On Friday I started my workday at 4:45am, which sounds dreadful but it does mean that I can clock out early in the afternoon and call it a day.
Rick and I decided to take advantage of the gorgeous weather and the unexpected windfall of a few free hours on a Friday afternoon and head up to Apple Hill.
We have been wanting to go up there for about a month now but it is such a Fall activity and the last four or five Fridays have been unseasonably warm. I wanted to bundle up in sweaters and sensible shoes instead of traipsing through the orchards wearing short sleeves and flip flops.
Okay those are vineyards and not orchards but I'm sure you understand what I mean. I know I have posted about Apple Hill before because we go up there every other year or so and I've blogged about it. It is an area up above Placerville (Camino) and it is a big loop you can drive, stopping at big operations that sell all manner of apple related things, smaller (and more charming) places for baked goods and even u-pick places, if you want to do the work yourself.
Of course my real motive was the apple fritters. And I found one at the second place we stopped at. The fritter was the size of a hub-cab and I ate half of it at the fruit stand and the other half on the way home.
I have to confess that I didn't actually buy any apples. I bought apple butter, apple pie and the aforementioned apple fritters but no apples.
Maybe next year we will pick our own.
Those aren't apple trees either. I can't believe I didn't take any pictures of actual orchards. My chauffeur kept offering to pull over so I could take pictures too.
Anyway – if you are in the California Bay Area it really is worth a day trip to drive up here and sip fresh apple cider and get fritter crumbs all down the front of you. I would recommend doing it on a Friday rather than a Saturday or Sunday because you avoid the crowds. Also there are a ton of wineries up here so you can make it a day of apple feasting and wine tasting if you like.
Wear your sweaters and sensible shoes.
That fritter looks so good. I’m starving!
Dang that fritter! I think I chipped a tooth trying to get at it through my screen.
Now you have to go back and take pictures of apple trees. And get me a fritter…
Ooh, apple fritters! Yum! Beautiful landscape.
Your post brought back some wonderful memories. We’ve been to Apple Hill a couple of times now on trips to Lake Tahoe. But, it’s time we do it again! We never got a fritter, but we did get warm apple pie w/ice cream and boxes of apples!
This is why I love your blog… you take me on a cyber-vacation without the airport, car rental, and hotel. Thank you for the trip to the orchard. (I wouldn’t have even noticed that there weren’t any orchard pics unless you mentioned it.)