THE FARM STORE IS OPEN DAILY 8 AM - 6 PM
So Sorry - No Pets Permitted
LATE AUGUST- MID October
Apple Picking at Cider Hill Farm
Apple picking on the farm is a quintessential New England experience. With 5 orchards and over 60 varieties, apple picking begins late August with summer apples. It continues through mid-October with mid and late season apples. Cider Hill Farm cares for nearly 8,000 apple trees with 2 new orchards and new varieties planted that will be ready to harvest in 10-15 years. The orchards are a 10 minute walk with hills so wear good shoes. Hayrides run on fall weekends in September and October - just be prepared to walk on weekdays.
PLAN YOUR VISIT
Apple Picking Dates
GENERAL DATES
Apple picking runs from late-August through mid-October and is open nearly every day once it begins! For 2026, we are seeing a beautiful, strong to moderate harvest ahead.
WHERE TO BUY TICKETS
Apple picking tickets may be purchased online 24- 72 hours in advance or upon arrival at the farm. View the TODAY page to see what apples we are picking prior to coming to the farm. Sometimes orchards are closed to let more fruit ripen.
TICKET OPTIONS
Pricing
Tickets are posted online 48 hours prior as we monitor the trees and fruit.
2026 PRICING
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1/2 bushel - $48. Pick ~40 apples. Up to 6 pickers per bag.
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1 peck - $32. Pick ~20 apples. Up to 4 pickers per bag.
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1/2 peck - $16. Pick ~10 apples. Up to 2 pickers per bag.
Anyone ages 3+ entering the fields requires a ticket even if you are not picking fruit. Personal picking containers are prohibited. Pricing and offerings subject to change.
Apple Picking FAQs
As we prepare for this year’s harvest, here are some of the questions we’re asked most often.
What varieties are available?
Varieties ready for picking are available on our TODAY page. Subject to change.
What Are the varieties You Grow?
See below for our entire line up and helpful hints for what's best for snacking, baking and apple sauce.
IS IT READY TO PICK?
Apples do not continue to ripen after picked. Make sure only to go to the locations provided in the map given to by our farm team upon arrival at the ticket booth. Those are the only ripe varieties. Other varieties are closed.
ROTATING PICKING LOCATIONS & Varieties
With multiple apple orchards and nearly 60 varieties, we rotate picking locations nearly every week based on the variety that is ripe. If it's picked out, then we have the next ready variety to pick! So if you’ve picked apples in a certain orchard before, don’t be surprised if we send you somewhere new this time. Think of it as a little apple adventure - same sweet fruit, just a different corner of the farm!
Weekday APPLE PICKing & HAYRIDES
Hayrides run only on weekends but all the orchards are within a 10 minute walking distance. We have an orchard nearest the farm store that is more flat and ideal for those with mobility concerns. Most sections of the walk are stroller friendly but hills can be a lot to plan accordingly.
KEEPING UP ON THE APPLE SEASON
Mother Nature rules and the apples follow! It's best to plan ahead:
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Subscribe to our email newsletter - subscribers receive 1st notification!
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Check our TODAY page regularly
PHOTOGRAPHERS & MINI SESSIONS
For those who wish to use the apple orchards for personal or business use, tickets are required. If you are looking for a private experience, we encourage you to come at the end of the day closer to 3-4 pm when fewer people are in the field. Fields close promptly at 5:30 pm.
See you in the apple orchards!
Apple Varieties
🥧 = While many varieties are excellent for baking, these are our top picks for pies.
🍾 = Grown for eating and baking, these varieties are also prized for crafting our hard cider. At this time we do not wholesale apples as we use them all in our specific blend recipes.
HARVESTED LATE AUGUST
EARLYMAC
Also known as Jersey Mac, this medium sized red apple has yellow-green splashes. Similar to its cousin, the McIntosh, this excellent snacking apple has crisp, juicy flesh with a tart flavor. Best for baking and good for fresh eating and applesauce.
REDFREE
A crisper texture than typically found in summer apples, Redfree can be kept in a fridge for several weeks after picking.
GINGERGOLD
Great crisp & juicy eating apple. Tart in early season but will turn to a rich and spicy flavor towards late season. Retains great flesh quality for storing.
WILLIAM'S PRIDE 🥧
This favorite early McIntosh-type apple bears large, dark reddish-purple, very juicy and flavorful fruit during late summer. Nice eating quality.
EARLIGOLD
Earligold is a medium to large, round-conical apple that is one of the earlier apples of the season. Taste is a little on the tart side but good tasting for an early apple. Apple does have good storage life and retains its flavor reasonably well.
ZESTAR
Sweet and tangy with accents of brown sugar, Zestar is known for its unique flavor that intensifies at room temperature. Best for fresh eating and in baked goods, sauces, desserts and salads. Praised for its shelf life, Zestar can be stored up for 2 months with or without refrigeration.
PAULARED 🥧
Attractive fruit with dusty red colored skin covered in gold spots reminiscent of the well-known McIntosh. Its white flesh is both sweet, tart and crisp when fresh picked.
BURGUNDY 🥧
Tart, pucker-the-mouth taste which makes it a great apple for pies or sauce. Yields one of the best “apple tastes” when cooked.
HARVESTED EARLY - MID SEPTEMBER
MCINTOSH 🍾
Favorite New England eating apple. Juicy and flavorful. Softens rapidly which makes a soft, smooth applesauce.
GALA 🍾
#1 apple for snacking! Crisp, juicy, flavorful with a high sugar content to balance tartness. Great for no-sugar added applesauce.
SANSA
Often compared to the more well-known gala variety for their similar appearance and flavor, Sansas are medium-large with red striped skin overlaid on a yellow background, and yellow flesh. The flavor is sweet, complex and has some tartness.
JONAMAC
One of the most popular snacking apples for its very sweet, crisp, creamy yellow flesh. It has a characteristic striped skin that is almost orange in color. A red and green apple that is a cross between a Jonathan and a McIntosh that is aromatic, juicy, and has a semi-sweet flavor.
EARLY FUJI
It has a mostly red colored skin with small patches of golden yellow blush and light vertical striations. The Early Fuji has a white to cream-colored, dense, yet crisp flesh. Complex in flavor, low in acidity and very sweet with notes of both honey and citrus
RUBY MAC
Great eating apple and for applesauce, Ruby Macs have a tart-sweet flavor and are a beautiful red apple. The "Mac" part of the name means the apple is part Macintosh variety, for those
LINDA MAC
True McIntosh flavor with a bright red blush. Fruit color develops earlier than other McIntosh strains. Enjoy bushels of attractive, stripe-free apples with good sweet flavor. Cold-hardy. Excellent for fresh-eating and baking.
HONEYCRISP 🍾🥧
Complex, sweet-tart flavor with juicy and super crisp flesh! Excellent for eating and salads, good for sauces & baking.
PIONEER MAC
Fruit quality, flavor and size are excellent. Flesh is white and firmer than many McIntosh strains. Best for eating and applesauce.
JONATHAN 🥧
The Jonathan apple is medium sized and covered in a thin red skin, blushed with yellow to green undertones. The fine textured flesh of the Jonathon apple is creamy yellow in color with a crisp bite and lots of juice. Its flavor is mildly sweet with a tart tang and subtle hints of spice.
HARVESTED MID - LATE SEPTEMBER
CORTLAND 🍾🥧
Versatile & all purpose apple favorite! Crisp & juicy for eating fresh, non-browning flesh for salads and ideal for pies since it cooks without mushing.
ACEY MAC
The Acey Mac apple is crisp, juicy and sweet. It’s an excellent snacking apple. Similar to – and just slightly firmer and generally larger – than its cousin the McIntosh.
KIDD'S GALA
Boasts a sweet flavor with hints of vanilla and has a floral aroma and are favorites for fresh eating and applesauce.
REGAL GALA
A highly colored gala strain, is a soft-eating apple, though a bit crisper than Golden Delicious.
BUCKEYE GALA
Fruit is bright red with distinctively dark red stripes. Great for fresh-eating, cooking, and baking. Keeps up to 7 months in proper storage.
MACOUN 🍾
Macoun is a medium to large-sized apple, deep red over a green base. Many consider Macoun the best tasting apple, especially fresh from the tree. Macoun has become especially esteemed by connoisseurs in the Northeast for its crispy, juicy white flesh and rich, complex flavors of strawberry and spices.
LIBERTY 🍾
Fruit has a yellow background with attractive red overtones, a crisp white flesh, and a harmonious sweet-tart taste. Perfect for fresh-eating, cooking, canning, or keeping – proper storage improves the flavor.
GOLDEN DELICIOUS
The Golden Delicious Apple came from a seedling of the Grimes Golden Apple in West Virginia. It was introduced in 1900. It has a crisp juicy flesh. This apple is sweet and has a distinct flavor.
RED DELICIOUS
Has a sweet but very mild flavor, somewhat reminscent of slightly over-ripe melon. The flesh is juicy and has a light crispness. The skin can be quite tough. Overall Red Delicious can be quite a refreshing apple to eat.
SNOWSWEET
Firm to crisp texture, this fresh eating apple stores well and has a sweet tart balance that resists browning after cut.
GALARINA 🍾
This good flavored Gala apple has a thicker skin and stores exceptionally well.
EMPIRE
Red, juicy, firm, crunchy and sweet, Empires are excellent for salads, and good for sauce, baking, pies and freezing.
HARVESTED EARLY - LATE OCTOBER
FORTUNE
Both sweet and tart with spicy undertones, the Fortune apple is a cross between Red Spy and Empire. It has burgundy red skin with green streaks peeking through, and a unique flavor that mirrors both parent varieties.
HAMPSHIRE MAC
A McIntosh-type apple discovered by Erick Leadbeater of Contoocook, NH. The fruit is 90% red and very firm with a crisp, juicy texture. Ripening 2-3 weeks later than a conventional McIntosh, this variety provides us the opportunity to extend New England’s McIntosh season.
SPIGOLD 🥧
A handsome, high-quality apple. Tree is vigorous and bears medium-to-large sized, bright golden fruit with gorgeous red striping. Flesh is crisp with a delicate flavor and delightful aftertaste. Ideal for fresh-eating as well as baking.
JONAGOLD 🥧
Excellent for fresh eating, pies and applesauce, this high quality variety is firm, sweet tart with a juicy, crunchy flesh.
RED JONAPRINCE
A strain of Jonagold, this dark red-colored apple has a flesh that is firmer, has a little more sugar and is a little more tart than that of Jonagold.
BALDWIN 🍾🥧
A genuine dual-purpose apple. The flavor for eating fresh is sweet and unpretentious, but crisp and pleasant. It is equally at home in the kitchen where it retains its shape when cooked, and lends a moderately rich sweet flavor to apple pies.
MELROUGE 🍾
Redder sport of Melrose with more intense flavor. An excellent flavored dessert apple. Size is large and roundish flat. Very good for cooking. Stores well.
AUTUMN GALA 🍾
This very firm variety is the 1st late season gala to ripen.
HUDSON'S GOLDEN GEM
Hudson’s Golden Gem originated in Oregon in 1931. It came from a seedling of an unknown apple variety. It has a crisp, sweet flesh and is best eaten fresh.
SPITZENBURG ESOPUS 🍾
Solely used in our hard cider making process, this aromatic honey flavored, sweet variety has a buttery flesh and noted as a most excellent dessert apple.
ASHMEAD'S KERNEL 🍾
Used solely for our hard cider making process, this aromatic and distinctive pear drop flavored apple originated in the 1700’s.
KINGSTON BLACK 🍾
Known as a perfect single varietal hard cider apple, this small dark fruit has a bittersharp full flavor.
ARKANSAS BLACK
Fairly tart when fresh-picked, the apples mellow with storage. Arkansas Blacks are considered an excellent keeping apple, and can be stored for six months in appropriate conditions.
NORTHERN SPY 🍾🥧
A very late season, large and stout apple with carmine red skin with streaks of yellow and pale green. Its tender-crisp flesh is creamy yellow and juicy. It imparts a bit of a tartness in its bite, but more of a cider-quality flavor with hints of sweet pear.
CAROUSEL
A bright, red-striped apple with a creamy orange color; firm and crisp. It has a thin skin with a sweet/tart flavor, and makes a great fresh eating apple. You may even notice a hint of pear.
QUERINA 🍾
This excellent eating apple is firm and juicy with a sweet tart flavor with a skin that develops solid red color.
MUTSU 🍾🥧
Great all purpose apple. Dense, crisp and juicy texture. Makes a flavorful applesauce and is also great for pies & eating. Store well. Cider Hill’s version of Granny Smith!
CORAIL
Corail have a creamy flesh, crisp, crunchy texture and sweet flavor with subtle tropical undertones, such as banana and pineapple. They hold up to temperatures when cooked, so they are ideal for pies, tarts and baking. Pair with pork for a sweet addition to dinner or great for a snack.
AMBROSIA
Ambrosia is a glossy, bi-coloured apple. It has an attractive conical shape and smooth, flawless skin with a bright, almost fluorescent pink blush over a creamy-yellow and green background. The apple has tender, juicy flesh with a fine, crisp texture & honeyed flavor. Ambrosia is also a low-acid apple, which makes it easier for kids and older people to digest.
NEWTON PIPPIN 🍾🥧
A notably versatile apple, being excellent for eating fresh, cooking, and for juicing and hard cider, it is one of the oldest American apple varieties. Hard and unappetizing if eaten straight from the tree, it should be stored for 1-2 months before being used over the winter period.
SUNCRISP
A crisp, sweet late season apple that tops in taste and stores exceptionally well.
RED ROME
A very traditional flavor – mildly sweet and slightly tangy with a bit of a floral aroma, the rome varieties have been called the queen of baking apples.
STAYBRITE
Staybrites have a hard crispy yellow flesh with superb tangy-tart flavor. They are best for baking, sauces, and ciders.
GOLDEN RUSSETT 🍾🥧
A small moderately attractive apple, which keeps well, and is very versatile for eating, cooking or juicing
ROXBURY RUSSETT 🍾🥧
Recognized to be the oldest apple variety originated in North America, this excellent baking apple is also used in making hard cider.
FUJI
Firm fleshed, yellow with good balance of sweet and acid.
BRAEBURN
Braeburn apples are very crisp and juicy with a sweet flavor combined with subtle hints of spice, pear, nutmeg, and cinnamon. Its firm flesh is pale yellow to gold and contains a few dark brown seeds in the center of the fibrous core.
GOLDRUSH 🍾
This intensely flavored, storage apples keeps 10 - 12 months crisp and resists browning when cut.
DABINETT 🍾
Used solely for our hard cider making process, this high quality English cider apple has a bittersweet flavor.
HARRISON 🍾
Used solely for our hard cider making process, the Harrison cider apple is one of the most famous 18th-century American cider apples with flesh that is pleasant and sprightly.
YARLINGTON MILL 🍾
This intensely flavored hard cider apple keeps 10 - 12 months crisp and resists browning when cut.
GIBSON GOLDEN
Apples are yellow with smooth skin, with a sweet juicy flavor. Is a great fresh eating apple.
SNAPP STAYMAN
Known for its beautiful, blushed-coloring, excellent eating quality and culinary uses, this heirloom variety has a distinctive, sweet-tart flavor, snappy bite, and satisfying, firm texture.
HARVESTED LATE OCTOBER
WICKSON CRAB 🍾
Used solely in our hard cider making process, this variety is surprisingly sweet balanced by a high acid content.
EVERCRISP
Sweet, juicy and firm. EverCrisp® packs a loud crunch and combines the best of its parents Honeycrisp and Fuji. Excellent for snacking, baking and sauces.
BEHIND THE SCENES
Growing Apples
Growing Great Apples Starts in January
By the time you walk into the orchard and pick a ripe apple from the tree, our crew has already spent months caring for that crop.
The work begins in the heart of winter. Starting in January, our pruning crew heads into the orchards to care for thousands of fruit trees often working through cold, snow and changing New England weather.
Why Prune in Winter?
Throughout the growing season, apple trees naturally put out new branches and growth. While the trees are dormant in winter, our crew carefully removes older and excess growth. Pruning helps direct the tree's energy where it's needed and opens up space within the canopy so sunlight and air can reach the leaves and developing fruit.
As spring arrives, that work continues. Trees are monitored through bloom and pollination, followed by months of mowing, training branches, managing disease, maintaining irrigation and responding to whatever the weather brings. Each step helps us grow healthy trees and quality fruit while caring for the orchard for seasons to come.
A Year's Work, One Apple at a Time
An apple may take just a few seconds to pick, but growing it is a year-round process. From winter pruning to spring blossoms, summer fruit development and finally harvest, every apple represents months of work by our farm crew.
When you visit the orchard, you become part of that care, too. Please pick only ripe fruit as directed, handle branches gently, avoid climbing or pulling on trees, and leave unripe apples to continue growing. A little care from thousands of pickers makes a big difference in protecting the trees and next year's harvest.
