Beloved North Carolina Mountain Orchard Now Open For Pear Picking
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I must confess, this was a new one for me today. As the husband of a woman obsessed with all things fall and agri-tainment, I feel like I’ve been to every apple orchard and pumpkin patch in the Carolinas for picking. However, I’ve never been pear-picking. Honestly, I didn’t know it was a thing. I now have a feeling it’s going to be a part of my life very shortly. Pilot Mountain Pears in Hendersonville is now open for the season as of yesterday (8.27).
Pilot Mountain Pears specializes in Asian pears. If you’ve never had one, the best way to describe their delicious taste is a combination between a standard pear and an apple. The orchards owner, Beth Laughter tells WLOS-TV , “We weren’t really in any way agritourism or a pick-your-own. We literally had people that would recognize the orchards to be Asian pears and they would stop and knock on their doors of my house. So, I said, ‘We really need to open the orchards up for these people because they really want these things.'”
Now, if Pilot Mountain Pears was just open for pear-picking, that would be enough. But no, they also go after my sweet tooth as well. Once there you can purchase fresh fried apple piece, baked apple turnovers, pear cider and pear slushies. Oh my, I’m in trouble.
With the cool weather coming in this week, thoughts are definitely going to be turning to fall. And I can think of no better family-fun activity than a visit to Pilot Mountain Pears. The orchard is located at Circle L Farm Drive in Hendersonville. Pilot Mountain Pears is open for business each weekend (Friday through Sunday0, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
North Carolina Town On List Of Best Train Rides For Fall
This morning I woke up at 6:30 a.m. and took the pups out to go potty. It was a bit chilly when I walked outside, and the feeling of fall was in the air. It’s not here yet, but it’s coming! Fall is my favorite time of the year and here in the South, you can experience the beauty of the season in many ways. If you’d like to see the gorgeous fall foliage, a train ride is a cool way to check it out.
Southern Living has the ’14 Best Train Rides for Spotting Fall Foliage’ and there are some spots that aren’t too far from us here in the Charlotte area. Driving up to the N.C. mountains to see the leaves changing colors is fun, but if you’re the driver, you can miss some of the beauty. Taking a train ride is a great way to experience the gorgeous fall colors.
Bryson City, N.C. is on the list and it’s not a far drive from us. You can hop aboard the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad and bask in the amazing colors of the mountains. You can see the vibrant foliage of Western North Carolina, and you can ride in their open-air gondola or dine in the first-class car. There are numerous packages to choose from, and there are different events to check out.
Now is the time to plan a fun trip to see the colors changing and you can pick a fun location from the list below. Pictures are a must on these rides!
Charlie Nance is the Afternoon Drive co-host (along with his wife) of "The Charlie and Debbie Show" at WSOC, Country 1037 in Charlotte, North Carolina. The couple have been with the radio station since 2006. Charlie has won the prestigious CMA (Country Music Association) Award for Radio Personality of the Year and has been a finalist for the Country Radio Hall of Fame four times. Prior to his time in Charlotte, Charlie (along with Debbie) spent more than a decade hosting successful morning radio shows in Greenville, SC; Augusta, Ga; and Birmingham, Al. As a content creator for Country 1037, Charlie writes about dream lottery windfalls, sports, restaurants and bars, and travel experiences in North and South Carolina.