{Travel} A Day at Snow-Line Orchard in Oak Glen, CA

One of the best parts of growing up in the midwest is the fall. The colors, the weather, college football & best of all, trips to the cider mill...it doesn't get any better.  Now, don't get me wrong, living in LA & having almost perfect weather all the time is nothing to complain about. But around this time every year, I always find myself missing the midwest.  Luckily for me, I'm not alone.  One of my dear friends who lives in LA is also a fellow Michigander & bonafide genius. After talking about how much we loved going to cider mills as kids, she discovered Snow-Line Orchard & Winery.  Only a mere 92 miles from my house, Snow-Line had everything we were looking for; cider, doughnuts & fall. 

Ok I cheated..this pic is from last year.  We went a bit later this year & missed some of these insane colors. I definitely recommend going in October!

Midwesterners, if you're looking for a tiny slice of fall in southern CA, LOOK NO FURTHER.  NON MIDWESTERNERS, IF YOU'RE WONDERING WHAT IT'S LIKE IN THE MIDWEST IN THE FALL, LOOK NO FURTHER.  Sorry, I had to yell because people need to KNOW about this place.  Nestled away in the small mountain town of Oak Glen, is paradise.  The temps dropped a solid 15 degrees by the time we arrived, the colors were vibrant & the doughnuts...THE DOUGHNUTS. 

There's only one flavor of doughnuts (apple cider of course) because you don't need any other flavors.  The best way to enjoy them is straight off the assembly line. When they're hot, they literally melt in your mouth.  I brought J home a dozen & they were still good that evening, but by the end of the 2nd day, they'd lost their magic. So when (not if) you buy these tiny little bites of heaven, plan on eating them that day or the next at the latest.  But really, good luck keeping them in your house for longer than 24 hours. I also brought home a quart of cider, but I wasn't paying any attention & accidentally brought home cherry apple cider.  This is a mistake I do not regret...it was DELICIOUS.

In addition to the beautiful family-owned property & amazing doughnuts, Snow-Line has a wonderful market filled with all kinds of apple & fruit products, baked goods, beverages of all sorts, baking tools...OH & a wine tasting room.  Need I say more?  In addition to my apple treats, I also bought apple salsa & a honey bourbon bbq sauce I plan to use somehow in the crock pot.  You can also get lunch at Snow-Line at their outdoor bbq hut. We were content with our cider & doughnuts, but the brisket sure did smell good.

Snow-Line isn't the only apple orchard in the area.  There are quite a few different orchards & this year, after paying homage to Snow-Line, we wandered over to Los Rios Ranch.  In addition to a similar market, they also had a petting zoo & a corn maze.  This orchard seemed a bit more family oriented as there was a ton more space for kids to run around.  We didn't stick around for too long, but their baked goods looked INSANE.

 Nearby is Oak Tree Village which is a small little town filled with shops, petting zoos (I do have mixed emotions about those) restaurants & whole little community.  But, our favorite stop is this amazing antique shop that was once the village school.  We always have such great success there finding fun vintage items!

Overall, traveling to Oak Glen is quickly becoming my favorite fall activity & I only wish it was closer so I could indulge more often!  Have you been up to Oak Glen? If so, I'd love to hear about your favorite things to do up there!

I mean...this view.