One of the joys of traveling in our RV has been the chance to enjoy local fresh fruits and vegetables. With Summer in full swing we have been able to sample nature’s bounty. Staring with the small ripe apricots that were growing wild by the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad tracks at our Durango,Colorado campground we scooped up the sweet tastes that come with fresh ripe fruit. They became a staple of our morning breakfast for many weeks!
Capitol Reef National Park’s Historical Heritage orchards in Fruita, Utah, has one hundred year old orchards that feature almonds, apricots,apples,peaches,
Using those apples in my mini Instantpot for half an hour under porridge mode, I made a great applesauce(that was gone in two days flat!) Meanwhile in Torrey, Utah, just down the road from Capitol Reef I found a man at the small farmer’s market who sold me two gallon ziploc bags of plums from his trees for a dollar a bag-they were small, ripe, and sweet (this gets me hungry just writing about it).
On our last stop in Utah we stayed for two nights in Green River. Driving into town we noticed all of these roadside stands selling melons of all kinds-especially watermelons! In talking to the locals little did I know that Green River was the melon capital— Every September the town fills up with people buying melons during their Melon Days Festival. Fortunately for us the Dunham Family Award Winning Melon Stand was right next to our campground. The air around the stand was full of the sweet smells of ripe melons of all kinds—Watermelons, Cantaloupes, Honey Dews, Casabas, Crenshaws, and more. The wall behind the fruit bins was full of blue ribbons from the many awards won during the festivals. I did not have much room in our little fridge but I brought home a white fleshed melon to enjoy with a Cantaloupe that we had bought at the local Melon Vine Food Store.
Heading east into Colorado passing through Grand Junction we encountered a pickup truck whose bed was filled to the height of the cab with fresh picked corn for a quarter an ear. A little farther down US 6 we entered the town of Palisade—known all over for their peaches. We passed several roadside stands before stopping at the Smith Family stand. Mrs. Smith told us how she and her husband grow 528 peach trees on an acre of land. The scent of the fresh peaches in her stand drove us crazy!
We bought 6 of the most beautiful ripe, plump,and juicy peaches I had ever seen for all of three dollars!
We had such a good time visiting with her that she had us pick two more peaches right off the trees to take with us for the road. As we drove down the highway savoring the juicy fruit we passed scores of vineyards with many tasting rooms. As we didn’t want to drink and drive we had to save that experience for another time.
Later when we reached the city of Rifle, Colorado, we went to their Farmer’s Market and purchased some of the last of the cherry crop. The beautiful burgundy globes of ripe fruit oozed juice just touching them. We brought those back with us to add to the large bowl of fresh fruit cocktail we were savoring every morning.
In Trenton, Missouri, a campsite neighbor gave us a ripe cantaloupe picked from her garden,while a local farmer had set up a roadside stand out of the back of his pickup and we savored fresh corn, vine ripe tomatoes, and green beans.
And when we finally reached Weston, Georgia the Merritt Pecan Company provided pecans in all forms along with hot boiled peanuts.
Mark’s Melon Patch in Sasser provided fresh picked Chocolate Reaper Fiery Hot and other hot peppers,peaches,pumpkins, plus freshly made okra chips!
Who know what we will find to enjoy next in our travels?
I hope I didn’t get you too hungry with the tales of my pickings. If I see another roadside stand in the next few weeks I’ll let you know.