The Abandoned: blossom

Saturday, May 5, 2012

Spring's Lovely Flowering - Pink Saturday

Spring is in full swing at The Abandoned. Blossoming fruit trees fill the eyes with rare beauty and the air with a lovely fragrance.

For more fabulous pink stuff, join Bev at How Sweet the Sound!

WARNING: You shouldn't visit The Abandoned without permission from the owner or caretaker. If you do, you risk getting arrested for trespassing.

Thursday, October 14, 2010

Gooseberry Heart - Guest Heart Thursday

Last Spring on one of our long walks through the forest surrounding The Abandoned, Sissy and I came across these gorgeous pink blossoms. I believe they are Gooseberry flowers. The fruit is a delicious pale peach color when it is ripe and ready to eat. As you can see, one of the petals is a perfect heart.

Perfect for Guest Heart Thursday! For more wonderful heart art, photography and altogether fabulous heart stuff from around the world, visit Clytie at Random Hearts for Guest Heart Thursday.

WARNING: Anyone wishing to visit The Abandoned, must have permission from the owners.

The Abandoned

Years ago, I dedicated this blog to The Abandoned, a huge complex of abandoned buildings in rural Oregon.

Surrounded by wetlands and old growth timber, The Callahan Center was built in the 1970's by the State of Oregon as a rehabilitation center for people recovering from injuries on the job.

In 1992, the property was bought by a mega church. However, the Living Enrichment Center closed in 2004, amidst financial scandal and the property was abandoned.

The buildings stood empty for many years. Over that span the property was vandalized and looted. Yet the beauty of its rare architecture shone through the shambles of abuse and disrepair.

In the summer of 2013, the complex was completely demolished. We were all sad to see the buildings go, but because of trespassers and vandals, it was necessary to take them down.

The area where The Abandoned once stood is filled with $500,000 mushroom houses (homes built so fast they pop up like mushrooms) built on postage stamp lots. There are sidewalks and tall lamps where I once watched the foxes of the field leaping above the grass, hunting rodents.

The surrounding woodlands still survive. It is my prayer the wetlands and forests with their pristine creeks, native trees and flowers, as well as the wildlife which shelter there, will be protected.