I know Nancy blogged about traditions recently. My wife and I did our almost annual trek to upstate NY for a tradition of Apple picking in Gardener, NY at the long-standing family run Wrights Farm. 

We got up at 3 AM to catch a 6 AM flight to JFK. We packed a carry on within a larger checked bag and brought a 2nd carry on knowing what is involved in a venture like this. Flight was smooth, got a rental car and were off to a two-plus hour drive north. The weather was warmer than expected but I was ready. The farm shop has some amazing baked goods, veggies and fruit, plus a ton of jams and other jarred goods. We knew our goal and got out on the grounds going to the usually less frequented spots which required a good hill climb and a ton of walking through, high grass and weeds to get to our favorite spot to pick some of the best Honey Crisp apples we have ever had. Much to our surprise, tree after tree was barren of any apples except a few up on the tops. Not even fallen ones on the ground. We walked for an hour checking hundreds of trees. A few here and there. Some Granny Smith, Macintosh, Matsu, Golden delicious, but almost no Honey Crisp. We filled our official bags with some of what we could find and decided to head back down the hill, hot, tired and a bit let down. I found a local couple picking too, that lived 5 minutes from this orchard. They told us the harsh winter last year caused many trees to not bloom this year. He directed us to another area where we found a few dozen trees full of Honey Crisp. It was like finding an oasis with beautiful juicy, crunchy and amazingly sweet, delicious treats. Out came my back up bags and we filled as much as we could and headed back to the main stand to get some Apple Cider donuts made fresh throughout the day and a few packs of their delicious freshly baked cookies, which my son Joe loves. 

We left the orchard happy with our late finds and endured the traffic heading back to Long Island where we visited my in laws to share some of our bounty. We ended the evening, late at an exceptional dinner at Insignia Prime Steak and Sushi in Smithtown. Had a good sleep after an exhausting day. The next day we made some stops to pick up bagels at our favorite place in Oceanside and then headed to the Gotham Picnic where we enjoyed the company of many friends. Fred Morante provided chairs for us as well as a fun game of Cornhole, which my teammate Joes Villa and I beat the team of Fred M and my wife with my final shot winning the game for us. It really was a nice day with perfect weather.

Before we left NY, my wife had to stop at some West Indian shops by Liberty Ave to get some freshly made Pholourie and some other items to take home.  Our bags were full and off to the airport to head home. An amazing two days that kept our tradition alive.