“So, what
are we doing for your birthday this year?” My sister asked.
“We are
going apple picking,” I answered.
She
looked a little confused, but being my sister she knows that I usually steer
from the typical birthday dinner in the direction of more creative options. Most of my closest friends are married and
have children so I wanted to do something inclusive of all ages. My parents are recently retired and they
want to go everywhere with me now, so I also wanted to do something they would
enjoy too. I had heard of Oak Glen through a
coworker, but I was unsure about it because from where I live it’s almost two
hours away. Yet, I figured I would run
it through my friends and see if they thought their children could handle the
drive. I have the best friends because
they all agreed to jump into the apple picking adventure.
I must say,
that I was still a little concerned since we were driving so far out for just a
one day trip, but it was totally worth it.
My parents, like the kids, were in heaven because there was a petting zoo
and they got to interact with goats, rabbits, pigs, hens… The whole lot of barn
animals. I was equally delighted because
I love animals and seeing everyone participate in the fun filled my heart with
gladness. That was our first stop – the petting
zoo. The cool thing about this petting
zoo is that it’s not like the city type of petting zoos where animals are
fenced in, here they are in a rural setting in a very real farm
environment. For a five dollar entrance
fee children and adults get a tray of veggies to go inside and feed the animals. We all went in and played with our favorite
farm animals, I got to hold the fluffiest rabbit!
Feeding the animals.
Being silly!
Cute little goats.
My parents being cute!
Afterward,
we headed to the U-Press Cider station where we got to fill a bucket full of
all types of apples to make our own apple cider. For a twenty-dollar fee we were given a huge
bucket to fill with all types of apples that are grown on site. Afterwards, the kids got their hands wet
washing the apples before starting the juicing process. It was really neat to learn in such a hands
on way how juice is made, the children as well as the adults really enjoyed the
process. For lunch we all had a glass of
the delicious apple cider we made- it was so yummy!
Wash, wash, wash...
Press, press, press...
The finished product.
Tired from
our labors we took a six dollar hayride around the entire Los Rios Ranch. The farm sheriff was our tour guide and he shared
a great deal about the history of the ranch, the various apples they grow, and
the process of harvesting. They
have these really dark apples, almost black in color and he said that they were
the inspiration for the Snow White apple in the Disney movie! The adults appreciated the great information
and beautiful terrain while the children enjoyed being pulled by horses.
To end our
day we had a yummy BBQ lunch on site (prices are reasonable). As we ate a folk band played some cool tunes
that filled our lunch with delightful sounds.
Then, we enjoyed some birthday cake and presents.
Live music.
Enjoying our picnic lunch.
My awesome homemade cake!
While apple
picking season had ended and there was no apple picking to be done, we still
had such an amazing time and were able to taste most of the apple varieties
grown on site. I totally recommend it
and felt like a post was necessary because when I was researching the location
I couldn’t find a whole lot of information about it. There’s also a store on the grounds with
yummy treats. Oak Glen is made up of many
different farms, while we went to the biggest one- there’s others in the area
that offer similar activities. So, if
you have a desire for a little fall fun Oak Glen is the place.
Mi familia!
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