Abel's Apple Acres

After the annual harvest in August, the ranch and orchards known as Abel's Apple Acres are open to visitors of all ages with fruit for sale and lots more. Owner Evelyn Abel has created a place where families can enjoy wholesome recreation while experiencing the joys of simple country living.

For four generations, Abel's Apple Acres has grown and sold produce, specializing in a variety of apples from Fuji, Gala, and Golden Delicious to Red Delicious, Granny Smith, Red Rome, and Arkansas Black apples. Also grown here are Asian pears, persimmons, nuts, pumpkins, and Indian corn.

In addition to fresh fruit and vegetables, Able's Apple Acres produces honey, caramel apples, apple butter, apple sauce, cider sauce, apple marmalade, jams and jellies, homemade baked goods, and fudge for sale. Meals are served, too, including such country cooking as barbecued chicken and beef, hearty sandwiches, homemade soups, and garlic fries.

For entertainment, there is a pumpkin patch with cardboard cut-out figures, a hay maze made up of 500 hay bales, pony and horse rides, and a Country Craft Fair. Abel's Apple Acres is located in Apple Hill, a few minutes north of Highway 50. The address is 2345 Carson Road, Placerville, California 95667. Operating hours are from 8am to 5pm from Labor Day Weekend through Christmas Eve.