 


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We Olive Offers Olive Tasting Opportunities

As I  visit wineries and walk along country roads, it seems olive trees are now growing everywhere. I even saw one in a parking lot when I was poll-watching in the 2012 election. Friends who have moved out of the area had a small olive orchard on their property. Many growers seem to think olives and grapes are good partners. So we see olives growing all around us, but we don't always get a chance to taste the olives and their oils unless we attend special events or go to farmers market. You can, however, taste olive products in downtown Paso Robles instead of waiting for a festival or farmers market. We Olive offers olive tasting opportunities. 

We Olive Olive Tasting Bar, Photo © B. Radisavljevic

We Olive Sign, Photo © B. Radisavljevic

We Olive is located at 1311 Park Street, Paso Robles. When you walk into the tasting room in Paso Robles, you are surrounded by everything olive. Each display features a particular olive product. Above you see the olive tasting bar. At the time of this writing, you can fill one of the small containers you see on the shelf with your own choices of olives from the serving containers for $8.50. 



As you enter the store,  one of the first displays you see is the balsamic vinegar tasting bar. Unfortunately there was not a good way to get rid of the light from the window when I took the picture.

Taste Balsamic Vinegar at We Olive, © B. Radisavljevic

There is also a display of olive oils that features tasting opportunities. You can see the location of the olive tasting bar in the left corner of the photo below. Have you noticed the gift items on the shelves?

Taste Olive Oil at We Olive, © B. Radisavljevic

Next time you are downtown, consider dropping in at We Olive for a taste of olive.

If you enjoyed this post, please share it. The sharing buttons are just above the comment box at the end of this post. The photo below is especially designed for pinning.

This is my twenty-third post for the 2016 AtoZchallenge, a Blogging Challenge for the month of April, 2016. My theme is Things You Can See or Experience in North San Luis Obispo County. Here are links to the other posts if you missed them.

A is for Acorn
B is for Barney Schwartz Park
C is for Cattle in Wine Country
D is for Dark Star Cellars
E is for Electric Wires
F is for Family Farms
G is for Graveyard Vineyards
H is for Horses
Insects in My Neighborhood in April
J's Burgers in Paso Robles: A Review
Kosta is God's Gift to Me from Across the Ocean
Laguna Lake is Full Again
Mission San Miguel Photos
Niner Estates Decorated Heart Hill with Vineyards
Ocean Photos from the California Central Coast
Paso Robles Police Vehicles
Quiet Places Near Paso Robles
Red Soles Winery at Dusk
Shale Oak Winery at Dusk
Trader Joe's In Templeton is my Favorite Grocery Store
Umbrage is Abundant in the North County
Vineyards Through the Year

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Olives Are Getting Ripe at Niner Estates

Many wineries these days are growing not only grapes but olives. Niner Estates also has olive groves, but only a few trees in their Heart Hill location on Highway 46 West. Olives ripen late in the year. The tree in the photo is one near the tasting room.

It has olives that appear to be almost ripe. I don't know whether these olives will be harvested and pressed or not, since it appears Niner has already processed this year's olives from its other locations. Perhaps these trees are for ornamental purposes only this year.

This is how the olives looked on November 19.

Olives at Niner's Heart Hill Location, Nov. 19, 2015, 

This is how the olives look on August 8, 2015.

Olives at Niner's Heart Hill Location, August 8, 2015

Unlike many other pit fruits, if you pick an olive off the tree to eat, you will be sorry. They are only edible after they have been processed.

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Some Views of Niner Estates and Heart Hill at the Beginning of August

Niner Estates Tasting Room Entrance

The hill with the heart-shaped oak grove along Highway 46 West has been there since I moved to Templeton over twenty years ago. There were no grapes there and no tasting room. I can't remember the year that grapes were planted and the buildings appeared, but I know that I was making videos and taking pictures of Niner States by 2010. I'm sure it was there long before that and I'd just been too busy to make much notice. This photo is of the tasting room.

Although all vineyards are attractive, Niner Estates has a special kind of subdued beauty that blends with the earth in a way that some of the other winery properties don't. The stone work on the exterior of the tasting room and the muted colors of the plants in the landscaping complement each other. The rows of white roses and lavender lead the eye to the greens of the vineyards and trees in summer when everything is in bloom.

I love the way the vineyards climb the rolling hills behind the buildings. Oak trees dot the vineyards. The roses and lavender stand in the foreground.

A person driving west on Highway 46 has a visual treat on the north side between the 101 Freeway and Vineyard Drive. So many wineries and vineyards to grab one's attention! From the east are the vineyards of Doce Robles, Summerwood, Tooth and Nail, Dark Star Cellars, Niner, Hunt Cellars, Zin Alley, Cipher, and Croad. And that's just the north side of the street. Each is unique, but Niner still manages to stand out because of how much space is not allotted just to grapes.

Of course, Heart Hill is the most prominent landmark on the property. It is best seen from the West. When I was at Niner Estates on Saturday, August 8, taking these photos, I noticed the crape myrtle trees were also in bloom -- white ones, to match the roses. You can see them, as well as many olive trees, in this next photo of

Heart Hill.

I didn't notice so many olive trees last time I was there, but they seemed to be everywhere on this visit. You can see several behind the wall in the photo to the left.

Below is the large one near the tasting room entrance.

Niner is growing four different varieties of olives for oil  it uses in its restaurant. I have read they also plan to plant a vegetable garden for use in the restaurant. So it appears that the Niner intends to be more than just a producer of wine.

In the photo below, I have enlarged a portion of the tree so that you can see the olives getting ripe. You can click on any photo on this page to enlarge it for a closer look.

Here's a poster you can purchase showing how Heart Hill looks in  autumn.

Poster: Heart Hill, Paso Robles, in Autumn

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The Olive Press at Mission San Miguel

People have been growing and pressing olives for their oil for a long time in California. The Franciscan missionaries brought them to San Diego and the Mission olive cultivar developed in the late 1700's accompanied the establishment of the California missions along El Camino Real. This olive press remains at Mission San Miguel.

This photo shows the other end of the olive press with the sign explaining it. Unlike the top photo which is the view one sees upon entering the mission grounds, this view looks out to the street. If the print is too small for you to read, just click the photo to enlarge it.

After I had taken a lot of photos of the grounds, I walked completely around the mission, and it was a much longer walk than it appeared to be when I started walking from the exit of the cemetery grounds. The mission still covers a lot of territory, and I'll be sharing more photos in future posts.

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