Posts Tagged ‘Biltmore Estate’

Scenic Sunday: Biltmore’s Italian Garden

August 21, 2011

The Italian Garden on the Biltmore Estate, Asheville, North Carolina. August 5, 2011.

This is my post for the Scenic Sunday meme, which shares beautiful scenes from around the world.  To see more Scenic Sunday posts, or to join and show your own pictures, click HERE.

We celebrated Betsy’s birthday a couple of weeks ago by going to the Biltmore Estate.  We have season passes and try to get there every month or so to see the beautiful gardens.  There are several gardens on the estate, which change with the seasons, and each is beautiful.

We spent most of our time on this visit in the Italian Garden, which is the garden closest to the house.  The garden was designed by Frederick Law Olmsted (who also designed Central Park in New York City) as an outdoor room for George Vanderbilt and his guests.

One of the pools in Biltmore's Italian Garden. August 5, 2011.

The Italian Garden contains three symmetrical pools full of aquatic plants, beautiful lawns and classical statuary.  There are benches which invite people to sit and enjoy the beauty around them.  (To see another treatment of this photo, click HERE).

Water lilies, Biltmore, Asheville, North Carolina. August 5, 2011.

Much of the beauty of the Italian Garden comes from the gorgeous blossoms of the water lily.

My World: Birthday Sunshine

August 9, 2011

Sunflowers on the Biltmore Estate, Asheville, North Carolina. August 5, 2011.

This is my post for the My World meme.  It is hosted by Klaus, Ivar, Sandy, Wren, and Fishing Guy.  To learn more about our world or to join and share your part of the world, click HERE.

We went to the Biltmore Estate in Asheville on Betsy’s birthday.  There is so much to see and the gardens change with each season.  We visited the Italian Garden on this trip, and I’ll have pictures from there at a later date.

But as we were leaving the estate, we came upon a field of sunflowers.  Of course we had to stop and get some pictures.  We especially liked the mountains and hills in the background.

Sunflowers for the Birthday Girl. August 5, 2011. (Photo by Betsy)

The sunflowers themselves were big, bright and beautiful, as you can see in this picture Betsy captured.

Betsy enjoying her birthday sunflowers. Biltmore Estate, Asheville, North Carolina. August 5, 2011.

But I personally think that the sunflowers paled in comparison to the smile of my Beautiful Bride.

Fun With Our Geotracker

April 21, 2011

As many of you know, Betsy and I have a geotracker which allows us to determine the location of pictures that we take.  We’ve had it for a year, and use it whenever we take a trip.

Last week’s trip to Biltmore Estate was no exception.  We turned the geotracker on before we left home and were able to track our journey on Google Earth.
The map above, which can be enlarged by clicking on it, shows our journey from Fairfield Glade, Tennessee,  to Asheville, North Carolina.  As you can see we traveled almost the entire way on Interstate 40.  We timed our trip to miss rush hour in Knoxville, Tennessee, when traveling both ways.

This image shows the Biltmore Estate and the things we did once we got there.  This image, too, can be enlarged by clicking on it.

When we got to Biltmore we drove past the house and parked near the Conservatory.  It had been our intention to see the tulips first, but the azaleas were so pretty as we drove in that we decided to visit the Azalea Garden first.  So we walked over to the path to the Azalea Garden and walked through that garden down to the Bass Pond.  We then hiked around the west (left) side of the Bass Pond to the waterfall at the southern end.  We then walked back through the Azalea Garden to the Walled Garden where we enjoyed the tulips in bloom.

I’ve now given you a bird’s eye view of our trip to Biltmore, thanks to our geotracker.

Watery Wednesday #136: Bass Pond Falls

April 20, 2011

Bass Pond Falls, Biltmore Estate, Asheville, North Carolina. March 14, 2011.

This is my post for Watery Wednesday.  To see more of our beautiful watery world, or to join and post your own pictures to share, click HERE.

As most of you know, Betsy and I find it hard to go any place without looking for a waterfall or two.  When we were at Biltmore in February we noticed a Waterfall Trail, but didn’t have time to check it out.  Last week we walked that trail and came to the waterfall shown above.

True, Bass Pond Falls is man-made.  The falls is formed by a dam built to create the bass pond.  But it is still a pretty 15-foot drop.

My World: Tip-Toeing Through the Tulips

April 19, 2011

Tulips at the Biltmore Estate, Asheville, North Carolina. April 14, 2011.

This is my post for the My World meme.  It is hosted by Klaus, Ivar, Sandy, Wren, and Fishing Guy.  To learn more about our world or to join and share your part of the world, click HERE.

The Walled Garden (so-called because it is surrounded by a wall) at Biltmore is a formal garden with symmetrical flower beds arranged in patterns.  When we were there last week, most of the blooming flowers were tulips.

Tulips at the Biltmore Estate, Asheville, North Carolina. April 14, 2011.

Most of the beds contained two varieties of tulips, selected for their complementary colors.  Sometimes the differences in the shades were subtle, as in this bed of purple tulips.

Tulips at the Biltlmore Estate, Asheville, North Carolina. April 14, 2011.

The tulip beds at Biltmore were a riot of rich and beautiful color.

Scenic Sunday # 143: Biltmore Azaleas

April 17, 2011

Azaleas and a dogwood tree at Biltmore Estate, Asheville, North Carolina. March 14, 2011.

This is my post for the Scenic Sunday meme, which shares beautiful scenes from around the world.  To see more Scenic Sunday posts, or to join and show your own pictures, click HERE.

This past Thursday Betsy and I returned to the Biltmore Estate near Asheville, North Carolina.  We went to see the tulips as part of their Festival of Flowers, but once we got there we were so taken by the beautiful azaleas and dogwoods in bloom that we checked out the Azalea Garden first.  The picture above was taken near the start of the path through Azalea Garden.  The colors were absolutely spectacular.