Visiting Spotsylvania: Hunting For Apples

“There’s a mad genius every generation or so who understands that a person far enough removed from labor will pay to try it. Strawberry picking, apple picking, hand-cranking old machines or panning for gold. What was once a grinding method for earning a living now qualifies as a pay-to-play novelty experience.” – Old Sean

Invitations and Orchards

It’s rare for me to be in the states for an extended period of time without travel plans.  It’s even rarer for me to be nearby my various family members.  This weekend, my aunt invited me to pick apples in Virginia.

Apple picking is one of those quaint activities that costs a surprising bundle.  People actually go for the views and novelty, rather than the actual food.  Since Autumn was in full swing and I was available, I began making my way south.

A Series of Trains

I don’t like owning cars. Back during University, I worked for Autozone driving car parts around the country.  This job ruined my ability to enjoy long distance driving after enough time in the vast emptiness of the US Midwest.

I don’t like traffic, I don’t like paying for pricey gas, I don’t like random lights on my dashboard, I don’t like maintenance fees and I don’t like paying for parking or vehicle storage.  As such, I’m in the US without a car.

Instead, I had to hop through a series of public transit systems, going from bus, to metro, to train to the VRE leaving the city.  The only nice part about this was meeting a girl from Europe who was heading to New Orleans.  A place I had plenty of recommendations regarding.  

I might not like owning a car, but I do miss the instantaneous autonomy of having a personal vehicle available.  

In Spotsylvania 

My Aunt and Uncle picked me up in Spotsylvania.  I met my sister a few hours later at their home after I had effectively stuffed my face full of food and snacks for the road.

My uncle had some other things to attend, so it was just my aunt, my sister and myself heading out for apple picking. 

We drove through long, narrow country backroads of Virginia, passing straight woods filled with colored trees.  There were soggy meadows, the usual pockets of pedestrian houses and a few sites of construction.

Finally, we reached the Apple Orchard.  The entire zone, following a light-gray graveled path, rose into an alpine orchard area where Autumn-themes were in full swing.  The main venue had a gift shop, a viewing deck, a café which sold hot-or-slushie apple ciders and a pastry bar.  Nearby, there were school tour areas and a nice little pumpkin patch for visiting children.

Into the Orchard

After doing a couple of short laps around the area, we purchased an “apple bag” (which is a small, sturdy paper bag) and started walking through the various low trees.  

Apples hung on nearly every branch, usually in bright red or pink clusters.  The ones at the lower leaves had been thoroughly cleared, the fruits easily reached by eager children.  The choicest apples were much higher up.  

Since everything was on a slope and jumping for apples is the best part, my little group wandered the rows, occasionally lunging out to grab the most-delicious-looking orbs.  

This was actually a bit harder than it sounds.  My vertical leap isn’t impressive and the ground was fraught with apples that had already dropped and were rotting.  IT took a few seconds of picking a spot to land before making any jump.

Gradually, however, we filled up our bag.  We stopped at a truly ancient, rusted-truck carcass, bought a few apple-cider slushies and began driving home.

The Jefferson Stop

Though initially we planned on driving straight home, the apple orchard is very close to Thomas Jefferson’s rather impressive home.  

We decided to make a detour, visiting the lower area, small forest and museum location.  Visiting Jefferson’s actual estate requires bookings and tickets, so we had to forgo this.  However, we did get some pine-scented soap, viewed the interesting series of US cultural knick-knacks and wandered tiny forest trails.

Back to DC

Overall, this was a short trip.  I’m still getting organized in DC, so I don’t have heaps of time to spend wandering around.  After returning to Spotsylvania, I had a single night of rest before taking a car back in the morning.

I’ve now returned to my sparsely-furnished room and acquainted myself with my working keyboard.  I imagine another trip will resolve itself soon.  

But until then,

Best regards and excellent trails,

Old Sean

Written October 4th, 2022

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