Savor the End of Summer with Farm Fresh Fun! 🍎
Celebrate the end of summer with fun-filled foraging outings to farms, farmers markets, and forest trails!
The weather is perfect as the season slowly transitions from late summer to early fall. Be sure to soak in the farm life and send off summer in style with a visit to an apple farm, your local farmer’s market, or a nearby forest trail to forage mushrooms!
Apple Farms 🍏
September is the best time to pick apples and there is nothing more delicious than a hand-picked, crisp apple. Apples are not only delicious but also very good for your health and well being1.
Even better, baked apple pie is a delicious treat to share with your family and friends topped with a delicious scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Apples are synonymous with the Pacific Northwest with Washington state producing more than 90% of the organic apples in the United States2.
Apple farms across the Pacific Northwest, Washington, Oregon, northern California, and around the country offer fun experiences for family and friends with U-pick opportunities and fun activities for all.
Wenatchee, Washington is known as the Apple Capital of the World. Check out the 11-mile Apple Capital Loop trail along the Columbia River.
Hood River Valley, Oregon provides numerous picking, sipping, and tasting opportunities including about 30 Fruit Loop farm stands, orchards, lavender fields, and vineyards with incredible views of Mount Hood and Mount Adams.
Sauvie Island Farms, Oregon is just a few minutes from Portland and features a variety of ‘pick your own’ farms including one of our favorites, Topaz Farm.
Apple Hill, California is one of our favorite northern California destinations with
From the Farmers Market to Your Table 🍅
Your local community farmers market provides a direct connection to local and regional farms, nurseries, bakeries, meat and seafood providers, cheese makers and specialty food producers.
Fresh, nutritious, and delicious food is such a treat and there is nothing better than a visit to the market to procure your shopping list for your picnic, lunch, or dinner.
The farm to fork movement has it’s roots in Berkeley, California when in 1971 Alice Waters opened her farm-to-table restaurant Chez Panisse to showcase a menu of seasonal and organic ingredients all sourced from local farmers. As a local supporter for local and sustainable food, she dedicated to only foraging local vegetables and buying from local farmers.
A few years later, in 1979, the non-profit Organically Grown opened in Oregon founded by gardeners, small-scale farmers, hippies and environmental activists.
Today, we are so fortunate to have local farms, farmers markets, and organic gardens that provide food security, local proximity and self-reliance, and sustainability.
Foraging Mushrooms in the Forest 🍄
Oregon has built a reputation for incredible restaurants with fresh organic produce as foundation for thriving food scene with high-quality ingredients sourced from local farms and forests.
One of my favorites is fungi pizza foraged from nearby Oregon forest.
Late summer to early fall is the best time to explore an old growth forest and find mushrooms. Be safe and sign up for local mushroom hunting guide to learn the essentials for safe hiking and mushroom identification3.
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/10-health-benefits-of-apples#10-benefits
https://nwhort.org/industry-facts/apple-fact-sheet
https://traveloregon.com/plan-your-trip/guides-tours/tours-guided-trips/beginners-guide-to-mushroom-foraging-in-oregon