You voted on our social media contest and decided that the top three apple-picking spots in the Capital District are Riverview Orchards, Bowman Orchards, and Indian Ladder Farms!

We took a new 2022 Nissan Pathfinder Platinum on the road to rate each orchard based on the overall experience, apple taste, and food. For the food, we decided to try the signature item at each orchard - pie, homemade ice cream, and cider donuts. To keep the apple taste consistent at each location we tried the same kind of apple at every orchard. The apple we chose was Honeycrisp, which is in season in early September.

 
Read more below to find out which orchard we liked best!

 


Riverview Orchards - Rexford, NY - https://www.rivervieworchards.com/

Riverview Orchards has beautiful mountain views of the river and has a quaint country store that offers cider donuts, over 35 kinds of homemade pies, fresh local honey, and Adirondack maple syrup. One of their best sellers is their pies, so of course we had to try that!

 


We got the Apple Peach pie and it was absolutely delicious. If you are looking for the taste of a homemade pie without having to bake it yourself, this is the way to go! This will blow the rest out of the water. It has a great flakey crust and perfectly sweetened filling that does not even compare to a grocery store pie.

For apple picking, they had a few apple trees to pick from, but not many. They do not offer pick-your-own Honeycrisp apples, so we had to buy those already pre-picked inside the store. The best part is that we got to enjoy petting some of the animals they had. There were baby cows and goats, which we got to feed as well.

Bowman Orchards- Rexford, NY - https://www.bowmanorchards.com/

The next place we tried was Bowman Orchards, which has expansive orchards, berry picking, peach picking, fresh homemade ice cream, farm animals, cider donuts, and pony rides. Bowman’s had the best tasting and largest Honeycrisp apples. They were sweeter and crispier than all the others we tasted.



 Bowmans offers something the rest did not - homemade ice cream. We request they give us their most popular flavor - apple pie. It tasted exactly like an apple pie with actual flakes of crust and apple pieces in vanilla ice cream. If you are a fan of apple pie it is a must try!

Just as an FYI for people who have gone to Bowmans in the past, as of this year, they are no longer allowing people to drive into the orchard. You now take a trolley ride and they will drop you off at the apples you like to pick.

 


Indian Ladder Farms - Altamont, NY - https://www.indianladderfarms.com/

Indian Ladder Farms had the most beautiful view of the mountains with over 300 acres of apple orchards. They are unique from the orchards we visited because they also have a restaurant and brewery. Not only do they offer that, but they also have a nature trail for walking, animal feeding, pumpkin picking and petting, and their famous cider donuts.




Last year, Indian Ladder Farms won our contest for the best local apple cider donut, so of course, we had to get some! The exterior is perfectly baked with a little crunch with a light fluffy texture on the inside topped with the perfect amount of cinnamon and sugar.

The view of the mountains from their apple orchards is really breathtaking. If you are looking to pick apples with a view this is definitely the place to go.





#1 - The Best Apple Orchard in The Capital District - Indian Ladder Farms

All of our contenders were really close, but our favorite apple orchard in the Capital District was Indian Ladder Farms in Altamont, New York. They had the best experience, exceptional customer service, and the most activities to do.

As a note, we would like to say that every single orchard had exceptional customer service and every employee really went out of their way to make us feel welcome!


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