Fall has officially arrived. The temperature is dropping to around 50 or 60 degrees, which means it’s time to pull out the sweaters, flannels and your favorite tall riding boots to keep warm. Fall is not only known for the changing of the leaves and your closet, but for the activities people tend to do during this time of the season as well. Apple picking and pumpkin picking are the most popular activities at the turn of the season.
Typically, it’s the perfect opportunity for a cute photo op with your significant other and makes a great weekend date. The weather is just warm enough without having to bundle up like snowmen, but also cool enough where you aren’t sweltering in the summer sun. The perfect combination to start cuddling up to that special someone. If you are looking for that perfect apple picking place, here is a list of the top 10 places to go apple picking according to Travel + Leisure:
Dwight Miller Orchards, East Dummerston, VT
This orchard is known as one of the largest certified organic farms in the Northeast. The land has been under the care of the Miller family for eight generations and is still growing. While the most popular apples to pick here are Macouns (a mix between McIntosh and Jersey Blacks), Empires (A mix between McIntosh and Red Delicious) and Honeycrisps, the farm offers much more. Other fruit trees, berries and field crops are scattered around the area with some pigs and chickens to see along the way. Pick up some home-made cider and syrup before taking a ride on the horse-drawn wagon overlooking the Connecticut River.
Liberty View Farm, Clintondale, NY
Located in the Hudson Valley, this farm is Certified Naturally Grown. The only apples grown here are Empire and Cortland, but are always in prime condition for pickers. One of Liberty’s unique offerings is the ability to lease an apple tree for the season. For 50 dollars, you can lease a tree for yourself or someone else and harvest it as many times as you’d like. Who wouldn’t want freshly picked apples for a whole season?
Deardorff Orchards, Waconia, MN
This orchard is one that specializes in cold-weather apples. Each of the 4,000 trees must be able to tolerate temperatures that reach 35 degrees below zero. With help from the University of Michigan Horticultural Research Center, Deardorff has created nine hybrid apples with this goal and tastiness as priority. The most popular apple picked here are Honeycrisps. A crunchy and sweet apple that makes for a perfect snack time treat. Deardorff Orchards also offers a new on-site Parley Lake Winery with regular wine tastings using grapes grown on the property. Rides are offered to the picking orchards by a tractor pulled wagon, and don’t forget to grab a hot dog from the stand manned by Deardorff himself. I’ll take a glass of wine or a hot dog to go with my apple picking adventure any day.
Stribling Orchard, Markham, VA
The same family has owned this orchard for nearly 200 years, and was the first PYO orchard in the Shenandoah Valley. Its built-in history includes historical buildings and a 270-degree view of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Stribling offers a wide variety of apples to pick from including Jonagold, Fuji, Rome and Stayman Winesap just to name a few. The orchard provides many picnic areas, one being a hilltop with amazing valley views, all across the property. An on-site shop that sells honey, jams and jellies, pies and bread house-baked are available to anyone who forgot to bring a picnic basket. If you don’t have any Columbus Day weekend plans, check out their festival with live music, local crafts and an animal menagerie.
Sky Top Orchard, Zirconia, NC
The name of this orchard is derived entirely from its location. Sitting atop Mount McAlpine in the Blue Ridge Mountains, it is one of the highest peaks in the area. From the orchard grounds, you can see both the Blue Ridge Parkway and the Pisgah National Forest. With 25 different apple varieties, the warm days and cold nights creates the perfect atmosphere for the fruit to thrive. The most popular among the PYO options are Honeycrisps, Gala and Arkansas Black. The orchard also offers fresh cider from the stainless-steel cider press run weekly. Cups and half-gallons are available for purchase on-site. Don’t miss the barns and ponds full of animals, as well as the Plexiglas-enclosed live beehive.
Jones Creek Farms, Sedro Woolley, WA
In a region of Seattle, a four-acre settlement of land provides 150 varieties of apples making for a very diverse crop. Among the best include Sunrise, a cross between McIntosh and Golden Delicious, and the Calville Blanc d’Hiver, which is a 17th-century French variety. The farm offers a guided ethnobotany tour from the owner or his wife that looks at the history of apples, their various cultural uses and the qualities of some of the world’s most prized apples. The farm also provides a PYO pumpkin patch and hayrides.
Weston’s Antique Apple Orchard, New Berlin, WI
Weston’s grandparents were the original growers of this farm with a purpose to evade the Depression. Eventually, the orchard gained so much respect that Julia Child once visited. Since then, Weston’s offerings have only grown over the years including more than 100 apple varieties, many of which are rare. Among the most unusual pickings are the Old Church, Lemonade and Strawberry Chenango apples which are only grown on this farm. The orchard also offers regular horticulture and grafting classes, a petting zoo, open-farmhouse tours and barrel rides for kids.
Alyson’s Orchard, Walpole, NH
This 450-acre property is set atop an elongated ridge that overlooks the Connecticut River. It’s known for the gorgeous grounds just as much as it’s known for its apples. The views, wooded surroundings and sweeping manicured lawns have made it a popular wedding destination. Originally starting as an all-McIntosh orchard, it has since grown to include other varieties such as Black Oxfords, Gravensteins and Winesaps. A unique quality includes a rope swing that sits at the edge of the property that provide views of the river and rolling hills. There is also a farm stand that sells fresh fruits and vegetables, jams and jellies as well as apple cider and wine made from orchard produce. Weekends here include wagon rides to and from the orchard, kids playing on the playground and wine tastings for the age-appropriate crowd.
Kiyokawa Family Orchards, Parkdale, OR
In the Hood River Valley just east of Portland sits a history engulfed orchard. Established in 1951 by Mamoru Kiyokawa, a first-generation Japanese resident who spent much of World War II in an Oregon internment camp, the orchard has an incredible view of the nearby snow-capped Mount Hood. Among the 25 varieties of PYO apples also lies three acres of Asian pears for the U-pick crowd. Four annual fall festivals are hosted at the orchard: Desserts Galore from Sept. 19-20, The Honeycrisp Harvest from Oct. 3-4, Fiesta days from Oct. 17-18 and Heirloom Apple and Asian Pear Tasting from Oct. 24-25. Hayrides as well as a kids’ play area/picnic areas and self-guided or guided tours are offered.
Bear Swamp Orchard, Ashfield, MA
This intimate orchard in western Massachusetts has offered PYO only since 2008. Pesticides, even those approved for organic orchards, are avoided and the lawn is kept cropped by a flock of Shetland sheep. The most popularly picked apples include the Freedom, firm and sweet with a hint of tartness, the Liberty, sweeter and softer, and he Northern Spy, a tart apple perfect for pies. The orchard, which consists of 300 trees on three acres, borders the Bear Swamp Reserve where you can hike miles of trails and get a bird’s-eye view of the apple trees. An on-site cider mill and a farm stand selling apple products, eggs and homemade maple syrup are also perks of this orchard.
So take your pick. Wherever you reside in the country, plan a weekend to head on over to the closest orchard near you. Happy pickings!
