Apple Picking

It was a windy Tuesday up at the Carter Mountain Orchard. Hazy but gorgeous views overlooking the Blue Ridge Mountains made for a nice reward after climbing up, up, and up, in our car, not to mention the 1.5 hour drive from Richmond.

Apple picking season is nearing its end, and the trees were really picked over. Fortunately, the kids found a few with low lying fruit.








They gathered what they wanted, probably only 10 apples each, and tromped from aisle to aisle with their plastic bags slung over their shoulders. The kids were grumpy from walking so far, and I called it a good afternoon when the need for a third potty break was announced.

We made our way back to the general store and perused our options for take-home treats. I chose a few pounds of apples that had already been picked. For the road we grabbed a dozen apple cider doughnuts, a gallon of apple cider, and a pound of apple butter.

We opted to drive home mid-afternoon so we could be back in time to greet Poppa, who was coming home 3 days early from his planned business trip.

Next time we head West, I will build in time for a diversion to Christian's Pizza Pantops, their avocado and feta pizza is so so good, and a promenade in downtown Charlottesville. The kids love the toy store, and we all enjoy Splendora's. It sounds like a day trip will be something to look forward to before Winter arrives. But, I digress.

Looking back, here are a few scenes from previous years at the apple orchard: 2009 when Roscoe was a few months old, and the following year when I was already 3 months pregnant with Merritt 2010,