I Promised Her a Rose Garden (5)

June 20, 2012

April in Paris rose, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. April 30, 2012.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them once or twice.)

This is the fifth post on the roses in our yard.  The previous posts can be found by clicking on the tag ‘Roses’ below.

April in Paris is a fairly small plant with blossoms that are a beautiful soft pink with a touch of lavender.  It has been in our yard for several years now.

Deep Secret rose, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. May 19, 2012.

Deep Secret is one of the darkest red roses we have.  It was new to us last year, but like its color and form.

Dolly Parton Rose, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. May 3, 2012.

I’ve read that the Dolly Parson rose got its name because it was so ‘plump’.  I think the less I say about that, the better.

Elizabeth Taylor rose, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. May 3, 2012.

Elizabeth Taylor was another beautiful lady, and the rose named after her is one of the pretty pink roses we enjoy.

Gemini rose, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. May 1, 2012.

Gemini is one of my favorite roses.  I don’t know if it gets its name because of the two colors or because of the way it looks and the way it smells.  In either case, it is a beautiful rose.

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Our World: Waterfall Adventure

June 18, 2012

Double Culvert Branch, Chattahoochee National Forest, Georgia. May 5, 2012.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them.)
This is my post for the Our World meme.  This meme is a second generation of My World Tuesday created by Klaus Peter and is hosted by five wonderful ladies.  To learn more about our world or to join and share your part of the world, click HERE.

Last week I explained how Betsy and I ended up on a road along the Chattahoochee River in the mountains of north Georgia.  If you missed this post you can find it by clicking HERE.

Before we got into the forest Betsy did some research in our Georgia waterfall book and found that there were two waterfalls along Double Culvert Branch, which we would pass on our way to the waterfall we wanted to visit.

We easily found Double Culvert Branch — the picture above shows the branch just before it crosses the road (in a single, not double, culvert).  We naturally stopped for pictures, and while getting some we noticed a rough trail leading up one side of the creek.

We followed the trail, which wasn’t very well marked, for about a half of a mile and found the lower falls.  There the trail ended.

Lower Double Culvert Branch Falls, Chattahoochee National Forest, Georgia. May 5, 2012.

While getting pictures of Lower Double Culvert Branch Falls (above) I noticed a faint track going up the other side of the creek.  Since I knew there was supposed to be another waterfall, I asked Betsy if she wanted to try and find it.  My Beautiful Bride, wise woman that she is, said ‘No’, but that I could go on if I wanted to.  She would wait for me.

Upper Double Culvert Branch Falls, Chattahoochee National Forest, Georgia. May 5, 2012.

I crossed the branch on a log and started up the track.  It was a hard scramble, but I eventually got to Upper Double Culvert Branch Falls.  There wasn’t a lot of water going over, but it was a pretty little waterfall.  Once I got safely back to Betsy I was glad I went on.

This satellite image (above) gives an idea of our waterfall adventure.  Since the branch is hard to see, I’ve included the terrain map below which shows that there really is a creek with the name Double Culvert Branch.

I have no idea how the creek got this name.  I didn’t see a double culvert at all.

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Moon Over the Glade

June 15, 2012

Moon over Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. June 23, 2010.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them once or twice.)

This is my post for Skywatch Friday, a meme for sharing views of the sky from all over the world.  To see more, or to join and share your own photos of the sky, click HERE.

Things have been fairly hectic around here and I haven’t had a chance to get out with my camera as much as I would like.  So I went to my archives to get this picture of the moon in an early evening June sky over Fairfield Glade.  The picture was taken in June, 2010, and I like the fact that there is still some blue in the sky with that almost full moon.

 

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I Promised Her a Rose Garden (4)

June 13, 2012

Rose Summer of Love, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. April 26, 2012.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them once or twice.)

This is another post on the roses in our yard.  The previous posts can be found by clicking on the tag ‘Roses’ below.

We’ve only had Summer of Love in our garden for a couple of years, but we really like the colors in the blossoms of this rose as they open.  The colors seem to change each day.

Sundance rose, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. April 30, 2012.

This bright and sunny rose, Sundance, has graced our yard for several years.

Rose Sweetness, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. May 1, 2012.

The lavender/purple color of Sweetness is somewhat unusual.  Sweetness is another of our container roses.  It has a nice fragrance to go with its beautiful form.

Veterans’ Honor, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. April 28, 2012.

Betsy really likes red roses, and Veterans’ Honor is one of her favorites.  This rose doesn’t have a lot of fragrance, but it grows fairly tall and is usually loaded with blossoms.  It’s not unusual to see 10 – 15 beautiful blossoms at one time.

Rose Welcome Home, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. May 2, 2012.

Welcome Home is in our newest flower bed near the road.  This cheery rose greets us as we turn into the driveway, and it provides a very welcome home indeed.

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Our World: Chattahoochee River

June 11, 2012

Betsy at the Chattahoochee River in the north Georgia mountains. May 5, 2012.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them.)
This is my post for the Our World meme.  This meme is a second generation of My World Tuesday created by Klaus Peter and is hosted by five wonderful ladies.  To learn more about our world or to join and share your part of the world, click HERE.

Betsy and I wanted to visit a couple of waterfalls in northern Georgia on our way to the beach last month.  We had been to the area is February, so we had a good idea how to get to the falls we wanted to see.  Unfortunately the Forest Service road we needed to take into the mountains was closed, so we had to go to Plan B.

We found an alternate road to one of the waterfalls we wanted to see, and this route would also let us see a couple of ‘bonus’ falls along the way.  Our alternate route took us into the mountains along the Chattahoochee River, which has its headwaters near the waterfall we wanted to see.

As we drove deeper in to the mountains, we found a pullover where we could stop and go down to the river.  The picture above shows Betsy on the bank of the Chattahoochee.

George at the Chattahoochee River. May 5, 2012.

Here’s another view of the Chattahoochee that Betsy took.  I’m not sure where the old man came from, but he popped up in quite a few pictures that Betsy took on this trip.

The clear waters of the Chattahoochee River in north Georgia. May 5, 2012.

The Chattahoochee wasn’t very wide or very deep at this location, but it was running freely and the water was crystal clear.  It’s a beautiful stream.

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We Got Some Rain

June 8, 2012

Raindrops on Pink Perfection lily, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. June 5, 2012.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them once or twice.)

We end through a hot dry spell several weeks ago, but then the weather man said a cold front was coming through bringing rain with it.  The front came through, but the rain didn’t.  This happened again — and again.  (Fairfield Glade has five golf courses.  I think the Community Club has arranged for a giant umbrella to be installed so as not to interfere with golf rounds.)

But finally, on Monday night, we got some rain.  The picture above shows what we saw when we looked up at our 7-foot tall Pink Perfection lily.

Ronald Reagan rose, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. June 5, 2012.

I think the roses also appreciated the rain.  The water drops on this rose look like little jewels.

Cantina iris, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. June 5, 2012.

We still have an iris in bloom, and it, too, seemed to appreciate the rain.

Raindrops on one of our lilies, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. June 5, 2012.

We had gone out early to check the flowers in our yard, which is something we do just about every morning.  But on this day the water drops were as beautiful as the blossoms.

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I Promised Her a Rose Garden (3)

June 6, 2012

Southern Belle rose, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. April 26, 2012.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them once or twice.)

This is my third post of roses in our yard.  You can see the previous posts by clicking on the ‘Roses’ tag below.

I’ve been growing roses for almost 40 years, long before I knew Betsy.  After we got married and bought this house, I did in fact promise Betsy a rose garden.  But little did I know how much she would influence the roses that went into that garden.

How, you ask?  Well, Betsy was born and raised in Virginia, so Southern Belle rose (above)  seemed a natural choice for a garden.

Bewitched rose, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. April 27, 2012.

Do you remember the song ‘Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered’?  Betsy had that effect on me, and so Bewitched is now in our garden.

Strike It Rich rose, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. April 29, 2012.

After meeting Betsy and getting to know her, I knew I had found a real gem.  Is it any surprise then, that Strike It Rich is now in our yard?

Love and Peace rose, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. May 1, 2012.

Betsy has brought a lot of Love and Peace into my life, as well as this rose into our garden.

Sheer Bliss rose, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. April 17, 2012.

What’s been like to be married to Betsy for these almost eleven years?  Sheer Bliss sums it up very nicely.

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Looking Up

June 4, 2012

Betsy getting a picture of our Pink Perfection lily, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. May 29, 2012.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them once or twice.)

We knew lilies could grow to be tall, but we didn’t know how tall they could grow.  The picture above shows Betsy getting a picture of our Pink Perfection lily on the first day the flower buds opened.  The plant is a little over seven feet tall.

Pink Perfection Lily, May 29, 2012.

The blossoms are also huge.  Betsy says they are more purple than pink, but all I can say is that they are beautiful.

A closeup of a Pink Perfection lily blossom, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. May 29, 2012.

These lilies also have a delightful fragrance.  These lilies are in a bed try near the street in front of our house.  We’ve noticed people walking up and down the street often pause near these lilies for a few moments.  Why do you think they do this?

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I Promised Her a Rose Garden (2)

June 1, 2012

Rose About Face, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. April 28, 2012.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them once or twice.)

This is my second post about the roses in our yard.  You can see the first post by clicking on the tag ‘Roses’ at the bottom of this post.

About Face is one of our most unusual roses.  It gets its name from the fact that the outside of the petal is darker than the inside, which is the reverse of most roses.

Aromatherapy rose, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. April 27, 2012.

Aromatherapy Rose has a beautiful pink color and a delightful fragrance, which is probably the reason for the name.

Rose Chicago Peace, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. April 28, 2012.

Chicago Peace is one of several descendants of the Peace rose that we have in our yard.  Chicago Peace has more dark pink and orange than the original Peace rose contained.  Since I grew up near Chicago, it’s always nice to see this rose in bloom.

Double Delight rose, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. May 3, 2012.

If I had to pick only one rose as my all-time favorite, it would probably be Double Delight.  The blossoms of this rose have a beautiful form and wonderful color.  The fragrance is also wonderful.

Elle rose, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. April 27, 2012.

Elle is one of our newer roses.  It has beautiful pastel-colored blossoms.

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Hiking in the Rain

May 30, 2012

Little River near Elkmont in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee. May 22, 2012.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them once or twice.)

We had to take our car into Knoxville for servicing in late May, so we made an early morning appointment so we would have most of the day for a visit to the Smokies.  We decided to hike to the Little River Trail from the Elkmont Campground.  The trail follows the river and leads to Husky Branch Falls.

The day started well, and we enjoyed the drive to Elkmont as we always do.  We often left the trail to get pictures of the river, which was beautiful (above).

George in the rain on our hike along Little River. May 22, 2012.  (Photo by Betsy)

And then the rains came.  Fortunately we had rain jackets with us.  The jackets helped us, and our cameras, keep dry.  We kept going, even though it was raining hard at times.

Husky Branch Falls, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee. May 22, 2012.

The rain started to let up when we got to Husky Branch Falls, so we were able to enjoy this pretty waterfall.

Betsy taking pictures along Little River in the Smokies. May 22, 2012.

It was still raining as we headed back to the car.  At times it was only drizzling, so we continued to shoot the river as we walked back.

Our hike that day was about 4.3 miles, and it was raining for only four of those miles!  But it was a great day.

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