Pick Your Own Apples

The other day when I went to the supermarket, I realized that wow, so many apple varieties, it must be apple season. From there, I researched places and discovered some orchards where you can go and pick your own! The place we visited was Bilpin Springs Orchard. It was only just over an hr’s drive from Sydney but it was day of fun!

Bilpin is a town west of Sydney. It is considered a part of the Hawkesbury, though bordering The Blue Mountains and is just over an hour’s drive west of Sydney. There are several orchards in the region, including Bilpin Springs Orchard. Entry was free for this orchard, you just pay for what you pick.

Bilpin Springs Orchard
2550 Bells Line of Road
Bilpin NSW
Ph: (02) 4567 1294
http://www.bilpinspringsorchard.com.au/

When you first arrive, a blackboard displays what’s available for picking that weekend. The prices are approximately what you would normally pay in the supermarkets, but you get the fun of picking straight off the tree and crunching into it. The boy wasn’t too sure whether this would be a fun activity, but at the end of the day, together with exploring the town, we both really enjoyed it.

Some bird nests we saw which had already been removed from the trees. Amazing how birds can weave them!

One of the orchard owners took us amongst all the rows of trees planted and gave a demonstration of how to pick the apples. You don’t actually pull the apple off the tree, instead, you cradle it with one hand, and with the other, you roll the apple on the axis of its stem toward the tree. It gently snaps off, and you’ve got the apple in your hand. This prevents apples just getting tugged too hard, not being caught and then falling on the ground, after which people don’t want them anymore!

Between the two of us, we were not planning to pick many apples and so we had to be extremely selective with the ones we wanted to pick. It was very exciting because you scan amongst the shrubs until you find the most plump, round and red (or pink, because they were pink ladies) apple, you struggle a bit in order to reach it, but then with a gentle tug, it’s yours! The best apples were high up, which meant I mostly just watched the boy reach for them, but I didn’t mind. I spot, he picks!

The orchard was also blossoming in persimmons. Some of the guests at the orchard weren’t familiar with the fruit, but we both loved them. The way to pick these is to just twist and twist and twist them on its stalk end until it snaps off. Although we did not taste the fruit before we picked them, when we ate them later .. wow, they were so sweet!

Once you’ve picked what you wanted, you make your way back to the entrance of the orchard where one of the friendly staff will weigh everything up for you. Payment is by cash only. Overall, I’d say we spent about an hour at the orchard.

There are a few cafes that are worthy of exploring in the area. You may choose to go there for lunch, or perhaps afternoon tea, depending on how your schedule pans out.

We passed by the Tutti Fruitti café on our way into the town. It was just a quick drop by for us as we were too keen to get to the actual apple picking part of our trip. The place seemed extremely popular with lots of cars stopping by. The family owned business includes the café, an orchard from which fresh produce can be purchased (although not pick your own), as well as a rose farm from which you can purchase fresh flowers.

Tutti Fruitti
1917 Bells Line of Road
Bilpin NSW 2758
Ph: 02 4567 8436
http://tuttifruitti.com.au/wordpress

After our fruit picking, we stopped by the Bilpin Fruit Bowl. It’s a grocer selling fresh fruit sourced locally, as well as a café. We couldn’t go past the smell of their freshly baked apple pies. Whilst I was exploring the goodies available in the grocers, the boy proudly reports to me that he asked the store attendant how much of the pie is one ‘slice’ as listed on the menu. It was 1/6, for $5 … and so he suggests we get the entire pie for $10 so we could try some and bring the rest back for the family. I was distracted eating the pie that I forgot to take a photo to show you the inside. It was very delicious and that crust up the top … saved for last because it was the tastiest.

Bilpin Fruit Bowl
2093 Bells Line of Road
Bilpin NSW 2758
Ph: 02 4567 1152
http://www.bilpinfruitbowl.com.au/

Overall, it was a lovely day out and we both thoroughly enjoyed doing something different. As the weather is getting cold, and because of its proximity to the blue mountains area, make sure you dress very warmly. Also, if you are planning to take the toll free route rather than the M7, be prepared for a bit of traffic, even if it’s the weekend.

I have already researched and found that mandarins will soon be in season. There’s a farm which grows mandarins and mushrooms so we will probably take another trip next month. I think this time, I will definitely want to lunch at Tutti Fruitti.

For information of various farms to pick your own:
http://www.hawkesburyharvest.com.au/pick-your-own/
There is also an app for you to download which has this info:
Apple: https://itunes.apple.com/au/app/the-farm-gate-trail/id797334182?mt=8
Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=au.com.hawkesburyharvest.tiltandco.farmgate

Happy fruit picking! I think I might try and make apple crumble with the remaining apples I’ve got.