Green Bluff

Moving from the west side of Washington to the east side is quite an adventure. Mired in a moving van full of boxes and household goods there's hardly time to breathe, but once settled there's a lot of new ground to explore.

Have you heard of Green Bluff? It's a farming community northeast of Spokane. It's also where I took a respite from unpacking to savor the lush farmlands and their bounty amidst rolling hills and winding roads. Was it ever fun!

The Apple Festival was a kick, and being out in the orchard picking my own apples was an experience to remember. You get a ride on a cart pulled by a horse or tractor and boxes and bags are in the field for your use, as are ladders, folks who can send you to the right trees for your special apples and just plain fun in the sun!

Green Bluff is home to over 50 orchards, wineries, Christmas tree farms, vegetable gardens and just plain country. They host a Cherry Festival in cherry season, a Cherry Pickers' Trot (a four-mile run) and Pit Spit (who can spit the cherry pits the farthest?), a Peach Festival in peach season and an Apple Festival in the fall. I love apples; you can't beat the taste fresh off the tree. You may also buy fresh squeezed cider, catch some great tunes from guest artists, eat some yummy treats and visit craft booths, antique boutiques, wander in farm mazes and enjoy the animals, such as horse rides for the kids. There are gift shops and take-and-bake pies. One of the mazes has a castle in the middle you can climb and take a look around.

You'll find farmer's fields open from June through part of December. The owners offer strawberries, cherries, honey, raspberries, apricots, Asian pears, apples, blueberries, cucumbers, peaches, nectarines, corn, prunes, plums, carrots, pears, cabbage, huckleberries, potatoes, grapes, pumpkins, squash, wine, perennial flowers, dried flowers, culinary herbs and roots and Christmas trees in appropriate seasons. Something for everyone.

I picked a couple of apple varieties new to me: Empire and Elsap. Some of the other varieties (over 50 of them) are Red and Golden Delicious, Jonathon, McIntosh, Spartan, Paulared, Wagner, Rome, Gala, Jonagold, Winesap, Winter Banana, Gravenstein, Ida Red, Granny Smith - too many varieties to name. Each farm specializes in certain apples.

Have you ever had an apple sundae? It's sliced apples covered with caramel sauce. Yum! There's homemade ice cream, cherry cider, homemade cinnamon rolls, chilidogs, specialty food gifts such as canned sauerkraut or plum jam. I tasted some delicious pumpkin ice cream last trip.

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