Toro Petroleum in Hollister

A few weeks ago, I came across this enormous tank truck while walking along McCray Street.  It was parked at the gas station with the four silo-sized gas tanks, near Walgreen's. I've always been curious about that station, but never enough to learn about it. Until now.

The station is one of four outlets for Toro Petroleum, which has headquarters in Salinas. It offers fuel and oil products and services to the farming, trucking, manufacturing, automotive, food machine, marine, and aviation industries. Wow! The things we can learn about our town from the Internet. If you're interested in learning more about that station on McCray Street, check out Toro's website.

Huh?

Hahahahahahaha. . . 

Yes, press that button to get across the field.

And, please don't go soooooo fast across the field!

Ah, the illusion you can create with a bit of cropping. Hahahahaha.

If you must know, this is at the corner of Highway 25 and Union Road.  :-)

Being that it's Tuesday, you can find me over at Our World Tuesday checking out other parts of the world. Click here to join me.

Tres Pinos Countryside

Today's post is a continuation of the Husband's and my ride on Quien Sabe Road yesterday morning. Here's a black and white interpretation (with a film grain effect a la Photoshop) of the green countryside overlooking Tres Pinos. Highway 25 is just beyond the field where the skydivers land. To see how gorgeously verdant our world is right now, check out yesterday's photo.

To see more B&W photos by bloggers around the world, check out The Weekend in Black and White.

Enjoying the Reflection of Green

This morning, the Husband and I headed over to Tres Pinos to eat a yummy breakfast at Flapjack's Counry Cafe, followed by a drive on Quien Sabe Road. With stops now and then, of course, for me to take photos of the gorgeous green views.

To see photos of reflections caught by bloggers around the world, check out Weekend Reflections.

Soaring Over Highway 25

One day last week, the Husband and I were entertained by this large bird enjoying the breeze, as we waited for the light to walk across Highway 25 at Meridian Street.

Finally Going Green

Thanks to last week's rainstorm, the hills and mountains are going green. Hurrah! This is a view of Santa Ana Peak (part of the Diablo Range) from Highway 25.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Dear Take 25 to Hollister Readers,

It's a day of appreciation of our world—our family and friends, our communities, and our environment. I wish each of you peace, joy, love, and happiness.

Yours truly,

Su-sieee! Mac

A Beautiful Day for Something

In this case, the something for someone was jumping out of an airplane last Sunday morning.

Nearly every weekend, you can see professional and novice skydivers float down under colorful parachutes above Tres Pinos.  It's cool to see. It's also awesome to be one of them. If you're interested, check out Skydive Hollister, which operates out of the Hollister Airport.

Today's link-up is with Skywatch Friday. Come along and view the skies in other parts of the world by clicking here.

Rural. Rustic. And, Red.

This gorgeous scene is from the intersection of Bolado and Southside Roads, just below Tres Pinos.

I'm hooking up with Mrs. Nesbitt's ABC Wednesday. Today's letter (I bet you guessed correctly) is R. To check out other R posts, please click here.

The View from Valley View Road

The views are spectacular from Valley View Road. This is the last unobstructed view, which is between Sunset Drive and Union Road. That, too, will be no more as plans go forward to construct a housing development on that expanse of land.

On the positive side, the view looking up on Valley View Road is gorgeous no matter what is in the way.

Today is Skywatch Friday. To see what the changing sky is like in other parts of the world, please click here.

A Beautiful Day for a Lot of Something

Hooking up with Skywatch Friday

Today is going to be hopping around San Benito County.  These are just a few of the events:

The Red Ribbon 5K is going on right now in Historical Downtown Hollister. Participants are running a 3.1 mile in the shape of an H.  Post-run festivities continue until 12:30 p.m.

The Cole Canyon Farm , a certified organic nursery in Aromas, is holding an Open Greenhouse Sale to the public, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. It's located at 1495 Cole Road. 

The San Juan Bautista Historical Society is holding an open house from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Carl M. Luck Memorial Park in San Juan Bautista. The celebration includes a presentation of the Digital San Juan Bautista Project (hundreds of old photos of the City and its residents), used book sale, silent auction, and BBQ, among other activities. This is a free event, open to the public.

The Second Annual San Benito Olive Festival, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m, at Bolado Park in Tres Pinos, about 8 miles south of Hollister on Highway 25. The gourmet celebration features several celebrity chef cooking demonstrations, live bands, restaurant fare, artisanal food sampling, wine and craft beer tasting, and much, much more.  Tickets are still available at the gate.

The Second Annual San Benito Olive Festival

This Saturday, October 11, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., is the second annual San Benito Olive Festival, which celebrates the natural beauty and agricultural bounty of our county. I have no doubt that it will be another successful fun and joyful affair that will be attended by hundreds of people from near and far.

San Benito Olive Festival is both the gourmet event and the not-for-profit organization that plans, organizes, and brings the event together. The group's mission is to promote awareness and appreciation of the region's world-class culinary agriculture and premier artisans who make award-winning olive oils, wines, chocolates, Blenheim apricot products, and more. All net profits made from the event are donated to service, educational, and other community groups in San Benito County.

This year, the gourmet celebration is going to be at the gorgeous, historic Bolado Park, which is 8 miles south of Hollister. It's easy to find and reach on Highway 25, whether driving from the north or south.

There will be lots to eat, to drink, to purchase, and to enjoy at the festival. General admission tickets -- $20/adults and $10/children, ages 5-12 -- include the cost of entry to the festival, parking, cooking demonstrations, and entertainment. The $35 VIP ticket grants guests access to the wine tasting tent and five tastings of wine and craft beer from wineries in San Benito, Monterey, Santa Cruz, and Santa Clara counties. I'm a beer drinker myself, but I would be tempted to taste samples from places with such great names as Alicats Winery, Wild Eye Winery, Lightheart Cellars, and Graveyard Vineyards.

Six celebrity chefs are scheduled to conduct live cooking demonstrations of dishes using olives or olive oil. Starting off will be Chef Eric Carter, Director of the Culinary Arts at Cabrillo College in Aptos, at which the students run the popular Pino Alto Restaurant on campus. Following him will be Chef Dorothy McNett, the popular foodie legend of the California Central Coast, after which the chef duo Gene Sakahara and Sam Bozzo, also known as SakaBozzo, the twins separated at birth, from the Gilroy Garlic Festival will take the cooking stage. Next up will be Chef Mike Fisher, a Hollister native and local caterer who was trained at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, and ending the day will be Chef David Boswell who is the Chef de Cuisine at Yahoo!

It's going to be a toss up for me -- watching the cooking demonstrations or listening to the live bands. I've heard three out of the four that will be performing Saturday, and just the music alone makes me realize what a bargain the festival tickets are for a great afternoon of fun. Festival guests will be hearing a range of music from jazz and big band by Mr. O's Jazz Band, doo-wop by The Flashbacks, and popular rock by Shiloh and The Retrospect.

I could go on and on about the San Benito Olive Festival, but I shall stop here. To learn more, check out the festival's website and read this article that the festival posted at BenitoLink.com.

Today, I shall be hanging out at Our World Tuesday. Come join me by clicking here.

Out the Other Window

The bus turned from the San Benito County Fairgrounds to Airline Highway and I realized that I should've sat on the other side of the bus. Too tired to move, and not wanting to bother the Husband,  I snapped photos out the window across the aisle anyway. (That hair, by the way, belongs to the Husband.)

I'm hanging out at Smiling Sally's Blue Monday. The theme is the color blue. See what blues bloggers from around the world have posted by clicking here.

BBQ, Bread, and Honey

Where can you buy some of the best locally-made BBQ, European-style breads, and honey from San Benito County bees?

"Ooo-ooo, I know, I know," she said, waving her arms in the air.

Head for that empty lot on the west side of Highway 25, just before you reach Bertuccio's, which is near the corner of Union Road. Every Friday afternoon,  that lot is occupied by Mansmith's BBQ,  Suncoast Organic Farm Bakery,  and Bray Apiaries. All of the foodstuffs are mighty delicious.

Hmmmm, what's for dinner?

Gorgeous San Benito County Scenery

Practically everywhere you look in San Benito County is a gorgeous scene. This is looking towards the Gabilan Mountains from the lot near Bertuccio's, off Airline Highway (aka Highway 25).

Cute and Cozy for Now

After being out and about in the large sprawl of humanity of the Bay Area yesterday, the Husband and I were very happy, and relieved, to turn homeward on the Bolsa, aka Highway 25. I suppose one day our county will eventually become the southern end of the Bay Area sprawl, with houses and businesses lined up from beginning to end of Highway 25. But, I hope that will be in a far distant future. Until then we shall enjoy the comfort and coziness of a cute small town ambiance.

California's Gold

Someone once told me that he knew I was a native of California because I described the summer hills as being golden. Not brown. Not yellow. But, golden. Because they are.

This golden scene is off of Airline Highway, also known as Highway 25, as in Take 25 to Hollister. It's just a few miles south of Hollister, in which you'll find none of those Abercrombie & Fitch's Hollister Co. stores. Thank goodness!

I'm hanging out at Mrs. Nesbitt's ABC Wednesday. Come join me by clicking here.

Living in the Country

"When I view Airline Highway on Google Maps, it looks like a country road," I said to the Husband.

"It is a country road," the Husband said.

"Because it's a two-lane highway?"

"Whether it's a state highway or a road meandering through the country side, it's a country road."

Yet another Duh! moment for me.  I'm so used to the views alongside Airline Highway, also known as California State Highway 25, that when I'm going down it,  I don't think of being in the country. I am very fortunate that once I leave my driveway I can go in any direction and I'm out in the countryside within ten minutes.

Anyway, the other day I noticed that on the north side of Airline, near Best Road, is a great view of the peaks called the Three Sisters. Those are the small peaks in the far right of the photo.

Today,  I'm hanging out at Our World Tuesday. Come along with me and see and read about life in other parts of the world.

No Parking!

Some of our fine flying friends just think the laws don't apply to them.

Hanging out at ABC Wednesday today. Come join me to check out blogs from all over. We're all featuring posts around the letter F. 

Farming on the Bolsa

Farm work is back breaking intensive labor. I appreciate the men and women who are willing to do these jobs. Day in, day out, regardless of the weather.