What's Happening at Shallon Winery?

Astoria, Oregon,  ~ January 31, 2012

It seems you can always find scaffolding on one or two of the buildings around Astoria. Buildings need maintenance, and maybe especially in damp climates. One of the buildings I posted last November finally had it scaffold removed to expose its beautiful new exterior. Recently I noticed this scaffolding on the side of the Shallon Winery. What will we see when it finally comes down? New paint? A mural? In Astoria, one never knows. 

You can't tell from this angle, but the street entrance to this building is halfway up its height on the other side, on Duane Street. Street level is the top floor, which is not too surprising in Astoria, but may seem unusual to people who live in flat country. The second photo in this post will show you some of Astoria's unique and famous construction.

This blog is sponsored by Tapir and Friends Animal Store.

Shallon Winery

The Shallon Winery at 16th Street and Duane sits only one block and a few paces from the riverbank, but you can get an idea of how high it is above the level of the water from the slope of 16th Street. This intersection is where I took the photo of light glinting off of spiderweb-like repairs in the street. In fact, if you follow the link, you'll see what the winery is or is not sitting on. I'll bet this makes for an interesting basement.

Meet the building (Mediterranean), the winemaker (Paul), the wines, and dreams of lighter-than-air craft on Shallon's own web site. It's a fun and interesting read. Choclolate wine? Check it out. You'll also learn the unusual source of the winery's name.

This blog is sponsored by Tapir and Friends Animal Store.

Street Damage Made Beautiful

There is no image reflected here for Weekend Reflections, only the light of the sun reflecting off of the patches at the intersection of 16th Street and Duane. I thought the patterns were not only interesting, but rather pretty. If you wonder why there are so many cracks in the street at this intersection, scroll down.

As with a number of Astoria's streets, at this point 16th Street doesn't have the support of solid ground. The intersection in the first photo is just to the left out of the picture. It's hard to see the concrete wall a few feet behind the pillars, but it's there - and it's impossible to see beyond the concrete wall to know what the structure would look like under the intersection.

For those not familiar with Astoria, Oregon, Marine Drive is at the right of the photo, with the River Walk and the Columbia River just a few paces away. The mountains are in Washington, four miles across the river. The purple building in the middel is Custard King, and on the left is Shallon Winery, which I have not shown yet. To reach downtown Astoria, travel left on Marine Drive or enter the one-way grid in the top photo.

This blog is sponsored by Tapir and Friends Animal Store.