Apple Orchard & Dog Hike!
Saturday Jason and I went out to Afton Orchard Farms down near Cottage Grove. Worst. Experience. Ever. We arrived around noon and it was already busy. You actually have to pay to pick the apples which you then have to pay per pound for...ridiculous. We paid the $6 and went inside. We waited about 15 minutes for an empty hayride to come around to take us to the apples. At the first stop we got off and headed down the aisles to pick some apples. Of course, the apples near the road were all taken so we had to walk all the way to the other side to find any apples on the trees. After a while we had our bag full so we waited on the road, and waited, and waited. After 4 hayrides came by full, we decided to walk the mile or so back.
On our way back we found some other apples so we picked another bag. None of them were marked what they were because we were on the other side of the road, where they don't drop people off...because we couldn't get on a hayride where they tell you what the apples are. So, I had to sneak a bite and they were so sweet, I assumed they were Sweet 16's (the last hayride driver told me there were Sweet 16's coming). I'm no apple expert. They didn't have any "no picking" signs next to them. (you can tell where this is headed).
After waiting a little longer for 5 more hayrides to pass us because they were full we decided just to walk all the way back to the check out store and get out of there. It was getting really busy. I'm glad I paid that $6 for a 5 minute hayride.
We finally get back to the store to check out. We're waiting in line and the people behind us were told by employees to move up to the side of us to get out of the way of hayrides, thus having them budge us. I was getting extremely annoyed by this point. After waiting 30 minutes to check out, we finally get up to the cashier. I put the bag up of what I thought were Sweet 16's. She took the bag away and gave it to another older lady who came up to us and very rudely told us we weren't supposed to pick these, they were Honeycrisp. That is when I said well there weren't any ropes around them, to which she replied there HAD to have been. I then replied maybe if they had more hayrides people could get on so that people knew where they had to go and what they could and couldn't pick this wouldn't have been a problem. We put down our three bags of apples and walked out. Spend some more money on signs and rope if you don't want people to pick certain apples.
When we left there was actually a line to get into the orchard...I wanted to tell them to leave.
We then drove to Cub Foods, which does NOT charge you to get into their store and buy apples. I bought really yummy apples and it was a lot less stressful than the Afton Orchard.
When we got home we picked Sampson up and took him to the off-leash dog park at Battle Creek. He has such a fun time. He loves seeing all the dogs, people and of course smelling everything! He does not go off-leash. You cannot trust a Beagle. He will follow his nose and won't even hear a lick of what you have to say to him. The last time we were there and let him off-leash it was not fenced in (it now is) and we lost him. It is a big nature area, you would never know you were in the city, and there are trails to follow etc. so Jason and I walked around the trails for hours worried that Sampson was dead. It was a very sad night. We were just going to walk out when two girls came walking our way, they had their dog and Sampson. They apparently found him sitting next to our car in the parking lot. That was the last time we ever trusted him. When he looks at me all sad to be off-leash I tell him we have a trust issue and he hasn't earned that trust back.
He was puckered out when we got home. He's going to Grandpa and Grandma's this weekend, and there I trust him off-leash, at least some what. We always have to bring Sampson to Grandpa and Grandma's when we go to Iowa for the Reid gatherings (we're very, very, very, very lucky my parents take him ALL the time).
Well, we left him there for the weekend and went down to Iowa (I can't remember for what) and when we came back we heard a story about our naughty puppy. Apparently he was outside and his tail hit the electric fence which made him so scared that he started running down the gravel road. Dad got on his four wheeler and followed him, but the sound of the four wheeler only scared the little bugger more which made him run in the complete opposite direction. Dad didn't know where he went and when Mom got home they went searching for him. When they couldn't find him Mom had to call Nicole to drive over an hour to get to their house to help search for him. That night they couldn't find him so they went to all the neighbors in the valley and told them about Sampson missing. The next morning (the day we were coming home) a neighbor was going to church and found him near the ditch, picked him up and brought him to Dad and Mom's. Mom said if they wouldn't have found Sampson she was going to leave the house and make Dad tell me that my little puppy was gone.
He is such a little naughty boy, but we love him.
This is last years Halloween costume. We have to go get another one for this year, can't you tell how much he loves wearing his costumes?
Lindsay
On our way back we found some other apples so we picked another bag. None of them were marked what they were because we were on the other side of the road, where they don't drop people off...because we couldn't get on a hayride where they tell you what the apples are. So, I had to sneak a bite and they were so sweet, I assumed they were Sweet 16's (the last hayride driver told me there were Sweet 16's coming). I'm no apple expert. They didn't have any "no picking" signs next to them. (you can tell where this is headed).
After waiting a little longer for 5 more hayrides to pass us because they were full we decided just to walk all the way back to the check out store and get out of there. It was getting really busy. I'm glad I paid that $6 for a 5 minute hayride.
We finally get back to the store to check out. We're waiting in line and the people behind us were told by employees to move up to the side of us to get out of the way of hayrides, thus having them budge us. I was getting extremely annoyed by this point. After waiting 30 minutes to check out, we finally get up to the cashier. I put the bag up of what I thought were Sweet 16's. She took the bag away and gave it to another older lady who came up to us and very rudely told us we weren't supposed to pick these, they were Honeycrisp. That is when I said well there weren't any ropes around them, to which she replied there HAD to have been. I then replied maybe if they had more hayrides people could get on so that people knew where they had to go and what they could and couldn't pick this wouldn't have been a problem. We put down our three bags of apples and walked out. Spend some more money on signs and rope if you don't want people to pick certain apples.
When we left there was actually a line to get into the orchard...I wanted to tell them to leave.
We then drove to Cub Foods, which does NOT charge you to get into their store and buy apples. I bought really yummy apples and it was a lot less stressful than the Afton Orchard.
When we got home we picked Sampson up and took him to the off-leash dog park at Battle Creek. He has such a fun time. He loves seeing all the dogs, people and of course smelling everything! He does not go off-leash. You cannot trust a Beagle. He will follow his nose and won't even hear a lick of what you have to say to him. The last time we were there and let him off-leash it was not fenced in (it now is) and we lost him. It is a big nature area, you would never know you were in the city, and there are trails to follow etc. so Jason and I walked around the trails for hours worried that Sampson was dead. It was a very sad night. We were just going to walk out when two girls came walking our way, they had their dog and Sampson. They apparently found him sitting next to our car in the parking lot. That was the last time we ever trusted him. When he looks at me all sad to be off-leash I tell him we have a trust issue and he hasn't earned that trust back.
He was puckered out when we got home. He's going to Grandpa and Grandma's this weekend, and there I trust him off-leash, at least some what. We always have to bring Sampson to Grandpa and Grandma's when we go to Iowa for the Reid gatherings (we're very, very, very, very lucky my parents take him ALL the time).
Well, we left him there for the weekend and went down to Iowa (I can't remember for what) and when we came back we heard a story about our naughty puppy. Apparently he was outside and his tail hit the electric fence which made him so scared that he started running down the gravel road. Dad got on his four wheeler and followed him, but the sound of the four wheeler only scared the little bugger more which made him run in the complete opposite direction. Dad didn't know where he went and when Mom got home they went searching for him. When they couldn't find him Mom had to call Nicole to drive over an hour to get to their house to help search for him. That night they couldn't find him so they went to all the neighbors in the valley and told them about Sampson missing. The next morning (the day we were coming home) a neighbor was going to church and found him near the ditch, picked him up and brought him to Dad and Mom's. Mom said if they wouldn't have found Sampson she was going to leave the house and make Dad tell me that my little puppy was gone.
He is such a little naughty boy, but we love him.
This is last years Halloween costume. We have to go get another one for this year, can't you tell how much he loves wearing his costumes?Lindsay
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