So this last Saturday, before the rain here on Sunday, we performed a annual ritual around my house. That ritual? Going apple picking.
We’ve gone several years running now, and it’s always been a great time with the family. We don’t go in for the corn mazes, or the other bits and bobs that many of the larger orchards offer. I want to spend time with my kids and my wife, and going to a place like that just makes me want to leave.
This is the second time we’ve gone to this orchard. Last year, with the drought, they actually only had apples at the payment hut, but they allowed us to walk through the orchard. After an hour walk, we found a few apples in the trees, and they graciously let us just have them. We also bought some apples from them last year, this year though, had a much bigger crop.
We had arrived just before a larger crowd, and by larger I mean only three other cars. So things were calm and quiet. It was a wonderful sunny day in the high seventies. We went from tree to tree, looking for the apples that were larger and more ripe than the others. The place we go to doesn’t use pesticides on their trees, so we also had to look out for wasps and other stinging insects. There were some, but as is normal, we left them alone, they left us alone.
Erin watched and took pictures while with my youngest on my shoulders, we were able to reach some really nice apples. Handing them from her hand, down to me, then my oldest, and into the bag, it was a great way to bond and develop a memory that we will all share.
After fifteen minutes of picking apples in their honey crisp section, we had gathered over 20 pounds of apples. Nearly 1o kilograms! That is a lot of apples. So far, aside from eating them, Erin has made apple turnovers – of which I have demanded more.
We took some more time to look through the orchard, and took the scenic route back to the entrance and the payment hut. We had a nice conversation about their cider and how the triple beam scale worked for weighing the apples as we checked out. It’s a pleasant place, and well worth the time Erin and I spent with the girls.
Overall, this is about spending time with family. Getting out, doing something beyond the norm, being with the people you are with, and taking things more slowly, at a pace you can really grasp. I’ve spent too much time in front of monitors of some kind, and so have my kids. While this didn’t take long at all to do, maybe 3 hours at most on the Saturday, it is something I will remember for years. Well worth ditching a computer for.
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