Tag Archives: Autumn

King of the Hill

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Col Solare Winery
Red Mountain, SE Washington

Col Solare sits at the top of the Red Mountain hillside vineyards. The winery started out as a joint venture of Italy’s Antinori wine family and Washington’s St. Michelle winery. The Antinori family has recently bought out St. Michelle’s interest and now own and manage Col Solare.

Col Solare’s estate vineyards extend in a fan shape from the winery down the slopes of Red Mountain. This image is from their vineyard looking up the hill to the winery and tasting room. In addition to their estate vineyards, they select grapes from several of the other vineyards on the Red Mountain hill side.

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Fine Wine on Red Mountain

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Looking East from Col Solare
Red Mountain, SE Washington

Some of the best Cabernet Sauvignons in Washington are from Red Mountain near Benton City in SE Washington. The Col Solare winery and tasting room sits on the top of the mountain. Several other great boutique wineries lay in the valley below.

The fall is a beautiful time to visit with all the various shades of the vineyards throughout the area. Mary and I frequently take the 1.5 hour drive down to enjoy the scenery, taste the excellent wine, and pick up our quarterly allocations. It is a great way to spend a sunny day!

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Good Morning !!!

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Sunrise
Heatherwood, Late Fall

Late fall and winter sunrises at Heatherwood are frequently spectacular. Many times I arise early in the morning when it is pitch dark. After a bit, a slight hint of light rises in the east. I see a trace of orange on the horizon. Soon the light spreads across the sky in pastel shades orange and pink. The hills and valley below are still pitch dark. Gradually, I can see dark shadows of hillsides and trees emerge. Then the sky bursts out in glorious brilliance of yellows, oranges, pinks, and purples. Mother Nature shouts out GOOD MORNING!!! Quickly the light spreads over the valley and the brilliant sky colors start to fade. It is a wonderful way to start the day!

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Turn to the Right 30 Degrees

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Overlooking the Meadow
Heatherwood Fall

This image was created at about the same spot as yesterday’s post. I just turned about 30 degrees to the right. The Golden Joy juniper is still the star attraction. But now the background is made up by the flowing grasses in the meadow. I see pinks, reds, oranges, yellows, greens, blues, purples, creams, and multiple shades of browns. The color palette is full!

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Prime Fall Color

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Overlooking the Middle Lawn
Heatherwood Fall

Heatherwood is in its prime fall color this first week in November. Over the last week, the garden has been exceptional. We are enjoying every moment! Color is everywhere. I’ve found myself lost exploring various ways of viewing the garden and discovering small vignettes. A couple of days ago, I spent over six hours walking around the garden with my camera. Yesterday I spent four hours absorbing the fall colors. Later today I plan to explore a little more.

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Looking Up Through the Garden

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View Looking Up Through the Meadow
Heatherwood Fall Colors

More color is bursting out every day! There is something new to capture my interest every morning. I need to get out and photograph every day. A little rain here and there coupled with wind knocks the leaves off quickly. One day our stewartia was covered with bright orange leaves. The next day after an evening wind, only a few leaves were left. The constant change is part of the glory of autumn. Each day Heatherwood delivers a new gift. I can’t wait to see what tomorrow will bring.

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Fall Glory

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Japanese Garden Entry
Heatherwood Fall

I started the day walking into the garden with my garden tools. I was planning on doing a little work. I did not get very far. The sun softly peeked through the light cloud cover. The colors of the garden were gorgeous. I turned around, put my tools away, and grabbed my camera. Three hours later I came in for lunch.

I have been working on our garden for ten years now. Our efforts are gradually taking effect. I had pretty much a clean slate to work with. For the first three years, this hillside was just a green lawn. In 2019, we tackled this area and started to create a Japanese inspired garden. Six years later most of this upper area is covered with maples, conifers, and ground covers. We sit back and enjoy just watching the area mature. As the conifers get larger and produce more shade, there will be room for a few more Japanese maples who are less tolerant to the bright eastern Washington sun.

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Look Down

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Shapes, Textures, and Tones
Heatherwood Japanese Garden Path

As I walk along our garden paths, my eyes are constantly moving. I look down and see this dwarf hemlock being surrounded and crowded by Japanese forest grass, low hanging viburnum branches, and a little Japanese variegated fern. What catches my eye is the variety and combination of textures, shapes, and color tones. When I stroll around the garden, I usually am not looking or searching for anything specific. I take the time to let a scene or vignette come to me and say, “Here I am, enjoy!”

Have a great day and enjoy each moment!

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Sharing With Our Neighbor

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Upper Grass Bed
Heatherwood Autumn

When I first moved in, this area was an ugly weed patch on the edge of my neighbor’s property. It is on a steep hill side and not visible from our neighbor’s upper yard. It was directly facing our upper lawn and was an eyesore. I asked if I could experiment a little with grasses and maintain the area. They gladly agreed. Now I have a colorful low maintenance planting bed that ties the neighbor’s yard to ours. And our neighbor has a colorful border of grasses that they do not have to maintain.

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