Field Trip!... Mount Sterling, Illinois

We had heard there is a very nice winery in Mount Sterling.

So we decided to go to the golf course first and then check it out.

I love the drive to Mount Sterling...

... A Red Farm at the bend in the road.

A small car could go right underneath this tractor.

Rows and rows of corn...

The little house next to the water tower

I love the curtains in the door window...

And, of course, that is a field of Soybeans :-) 

I know there is some reflection from the car window in this photo but I just like it anyway with the old Chevy truck parked next to the barn

This is a very normal scene out here... The rolled bales of hay scattered around all over fields

And here we are in the town of Mount Sterling.

I think this is a classic representation... An old tractor, a brick building with a tin roof,
 and a golf cart :^) 

So... Am I the only who thinks this looks BACKWARDS?

Shouldn't the driver and the steering wheel be facing the other way?

It was Richard's very best golf day this Summer
Favorite Shot of the Day ~

Look at that putt!!! :^)
And...
this birdie :-)

Oh wait...
I mean THIS BIRDIE :-)

 I'm pretty proud of myself for capturing the ball in the hole!
And this yellow butterfly dancing around among the purple flowers

I am going to miss all the Summer flowers.

 Just a great day on the golf course...

 I was really disappointed there were no bunnies in our yard this Summer
but then I realized that is exactly what we wanted...
The Bunny Sanctuary worked!
The bunnies were safe from the dogs and I got to see baby bunnies every time we went for a drive or to a golf course...

 Look how tiny this one is... the blades of grass are taller than he is.

Last hole of the day ~

Now...
To grab some lunch and then find the winery...
We didn't have directions, an address or even the name...
It's always an adventure :^)
We picked the road and direction and found this sign

A Church and a Winery...
 I wonder how many people make it to the church?

Only 4 miles on this road...

A fork in the road? Church to the left, Winery to the right ...

 And...
Here it is...
the big fancy sign

 And yes that is a mobile home ...
But we are still hopeful this will be something special

How cool is this house? Reminds me of pics of Italy.
Then we came around the bend and saw this ~

 The clouds were looking ominous but the view was fantastic

We enjoyed chatting with the owner and tasting his wines. Then we sat out on the balcony and enjoyed the view. If you're wondering why it is empty it's because we were there on Friday. 

 Chillaxin' and enjoying a glass of refreshment.

This little sitting area was down the stairs. On a non-rainy day I think it would be delightful.

 The grapevine growing on the trellis

 How pretty is this?

And when I took this photo from the other side I saw the teeny tiny grasshopper ... see it?

It did rain... 

 In fact...
It poured! But we didn't mind.

It was still relaxing and enjoyable and the wine was good.

We started back down the driveway and I saw 2 little deer.
I was sure they were fake and I said to Richard that I wish they were real.
Then we realized they were real!

Richard stopped the car and they actually came closer to look at us.
It was raining but I rolled down the window and took photos.

 Ohhhh ... the preciousness!!!

Look at his little mouth as he is eating :)

 What an awesome experience!
~
So that was a great "Field Trip"
I hope you enjoyed the photo-journey!

Stay tuned for our next adventure
coming soon!
Patty Hagedorn Photography

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Barry, Illinois... Population 1400

 It was one of those days when we thought if we head in one direction we may just miss the rain. There is a golf course in Barry and a winery so "let's go there"...

This is the road to Barry. They call it the Barry Black Top. 

I asked why and the answer didn't make sense to me so I'm just accepting that I am from California and some things out here just don't make sense to me. 

It is a nice drive through the country side.

We passed a giant field of sunflowers. Richard said we would stop to take pics on the way back. 

When we got to the golf course it started to rain!

It only rained for a few minutes then it stopped and it felt like the raindrops were just hanging in the air. It was the most humidity I have felt yet. 

Richard didn't like the course much. It was not one of our favorites.

But I took pictures anyway... of course.

This intrigued me... A brick cart path.

I think they should paint it yellow... "follow the yellow brick road :) "

This building also intrigued and amused me... 

Was it an old brick building first and then they added on a different top with siding and closed up some of the windows with other blocks? 

Was it once a barn? 

It looks like several different structures put together into one hodge-podge building.

It looks like this tree is mirroring the curves in the brick path

I love that there are benches 

but I have never seen anyone sitting on one

 This marker looks like a happy person in a field of flowers

 I love flowers of all kinds. The flowers in the Midwest are very different.

I love that this looks like a purple fluffy golf ball

And though he didn't really like the course he did get to play 

and every time he gets to play is a really good thing.

Yep... that is an apple tree! :-I

I thought this was a nice photo op ~

And look at how I got the ball in the shot : ) 

A nice scene... makes for a pretty picture 

If you look real close you can see the ball

A few feet from the flag, which is in the left third of the green.

At the last hole and the rain started to really come down

Perfect timing as we packed up 

and went to get lunch before checking out the winery.

~ 

Which was nothing special.

It didn't look like a business. There were no cars. 

There were exactly 5 grape vines.

But the sign in the window said OPEN so we went in.

I can honestly say I have tried all kinds of wines now.

They were ... 

interesting!

The only one we liked enough to bring home was 

Red Rooster 

I guess this is their mascot... lol

Well... Like I said ~ 

Not all wineries are good.

We headed back toward home and took the time to get some more country photos

 The road from Barry back home... fields of corn and soybeans.

We saw this doe at the back edge of a soybean field and we stopped. 

She posed for us :) don't ya love it?

And then Richard saw this tiny bunny in the grass on the side of the road.

He slowed way down so I could get a picture without spooking it.

It was soooo tiny

It would fit in my hand.

And this is the "Sea of Sunflowers"

 I couldn't imagine so many Sunflowers

It was incredible!

And that was our day trip to Barry.

~

Where will we go next?

Patty Hagedorn Photogaphy

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