Hillcrest Apple Orchards

We are right in the middle of apple season in Georgia, and Hillcrest Orchards in Ellijay is the most fun place to get apples. You can buy them all over Ellijay, but Hillcrest has an Apple Pickin' Festival on September and October weekends. Besides having great apples and products to buy in their store, there are tons of fun things to do while you are there.

You can watch a pig race, go to the petting zoo, pick apples, take a hay ride, play on a playground, walk through the woods to see nursery rhyme recreations, slide down a huge slide built into a hill, and milk a cow. There's a band and lots of festival food like barbecue, turkey legs, hamburgers, and hot dogs.

The store has great apple cider donuts and frozen cider slushes, among other things. Buy some Honeycrisp apples while you're there - they are so sweet and crisp, and much cheaper than the grocery store. Mutsu apples are great for baking.

The cost for the festival is $5.00 per person - the petting zoo is $3.00 extra.

Hillcrest is definitely country, and it is a gorgeous ride up there. Don't forget that you can store fresh apples for months sometimes in cool, dry conditions - it's worth stocking up!