Morning at Skytop Orchard

It was a quiet ride home after spending the morning at Skytop.

Each fall, for almost my entire life, my Mema has made homemade applesauce. It all started when my grandparents moved into their newly built home on Brink Court in 1976. In the back right corner of their lot, three apple trees grew. Not wanting to waste the fruit that the trees yielded, Mema began making applesauce. As a child, I NEVER ate store bought applesauce. My poor mother, she tried to serve that store bought mush to me, but each time I firmly rejected it. I'm a Mema's Applesauce Girl through and through.

When I moved to Maryland in 1999, I got to experience the fall applesauce making first hand and LOVED it. Each and every fall we would gather enough apples (Cortland, only Cortlands will do for us) to make our year's supply of sauce. It was a great way to spend time with family on a Saturday, catching up on each other's lives.

When I moved back to South Carolina in 2006, my mom and I decided to continue the applesauce making tradition, although it took us a few years to get started (2009)! Last year, we came across Cortlands (!) at the Fall Greenville Farmers Market. We immediately placed an order for two bushels and one Saturday morning, we got to it. Our efforts yielded enough that we have enjoyed homemade applesauce all year long. So we decided to do it again this year but I decided to add another step...why don't we see if a local orchard grows Cortlands and pick our own???

So after a little research, I discovered Skytop Orchards. I invited a friend to come along and we headed up to Skytop this morning. I must admit, even though they are classified as "Now Picking" on their Picking Schedule, I still think it is a bit early for Cortlands. There are a few ripe apples on the ground, but most of the apples on the trees are still green. After evaluating our picking options and experiencing some rather testy toddlers, we decided to bail on the "pick-your-own" and fast forward to our planned picnic lunch. Needless to say, we had a wonderful time sitting in the shade, eating lunch and chatting while the kids played, but sadly, we came home with little to no apples. But we sure did enjoy the Apple Doughnuts and Apple Slushies.

No worries though...we still have our apple contact from last year and plan on placing our order with her soon! And I'll keep Skytop on my list of things to do when the kids are a little bit older. Something tells me we may enjoy the pick-your-own experience so much more at say four or five!