The weather may be starting to cool off but apple picking season is just heating up.
The Big Apple has no shortage of picking options from family friendly to picnic-ready. And there are plenty of (golden) delicious opportunities to get your apple fix within just a couple hours of the city.
This year, New York growers estimate about 1.1 billion pounds of apples will be picked over the next few weeks, according to the New York Apple Association
From Empire to Rome and Red Delicious, here are a few apple picking destinations to consider.
For family-friendly fun: Barton Orchards
Barton Orchards has it all: apples and vegetables and pumpkins to pick as well as hay rides, live music, a petting zoo, a goat walk and a hay maze for the kids. Get your fill of apples ($16 for about 10 pounds) and then head to the rest of the fun. Try your hand at the five acre corn maze or brave the Rotten Core Manor haunted house. Admission is $5 for most activities, and a Fun Pass wrist band (for the corn maze, haunted house and more) is $15.
Drive: About 2 hours from midtownInfo: bartonorchards.com
For picnics: Wright’s Farm
At Wright’s Farm in the Hudson Valley, apple enthusiasts (and their families and their dog) can drive right into the orchard. Lay out your blanket and picnic to your heart’s content on the 453 acre farm in between grabbing apples right off the trees. Admission is $12 for adults and $6 for kids 4 to 9 years old, and the price ncludes a bag of apples as well as half a bag for the kids.
Drive: About two hours from midtownInfo: eatapples.com
For easy access: Outhouse Orchards
This North Salem spot is only a five minute taxi ride from the Croton Falls Metro North stop. Grab several varieties of apples (including Rome and Red Delicious), prepay $25 for an apple bag and you’re off. You can also grab pumpkins, Halloween decorations and more from this family-owned farm, originally founded as a dairy farm in the late 1800s. If you choose to drive, parking is $5 on the weekends.
Drive: About 1 1⁄2 hours from midtownInfo: outhouseorchardsny. com
For boozing with apples: Angry Orchard
Apples are great in pies and cakes and on their own, but they also make great hard cider. Head to Walden to sample some special cider varieties at Angry Orchards’ barrel room. Tour the cider cellar for $10 and grab a brew at Innovation Cider House. You have to be 21 and over to partake, but kids are welcome to visit.
Drive: About two hours from midtownInfo: angryorchard.com
