Apple Time in Vermont

People around here (mostly tourists) think about this as being leaf season which it is, of course, but for those of us who actually live here, it's also apple time.  And apples can be gotten rain or shine whereas leaf viewing is enhanced by having glorious weather ... and this last holiday (which I understand is now to be called Indigenous People's Day) was 1) gloomy on Saturday and 2) gloomy and rainy on Sunday.  It was Monday (I.P. Day, itself), with everyone back on the road going home again, that turned out to be gorgeous.  But regardless of the gloomy weekend, visitors still flocked this way.  I chose to stay in, make soup, read David Copperfield, catch up on my ironing, and marvel at all the company at the neighbor's across the street.  I also got to the farmers' market early enough to find a parking spot, gather my weekly head of butter-crunch lettuce (THE best) plus a bouquet of zinnias, then skedaddle home.

The Sunday before, some of us made a PYO trip to a local apple orchard where we filled a bag with (mostly) Cortlands and (a few) McIntosh. (The Cortlands are crisper.)  At the end, here, you'll see what I did with mine.  I also went out one day to another orchard which, incidentally, was used as the setting for the bunk house in that movie some years back, Cider House Rules.

Picking time at our local Cortland Hill Orchard

For wasps, squirrels, deer ... plus cider-makers.

Scott Farm, a wonderful 571-acre farm that produces 120 varieties of ecologically-grown apples.
The building on the extreme right served as the bunk-house setting in the movie, Cider House Rules.

Scott Farm dates from 1862.  (You can just make out the year on the sign.)

More apples from another farm stand.

My heavenly mostly-Cortland apple pie