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APPLE FESTIVAL: 5 (other) things to do

Jump Off Rock, a short drive from Main Street, offers a break from the crowds.

Here are five other things to do while you're in town for the Apple Festival.

1

Like to sip? You can’t get booze at the Apple Festival. But you can visit one of our two award-winning wineries. Saint Paul Mountain Vineyards is at 588 Chesnut Gap Road. Burntshirt Vineyards is at 2695 Sugarloaf Road. You can sip wine while enjoying the view of the vineyards that grew the grapes. Chill.


2

Someone called it Malt Disney World. Since it opened its Taproom in March, Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. has been packed with craft beer aficionados (and their entourage). Take a drive out to Mills River and tip four (3-ounce) beers from a flight of samples and enjoy apps and burgers from the farm-to-fork menu. Is something brewing? Oh yeah.


3

Need a break from the noise and bustle of the festival? Head west on Fifth Avenue and keep driving (it becomes Laurel Park Highway) until you reach Jump Off Rock. It’s sublime.


4

Need a little more exercise with your peace and quiet? Those apples we honor don’t come from a store. Drive out to one of our U-pick orchards and plunge in. It’s the most pleasant work you’ll do this week.


5

Need fresh produce? Until six years ago, Seventh Avenue felt left out. Once a thriving part of downtown — it’s where the train disgorged passengers and picked up produce — Seventh Avenue is trying to make a comeback in some cool ways. Historic Seventh Avenue District leaders invented the Sunday Farmers Market on Apple Festival weekend and now it’s caught on. Check it out. It’s fresh.