Apple Hill 2021

It is time for my annual Apple Hill post. This year we chose to go during the week and more specifically during Fall Break for the girls. That way we could avoid the crowds and find parking. We went last Wednesday and while that was a good day overall, I think we may go on Thursday or Friday next year as two of the places I had in mind were closed and were only open Thursday through Sunday.

If you don't know about Apple Hill, let me tell you a little bit about it. Apple Hill is located in Camino, California. It is a bunch of apple/berry growers along with some Christmas tree farms, breweries and wineries mixed in. There are a ton of stops you can make, but since we ever only go for a day, we usually hit up 5 to 7 places. I do want to go back for a weekend away and hit the wineries and breweries more.

We first went to Boa Vista Orchards. This is one that we go to every year. They have apples of all kinds, pumpkins, other squashes, jarred goods, wine, beer, cider, a bakery, a bbq set-up and crafts. This is always a popular one, so we usually head there earlier in the day. 

This year we came looking for our favorite pickles and jam. We also scoped out their pumpkins, but felt like we wanted to get some from a place that you could pick them (a pumpkin patch).

We headed through the crafts and the girls spotted a face painting booth. They got their faces painted here last year and they wanted them again. They chose the same thing, even though we suggested they get something different.

Then we grabbed two slices of pie, one classic apple and one sour cream blackberry apple pie, and ate those while people watching.

Since it wasn't as busy as it normally was, we were out of there pretty quickly. Then we headed over to High Hill Ranch which is another favorite. This is a giant craft fair with a bakery and fudge shop sprinkled in. They also have a pond where you can fish at and on the weekends they have some farm animals out.

We immediately got our pies and then took them back to the car. After that, we walked over to the fudge shop and got some fudge (mint and divinity). Then we headed over to the wine/beer garden and got an apple beer (for Rory) and an apple and pomegranate cider (for me). We sat down and Rory took a work phone call at that time. I talked with the girls about the other places we would be going.

Then we went to all the craft booths. We ended up buying a ceramic sponge holder for the kitchen since ours was getting old and gross.

Next, we headed over to Rainbow Orchards to grab ourselves some apple cider donuts. Usually this line to get into the orchard is insane and then the line to get donuts and other goodies is crazy too. But not last Wednesday. I think there were a total of 10 cars there. 

We parked, went to the barn, and the girls picked some small pumpkins for the house. Then we went to the bakery and purchased a half dozen apple cider donuts and a corn dog for the girls. They were already hungry again.

Then we sat in the orchard and enjoyed our donuts. They were still hot, fresh and covered in cinnamon and sugar.

After we were done with our donuts and corn dog, we headed over to the Jack Russell Farm Brewery to relax and have a beer. This allows the girls to run around and play and for us to sit, relax and people watch. The brewery wasn't too crowded, but it was definitely a favorite of peoples.

Rory and I enjoyed a blueberry beer each and then got a crowler (can growler) of the blueberry beer and a peach cider crowler to go.

Next, we headed to Bodhaine Ranch for apple pies (whole apple pies), but they were closed and doing some renovations. So we went across the street to Grandpa's Cellar for pies, and they were closed as well.

So then we headed across the street again to O'Halloran's Apple Trail Ranch for some pumpkins. This place has a pumpkin patch, so we were able to pick out our pumpkins for carving. Plus we got a few Cinderella pumpkins for decorations outside as our pumpkins did not grow this year. Ugh.

This doesn't even show a quarter of the pumpkin patch.

We almost went back to get more apple pies at another place, but my parents went last weekend and we asked them to get us one since the places we were going to go are open on weekends. 

And that concludes our Apple Hill trip of 2021. 

I definitely recommend going on a weekday, but a Thursday or Friday is best, so that most places are open. Weekends are obviously the best for everything being open, but crowds. And it gets very crowded in Apple Hill on weekends.

And I will leave you with this because it is so true. But it isn't as fun when you just get them from the grocery store.

Apple Hill Trip 2020

 Well we went to Apple Hill about two weeks ago and I still haven't gotten around to blogging about it. Nor did I take as many photos as I have in year's past. I blame that on covid and wearing masks everywhere. But anyways, we still had the best time!

Our first stop was Abel's Apple Acres. We went there last year, but this year they didn't have the petting zoo like last time. They did have some horses you could go look at. And things were just not as exciting as last year, so we didn't stay long.

Next, we headed over to Boa Vista. This has always been a huge favorite for us. Again, they limited a lot of things, so we got what we needed and left. They only had about a quarter of the craft stalls and they did not have face painting which the girls were looking forward to. But we did get 3 jars of our favorite pickles from there.

Next, we headed to El Dorado Orchards. This place is dedicated to kids. They have crafts (and they had the normal amount), the train was open, and food was all open. Rory and the girls rode the train (with masks) and had a great time. Then we walked around looking for face painting, but they did not have it. I am not sure if they have ever had it there. We had a little snack and then went to our next stop.

Next up, was the Jack Russell Farm Brewery. This is a newer stop for us. This was our third time going here. Occasionally, we add or take off stops depending on what is going on in Apple Hill. This one is sooo fun. They have two or more food trucks, the brewery, a meadery and outdoor seating in the middle of the orchards. We all had lunch and Rory and I had blueberry beers. So tasty that we even got a crowler (can growler) to take home with us.

Yes the girls had more than chips. We also had fries, meatball sliders, and salads.

Next up, we headed over to Bodhaine's Ranch. After last year, I vowed to not go back after they were cussing in front of my kids, but Rory loves their apple pies so much, so we stopped there. We got two apple pies and shared a slice of pumpkin pie.

Next, we headed over to High Hill Ranch. Now this is the holy grail when it comes to places to visit. They have a fudge house, a bakery, a place for other baked goods, a pond, face painting, animals to take pictures with, all the crafts and a beer and wine garden. We don't go every year since it gets crazy there. But this year the lines were not crazy, so we went. 

We bought a pumpkin pie (which we devoured in two days including eating it for breakfast), the girls got balloon animals made, we took photos, we bought crafts and hung out in the sunshine.

All in all, it was a successful Apple Hill trip given covid. And this was all in California, which has way more strict rules. If you live near Apple Hill, you need to go check it out!

Apple Hill Weekend

I haven't done a weekend update in a long time, but with one of our favorite Fall weekends, I had to recap. Last weekend, we went to Apple Hill and Ferrari Farms Pumpkin Patch. We crossed off at least two big Fall bucket list items.

Saturday morning we got up bright and early and headed up to Truckee for breakfast at Marty's Cafe. We love this place. You want to make sure you get there right when they open up at 8 am to get a seat. After breakfast, we headed to Apple Hill.

Our first stop was Lava Cap Winery. We have never been there before, but it had amazing reviews on Yelp. We did a wine tasting while the girls hung out on the deck with some coloring books.

 You can taste as many as you want for $5, or free with the purchase of one bottle.

Deck views.

After enjoying some tasting and buying a few bottles, we headed to the next stop, Abel's Apple Acres. This apple orchard is geared towards kids. They had all sorts of picture displays, a goodie store, farm animals, bounce houses, sand candle making, crafts and more.

After hanging out for awhile, we headed over to Boa Vista Orchards where the girls got their faces painted, we walked around the crafts, bought a bunch of goodies and had fantastic people watching.

We were all starting to get hungry, so we headed over to the Jack Russell Brewery for a beer and some lunch!

After lunch, we headed over to Bodhaine Ranch for some pie. We had never been here before, but we heard they have amazing pies. We got a frozen pie and a caramel apple bar to go. While Rory was paying, I took the girls to the bathroom. It was a handicap bathroom, so we asked if the girls could use it since they refuse to use a porta-potty. The owner dropped many f-bombs at the employee who asked him for us and we could hear it all. I wasn't happy to say the least. I think their pies are good, but the owner needs to learn some manners. Not sure if we will be back or not.

Next, we hit up Apple Ridge Farms. We walked through their crafts, their Christmas house, the food, and over to the kids area. This is where the girls started melting down, so we decided it was time to head back so they could finally nap in the car.

We stopped at our favorite pizza spot in Lake Tahoe and watched the Georgia game. Then we headed home.

Sunday, my in-laws asked if we were going to go to the same pumpkin patch as last year and we realized that Sunday was the only day we could go this month before Halloween. So we made plans to head over around 11 am. We searched for pumpkins, went on two hay rides, the girls jumped in the huge pumpkin bounce house, they had lunch and ice cream and went to the petting zoo. We spent just over 2 hours there and the girls had a blast!

 We got two pumpkins to carve as a family, two for the girls as decorations and then a monster pumpkin for decoration outside!

The girls enjoying their ice cream near the ponies.

We headed home and put the girls down for a nap. Then we did the usual Sunday things. We cleaned, cooked dinner, went grocery shopping, hit up Costco and prepped for the week ahead.

How was your weekend?