Apple picking fun, plus apple donuts, apple pie, apple cider, and wine

If you haven’t been to Carter Mountain for apple picking, you don’t know what you’re missing! It’s a festival every day on the mountain and it’s just a short drive up I-64 towards Charlottesville. They are open daily 9am – 6pm. Timed tickets required for entry as well as driving tours. Food, apples, and more are available for purchase.

Cqrter Mountain is an orchard within driving distance of Richmond where you can pick your own apples and sample cider and donuts.

The fresh air and beautiful mountain scenery from atop Carter Mountain is a lovely escape from the city. They are open 7 days a week for apple picking, or you can grab apples already picked. Visit the country store or head by the bakery. You’ll also find plenty of pumpkins in all shapes and sizes. There are plenty of activities every weekend during Apple Harvest Celebration including:

Pick Your Own Apples (the orchards are massive and fun!)
Hayrides, occasionally
Lunch from the Mountain Grill
Wine Tastings
Apple Pie
Famous Apple Cider Donuts
Fresh-pressed Cider

Read the options on Carter Mountain’s website carefully. Planning ahead will make for the best apple season experience. Carter Mountain is located at 1435 Carters Mountain Trail, Charlottesville, VA 22902, tel: 434.977.1833

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Eight more apple orchards located a drive from Richmond:

•Bridled Arrow Farm, 16570 Old Ridge Rd. Montpelier, VA 23192: peaches, apples, and both Asian and European pears. CLOSED FOR THE SEASON

•Chiles Peach orchard, 1351 Greenwood Rd. Crozet, VA 22932 Field report: Pick your own apples and ready-picked in their farm market + pumpkins. For updates on apple availability, visit https://chilesfamilyorchards.com/chiles-peach-orchard/fruit/.

•Drumheller’s Orchard, 1130 Drumheller Orchard Ln Lovingston, VA 22949 Available at their market: Fresh made Apple Cider donuts, fresh pressed apple cider (unpasteurized), fresh picked apples, apple butter…everything apples.

Santa & Mrs. Claus will be stopping by Drumheller Orchard for story time & pictures, December 18, 2021. Kids will be able to make a memorable Christmas craft while visiting the orchard. Donuts, hot chocolate, & hot cider will be available. Get your Christmas lists ready for Santa. Sign up for your time today. https://signup.com/go/qwKneQP Admission at the door.

•Fruit Hill Orchard, 2745 Thomas Jefferson Pkwy Palmyra, VA 22963 Orchard report: Apple season is finished. Re-opening November 26th for their Christmas season

•Graves Mountain, 205 Graves Mountain Ln Syria, VA 22743 – Apple picking is done for the season but you can shop for lots of apples down at their apple packing shed opposite the Graves Mountain Market at their crossroads. You can also enjoy many other activities at Graves Mountain, a 1100 acre farm in the Blue Ridge Mountains. There’s lodging, a restaurant, fishing, hiking, horseback riding, rock-hounding, mountain biking, road biking, massages, nature walks and talks, live music with local artists around the fire with s’mores on weekends.

Saturdays in November from 3 – 7 PM – Bluegrass – Music on the Mountain – Smokin’ Trout – with Ellen on the Violin
Graves Mountain Farm and Lodges

•Henley’s Orchard, 2192 Holly Hill Farm Crozet, VA 22932 is a smaller, family-owned orchard in Crozet. Apples, apple cider, hard apple cider and wines, delicious apple cider donuts and other baked goods, pumpkins, hay rides, pony rides and petting zoo. Open weekends 9am-5pm in November and December 2021 with holiday-focused items and activities.

•Rinker Orchards, 1156 Marlboro Rd. Stephens City, VA 22655 – CLOSED FOR THE SEASON

•Showalters Orchard and Greenhouse, 17768 Honeyvile Rd. Timberville, VA 22853 Pick Your Own varieties include: Albemarle Pippin, Gold Rush, Fuji, Arkansas Black, Pink Lady, Stayman, York, Turley Winesap, Granny Smith, Rome Beauty, Red Delicious, Golden Delicioius. Shop the Orchard Market, Old Hill Cider Tasting Room Open 11a-5p

You can explore more pick your own farms around the Richmond area from this useful website.

Be sure to subscribe to email updates, follow @rvacheap on Twitter or like RVA (Richmond) on the Cheap on Facebook to stay in the know about the latest freebies & deals.