Social Circle, GA

Someone just outside Social Circle, GA seems to have started a collection of old steam tractors. This one is sitting near the road, but there are more in the back and a mill wheel near the stream. I hope they are working on a museum, but it may just be a hobby. The side of this machine reads Elect Wiley Pucket State Senator July 18?? under the rust and weather. I'll do some research on that. In the meantime, I thought you'd all enjoy seeing some more GA roadside art.

Rambling farther

Several years ago I took a ramblin' trip to Kerry, Ireland to walk over the green hills all day long. It was amazing and I got lots and lots of beautiful pictures. Much of Ireland is still fairly rural, with vast rugged fields of sheep and cows and small, friendly villages. The picture above was taken at the end of a full day of hiking through Killarney Park. We went in the back way and came out through the Gap of Dunlow. It's a spectacular gap in the mountains and serenely beautiful and very rugged at the same time. The cart and horse are a tourist attraction now.

Movie set

We took a ride south and east of Simpsonville on Saturday late in the afternoon. The weather was beautiful and the light just right. As always happens, we found lots of beautiful and interesting places - and some friendly pigs. The most interesting place was this old house standing back off the road. Clearly it was once a large farmhouse, but like so many others, has given in to time and neglect. It looks like a movie set for a dust bowl saga or a horror flick. I'm sure it has stories to tell.

Sweet Sunday

There is beauty all around us if we just look. One of the things we've discovered is that there are an amazing number of weathered old barns and farm buildings everywhere. Winter and early spring seem to be best for finding these structures before they are overgrown and hidden from view. On any given 2 hour drive we come across scores of old places...some more pricturesque than others. This one caught my eye because of the weed growing out of a small gap in the door.

When it's too cold to spend hours outside, it's great to go for a drive and discover what's been hidden.

Who knew?

This picture was taken at the same roadside junk shop as the previous post. I can't even guess what these are for but they could give you nightmares. It sure is interesting to go exploring though and learn about things totally outside your realm of experience.

The unexpected

When you get home from shooting pictures and take a look at what you've captured, you sometimes find new and unusual things....like Batman in a junk shop in Georgia. I didn't see him till I downloaded the picture, so I don't know how he got there, but there he is. Any ideas? This picture has been saturated to bring out the color in the water drops, but no other additions or alterations. He was really there!

Explanation

As we ride around shooting photos, we often stop to see farm animals - many pictures to follow over time. One Sunday, not long ago, we came across several cute donkeys who came over to the fence to say HI and have their noses scratched. The one on our blog header was the most curious and reminds us of Alfred E. Neuman..."What, me worry?" His cheerful disposition and friendliness earned him the starring role on the blog.

Sunday rambling

This is the beautifully restored Campbell's Covered Bridge outside Landrum, SC. Off the beaten path, but if you follow signs to landmarks, you find places like this. When we explore the backroads and alleyways, we slow down and look around us. Way back when we were young and everyone seemed to have more time, we would take rambling Sunday drives and discover the hidden beauties.

Backroads

This is the old Edwards Mill in Taylors, SC, one of the few remaining mills in the area. We have come across several old mills that are still standing in one form or another, a few with mill wheels still in place. It's clear that our rivers and streams used to provide a lot of power for industry in the area and used to be higher and fuller than they now are. This mill appears to be in the process of being preserved.

The origianl photograph (left) has been digitally "painted" to add to the aged and rough look.

Here we are

This is the first day of our photography blog. We will be posting photos and telling you when we will be at fairs and shows.

We welcome your feedback on our work and hope you will share this site with others.

Our photographs can be purchased by contacting us through this site or at backroadsandaliways@gmail.com