Twin Pines Circle, Acorn Circle, Fairway Court: Oak Knoll neighborhood

Twin Pines Circle

Twin Pines Circle, Acorn Circle, Fairway Court: Oak Knoll neighborhood

Quiet residential neighborhood.
Some homes border Oak Knoll Golf Course.
“A bucket of golf balls.”
Trees, Flowers, Stories.

Twin Pines Circle

Twin Pines Circle should be named “Twin Pines Semicircle.” It begins and ends at Oak Knoll Drive. There are two short cul de sac streets off of Twin Pines Circle: Acorn Circle and Fairway Court. I walked all three in May 2022 on a windy springtime afternoon under blue skies filled with big white clouds.

Twin Pines Circle street sign.
Twin Pines Circle begins and ends at Oak Knoll Drive. (photo by Peter Finkle, 2022)

When I walk through Lithia Park in May, I see many colors of rhododendron flowers side by side. That doesn’t happen often in neighborhoods, so I enjoyed the multicolored display of lush rhodies in this yard. 

Twin Pines Circle
I love seeing three colors of rhododendron flowers together in the same yard. (photo by Peter Finkle, 2022)
Twin Pines Circle.
Eye catching art in this front yard. (photo by Peter Finkle, 2022)
Condos at 854 Twin Pines Circle, built in 1964.
Twin Pines Circle.
The “Chelsea Oaks condominium association” is at 854 Twin Pines Circle.
This type of house makes neighborhood walking fun
Twin Pines Circle.
The whimsical, colorful garage door on this house (recently repainted) brightens the day for those of us out for a walk. (photo by home owner, 2022)
Twin Pines Circle.
This enjoyable yard art complements the colorful garage door. (photo by Peter Finkle, 2022)
Where are the “twin pines?”
Twin Pines Circle.
I wanted to call this tall tree one of the “Twin Pines.” Except it’s a Douglas Fir tree. (photo by Peter Finkle. 2022)
Twin Pines Circle.
Here are the individual needles of the Douglas Fir tree. (photo by Peter Finkle, 2022)
Short cut to Oak Knoll Golf Course
Twin Pines Circle.
Back entrance to Oak Knoll Golf Course from Twin Pines Circle. (photo by Peter Finkle, 2022)
to Oak Knoll Golf Course.
Here’s the shortcut to Oak Knoll Golf Course from Twin Pines Circle for people who live in the Oak Knoll neighborhood. (photo by Peter Finkle, 2022)
Chance meetings

I was fortunate to meet two interesting people during this walk, one on Acorn Circle and one on Fairway Court.

Fairway Court

Fairway Court street sign
Here is the street sign where Fairway Court meets Twin Pines Circle. (photo by Peter Finkle, 2022)

As I turned onto Fairway Court from Twin Pines Circle, I stopped for a minute to admire (and photograph) this nature scene.

Fairway Court.
This tall Italian cypress tree dominates the entrance to Fairway Court, and enhances the big-sky view. (photo by Peter Finkle, 2022)

Here is the rest of Fairway Court, a short cul de sac street. You might notice Pompadour Bluff between the trees on the left side of the photo.

Fairway Court.
Homes around the Fairway View cul de sac have a lovely view of Pompadour Bluff. (photo by Peter Finkle, 2022)

I met Julie on Fairway Court, as she was returning home from walking her dogs. She has been a professional flute player in several symphony orchestras, including the New York based American Symphony Orchestra. I asked her if she ever played in the Ashland City Band. She said, “Yes, when Raoul Maddox was the conductor.” That would have been more than 23 years ago! 

Acorn Circle

Acorn Circle street sign.
Here is the street sign where Acorn Circle meets Twin Pines Circle. (photo by Peter Finkle, 2022)

Acorn Circle is another short cul de sac street off of Twin Pines Circle. 

Acorn Circle.
This is all of Acorn Circle, a cup de sac off Twin Pines Circle. (photo by Peter Finkle, 2022)
Acorn Circle.
Standing in front of Carl’s house in the cul de sac, you can see that the Oak Knoll Golf Course 9th green is very close. (photo by Peter Finkle, 2022)

At the end of the Acorn Circle cul de sac, I met Carl. As I was walking downhill toward his house, I had noticed one of the Oak Knoll golf course greens just beyond the back yard. After saying hello, my first question was, “Do you get very many golf balls in your yard?” I expected him to say there was an occasional stray ball, but that was not his answer. He replied, “I have collected almost a 5-gallon bucket full of balls in just two years here.” 

“That’s a lot,” I exclaimed, and then out popped my second question. “Any windows broken?” The answer to that one was fortunately “No.”  

The front yard was lovely, for which Carl gave a lot of credit to his wife. Then he pointed out “her favorite garden saying” inscribed on a rock in the garden. His wife had found it right here in town at the Grange Co-op. 

Acorn Circle yard art.
This rock has a sense of humor. It says: “Give a weed an inch and it’ll take a yard!” (photo by Peter Finkle, 2022)
Acorn Circle yard art.
Here is the Garden-child or Garden-Goddess statue at Carl’s house. (photo by Peter Finkle, 2022)

I asked about the childlike or Goddess-like statue near the inscribed rock. It turns out to have a story – and an exceptionally long life for garden statuary. Before moving to Southern Oregon, Carl and his wife purchased one of their previous homes from a couple who had built the house in 1935, and had placed this statue in their yard at that time. They enjoyed it for decades. When they sold the house to Carl and his wife, the original owners left the statue. Through the years, Carl and his wife developed their own emotional connection with this child or Goddess. It has come with them in every move since then, and now looks over the garden in their current home. 

Acorn Circle.
Here is a close up of the 9th green from Carl’s side yard. (photo by Peter Finkle, 2022)

I will share more photos and stories about this neighborhood when I write about Oak Knoll Drive.

1 Comment
  • Alison B
    Posted at 17:22h, 21 April Reply

    Hi Peter,Alison Brown here – We (Dustin and the girls) recently moved from Beach St. and we are now Carl’s neighbor on Acorn circle! Love that small town connections we get in Ashland. 🙂

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