This past Saturday we headed into the Columbia River Gorge to Hood River, where we drove a bit of the Hood River Fruit Loop. The weather was beautiful, especially for this time of year. We stopped at Rasmussen Farms to get some pumpkins and apple cider, and then to Draper Girls Country Farm to pick some apples.

I have to praise the Draper Girls for their wonderful staff. When we arrived they had just closed the apple picking for the day, since it was about 5:30 in the evening. I mentioned that wasn’t a big deal, since we would likely be out in the area again in a few weeks, to which the lady answered that there probably wouldn’t be any more apples by then. She then let us go out and pick some apples even though they had closed up for the day! The kids were so excited, and we ended up with about 25 pounds of fresh apples, with a side of muddy shoes and sticky smiles.