Appalachian Trail NC TN Blue Ridge Mountains - Roan Mountain Rays I really liked this vertical composition from Jane Bald, and the dramatic sky. Rhododendron at peak bloom in the Roan Highlands is one of my favorite sights in the Blue Ridge Mountains. I try to visit Jane Bald in the Roan Highlands every year in June to see the rhododendron bloom and am often treated to spectacular sights. The flame azaleas were also in peak bloom and the view looking over Round Bald and Roan Mountain from here is always epic. Hope you enjoy it, comments welcome! ;-) Single exposure shot with a Nikon D700 and the 17-35mm 2.8 lens, CP and ND Grad. © 2013 Dave Allen Photography, All Rights Reserved. This image may NOT be used for anything without my explicit permission.
Shop for Loropetalum 'Carolina Midnight' to add a touch of elegance to your garden. With its deep purple foliage and pink fringed flowers, it's a stunning choice.
One of a series of images from Charleston South Carolina In March 2012. On my blog for the first day of that adventure at www.debsnelsonphotography.com/blog/ I share some of my favorite photos from the Magnolia Plantation and Gardens as well as my sampling of lowcountry cuisine; I hope you will check it out. For more photos please visit my website at www.debsnelsonphotography.com
I scanned this from an old photo. Been saving it for spring. Charleston is in all its glory now. We are fast moving to peak here in upper SC SEE LARGE
The Norman royal chamberlain established the castle on a low sandstone ridge where two ancient trackways met; King John added an outer circuit of stone walls and a dam to hold back a great defensiv…
The house and landscape shape one another and reveal themselves as you move through. L O C A T I O N Carrboro, North Carolina C L I E N T Anantha Aiyyer S T A T S 1,750…
Heather Evans Smith is an award winning fine art and conceptual portrait photographer based in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Her work captures both the everyday and the whimsical, telling stories of women and struggle, reality and the surreal. Smith’s work has been featured in solo and joint exhibitions, magazines, literary journals and online publications. She conducts creativity workshops around the country. Recently, she was chosen as winner of Ron Howard’s Project Imaginat10n. In the fall of 2013 her winning image was brought to life in a short film directed by Jamie Foxx. Heather explains her work by saying, “I want my photographs to tell stories. And I want stories that come from moments of life, like a still from an old movie. Movement and pain and the simple joys of being alive are frozen in time. Only a glance is needed to read the lines between people and find the story.”
Seabrook Island, South Carolina
An observation tower is a structure used to view events from a long distance and to create a full 360 degree range of vision. They are usually at least 20 metres (65.6 ft) tall and made from stone, iron, and wood. The towers first appeared in Germany at the end of the 18th century, and their numbers steadily increased, especially after the invention of the elevator. 1. Euromast, Netherlands link Euromast is an observation tower in Rotterdam, Netherlands, designed by Hugh Maaskant constructed between 1958 and 1960. It was specially built for the 1960 Floriade (an international exhibition of flowers and gardening), and is a listed monument since 2010. The tower is a concrete structure with an internal diameter of 9 m (30 ft) and a wall thickness of 0,3 m (1 ft). link For stability it is built on a concrete block of 1,900,000 kg (4,200,000 lb) so that the centre of gravity is below ground. It has a "crow's nest" observation platform 96 m (315 ft) above-ground and a restaurant. Originally 101 m (331 ft) in height it was the tallest building in Rotterdam. It lost this position for a while, but regained it when the Space Tower was added to the top of the building in 1970, giving an additional 85 m (279 ft). Euromast is a member of the World Federation of Great Towers. [link, map] 2. Korkeasaari Lookout Tower, Finland link Situated on a cliff-top site eighteen metres (60 ft) above sea level, with spectacular views of the sea and the city of Helsinki, the ten-metre (33 ft) tower is a delicately transparent landmark for Korkeasaari Island. The free form is inspired by its natural setting: it follows the existing low stone wall and skirts around a small birch grove. link The load bearing gridshell structure consists of 72 gluelam battens, with timber sections of 60mm x 60mm bent and twisted on site from seven preformed types. Over 600 bolted joints hold the shell structure together. The tower was a HUT Wood Studio project in 2000-2002. [link, map] 3. Bird Observation Tower, Germany link Located on the far-projecting peninsula Graswarder, which belongs to the Baltic seaside resort of Heiligenhafen, is an extensive natural bird reserve that is a favored site not only for ornithologists but for vacationers and other travelers as well. In order to observe birds in this unspoiled environment without disturbing them, the directors of the bird reserve wished to erect a suitable observation tower, which, thanks to its elevated location, would also provide an exceptionally good view of the entire area and would allow visitors to study details with the aid of a telescope. link The resulting wooden construction made of Siberian larch blends in well with the surrounding natural environment. As a sculpture made of beams and ledgers with diagonal bracing, it depicts a stylized figure of a sitting bird. A two-flight staircase provides access to the 15-meter (50 ft) high tower, which, with its glassed-in observation station, is easily able to accommodate large groups of visitors. [link] 4. Pyramidenkogel Tower, Austria link With its unique location at 905 metres (2,970 ft) above sea level, the 54 metres-high (177 ft) Pyramidenkogel lookout tower allows visitors to enjoy panoramic views of Carinthia’s magical mountains, lakes and valleys: The view extends from the peaks of the Karawanken to those of the Hohe Tauern (Alpine mountain ranges). link A modern lift allows you to reach the lookout platform in just 24 seconds. For the little ones, there is even a little playground at the foot of the tower. [link, map] 5. Baumwipfelpfad Observation Tower, Germany link Baumwipfelpfad Observation Tower is a part of the famous Treetop walkway in the Bavarian Forest National Park. It is an amazing building in the shape of an egg. The steel and wood tower rises 144 feet (44 m), completely enclosing three ancient fir trees in its hollow shell. The interior of the tower link The path stretches in gently meandering circles, up and around the structure. Open-air views of the forest and picturesque valleys appear on the right; on the left, a lofty view of the trees normally reserved for birds and other small animals. link The crown of the Baumwipfelpfad is a 360-degree deck that affords an outstanding prospect of the Bavarian Forest's greatest landmarks, including Mounts Lusen and Rachel, as well as the far-flung woods spread out below. [link, map] 6. Swan Bells Observation Tower, Australia Swan Bells, with copper sails and modern glass bell tower link The Swan Bell Observation Tower is one of Perth's main tourist attractions. This tower is situated on the Barrack St. Jetty, overlooking the Swan River and the entire city skyline. It is 82.5 metres (270 ft) tall building and contains twelve historic bells from St Martin-in-the-Fields church (14-th century) in Trafalgar Square in London. Construction of the tower began in 1999 and ended in 2001. The site is now a tourist attraction for the City; since its opening on 10 December 2000, 1 million people have visited. [link, map] 7. Rainforest Observation Tower, Panama link Rainforest Observation Tower, designed to observe the tropical rainforest and its colourful wildlife (especially birds), is located around 30 kilometres (19 mi) from the centre of Panama City and just two kilometres from the town of Gamboa. The tower, built in a tapering framework of steel tubes, is 32 metres (105 ft) tall, high enough to reach the forest canopy. link The centre of the tower is made up of a spiral stairway built around a central 12-inch (30 cm) wide tube, which is so solid that it was used as a crane during the construction process. It has four triangular or hexagonal platforms, the highest of which provides a view out over the whole of the forest canopy. The intermediate platforms provide views of the undergrowth and mid-levels of the forest, each of which has its own environment and fauna. The framework itself, made from eight-inch-wide (20 cm) tubes, is made up of triangle shapes reminiscent of the petals of an enormous flower. [link, map] 8. Skylon Tower, Canada link The Skylon Tower, in Niagara Falls, Ontario, is an observation tower that overlooks both the American Falls, New York and the larger Horseshoe Falls, Ontario from the Canadian side of the Niagara River. link Standing at 160 metres (520 ft) from street level and 236 metres (775 ft) from the bottom of the falls, the tower required approval from both Canadian and United States air transport authorities, due to its proximity to the international boundary. It was the second tower to be built using the slipform method, in which concrete is continually poured into a form moving slowly up the tower. [link, map] 9. Bostoren, Netherlands link In a forest in the east of the Netherlands one of the best architecture offices in the Netherlands has built a new lookout tower. The structure is part of a small park in the vicinity of the village Putten. The concept that the architect, SeARCH, has put forward works like this: take a circular piece of the forest and put it 36 meters (120 ft) up in the sky. From this elevated ground there is a 360 degree view over the forest, in which cities like Amersfoort appear at the horizon. link As the tower is not only located in the forest, but is actually a part of it, the tower has been named 'Bostoren'; Forest Tower. To maintain the little forest in the air, the lookout platform has been fitted with soil, a layer of it. There where the trees have been positioned, the soil has some more depth. As trees grow as big as their roots, the landscape architects expect the trees to not grow that high. The forest at the platform will be a kind of Bonzai forest. It is engineered smallness. [link] 10. Lookout Tower Poledník, Czech Republic link The Poledník lookout tower was transformed from the former radar tower located in the inaccessible border zone. Poledník mountain is one of the highest peaks of the Šumava mountains (altitude of 1315 m). In 1960's large military premises with the concrete tower were built on top of Poledník mountain. link The army abandoned the premises after 1989, some of the buildings were demolished, the tower underwent reconstruction and a cabin with a snack-bar was attached thereto. The lookout tower was opened to public in July 1998. Poledník is accessible along the red-marked tourist path from Prášily (village). The tower is open from some 15th May to 15th October and the entrance fee is 0,8€ (1$). [link, map] 11. Clingmans Dome Observation Tower, USA link The observation tower on the summit of Clingmans Dome (a mountain in the Great Smoky Mountains of Tennessee and North Carolina) offers spectacular 360° views of the Smokies and beyond for visitors willing to climb the steep half-mile walk to the tower at the top. link On clear days views expand over a 100 miles (160 km). Unfortunately, air pollution often limits viewing distances to under 20 miles (30 km). Clingmans Dome Observation Tower is 54 feet high (16,5 m) and it is popular tourist destination. [link, map] 12. Killesberg Tower, Germany link This tower is located in the Killesbergpark, an urban public park of half a square kilometre (123 acres) in Stuttgart, Germany. Completed in 2000 this building is an observation tower, 40m (130 ft) high overlooking the park. It is cable-stayed tower construction designed by Jörg Schlaich, using cable-stayed bridge technology. [link, map] 13. Glasgow Tower, UK link Glasgow Tower is a free-standing tower located on the south bank of the River Clyde in Glasgow, Scotland and forms part of Glasgow Science Centre complex. At 127 metres (415 ft) tall the Glasgow Tower is currently the tallest tower in Scotland and the second tallest free-standing structure after Inverkip Power Station. It holds a Guinness World Record for being the tallest tower in the world in which the whole structure is capable of rotating 360 degrees. link The whole structure rests upon a 65 centimetre (25 inches) diameter thrust bearing, and is not connected to its foundations, merely resting in a 15 meter (50 ft) deep caison, this allows it to rotate under computer control to face into the wind. The tower has two elevators each with a 12 person capacity, but this is normally limited to 6 guests plus a single member of staff for reasons of comfort. There is also an emergency staircase, comprising 523 stairs from the Cabin level to the Podium. [link, map] 14. Petřín Lookout Tower, Czech Republic link The Petřín Lookout Tower is a 60 metre (197 ft) high steel framework tower in Prague, which strongly resembles the Eiffel Tower. Although it is much shorter than the Eiffel Tower, it stands atop a sizable hill, Petřín, so the top is actually at a higher altitude than that of the Eiffel Tower. The Petřín Lookout Tower was built in 1891 and was used as an observation tower as well as a transmission tower. Today the Petřín Lookout Tower is a major tourist attraction. [link, map] 15. Murturm Nature Observation Tower, Austria link This observation tower rises over the river Mur at the Austrian border with Slovenia. The aluminium-clad structure staircase curls back on itself at the top, forming a double spiral so that visitors on the way up pass those on the way down. link On top, a visitor’s platform is resting 27 meters (88 ft) above the ground overlooking the nature reserve to allow scientific monitoring as well as visual access to the river renaturation project. This amazing tower was built by the German architectural firm Terrain from Munich.
See Catawba Falls near Old Fort, North Carolina, a 100-foot waterfall in the Pisgah National Forest near Asheville.
Chris Eaves
Chestnuts have done more than just disappear from the landscape: They have dropped out of our lives save for a token appearance at Christmas. Whether in Eurasia or North America chestnuts were a major staple. Long before the cultivation of wheat entire European populations lived off chestnuts as later populations would depend on potatoes. In […]
Prunus caroliniana 'Bright 'n Tight' (Dwarf Carolina Cherry) - As an upright shrub, it branches densely from the base and can serve as a clipped hedge. Plant is thickly clothed in 2-4 in. long, smooth-edged, glossy green leaves. Small, fragrant creamy withe flowers bloom in 1 in. spikes from late winter to mid spring. Does best with protection from hottest sun. Requires moderate water in summer months. 'Bright 'n Tight' is more densely branched that the species and reaches about 8-10 ft. tall, 6-8 ft. wide.
Mingo Falls in North Carolina, near Great Smoky Mntns N.P.. For more information on the waterfall visit waterfall-picture-guide.com
It’s easy to get lost in the enigma of Carolina Bays, but even easier to explore these mysterious bodies of water.
Shot on Botany Bay Road, Edisto Island, South Carolina You can see more of my work at: www.facebook.com/vibrantshot www.vibrantshot.com
