This Sierra foothills region turns into 50 apple orchards every fall, and it only exists because of a pear disaster
More than 50 family-run orchards, wineries, and cider houses sell out of fresh apples every fall about an hour east of Sacramento — and none of it would exist if a plant disease hadn’t wiped out the region’s actual cash crop seventy years ago.
Camino and the hills above Placerville used to be pear country. A blight tore through in 1958 and the harvest collapsed from about 52,000 tons down to under 8,500 tons within seven years, so a handful of growers gambled on a different fruit instead.
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How Apple Hill actually started
In 1964, four growers — Gene Bolster, Dick Bethell, Edio Delfino, and Bob Tuck — banded together as the Apple Hill Growers Association and planted 16 apple ranches along the ridge above Placerville. The Sierra Nevada foothills turned out to have exactly the rich soil and long winter chill apples need, and the bet paid off.
Six decades later, that original 16 has grown into more than 50 orchards, farms, wineries, and cider houses spread across Camino and the hills above Placerville, all just off Highway 50.
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When to go this year
Apple Hill officially opens for the season on Labor Day weekend, September 5, 2026, though a handful of farms jump the gun and open their gates in late August. Most stay open clear through Christmas, when the same stands quietly switch over to selling Christmas trees.
Weekdays are the move if you can swing it. Weekend crowds don’t really thin out until after 2 p.m., and the two-lane roads connecting the farms back up fast once they do fill in.
Skip opening weekend entirely if you can help it. Labor Day weekend and the week around Halloween are the two worst stretches to visit — a ten-minute drive between farms turns into an hour, and half the orchards haven’t even hit peak picking yet.
What’s actually worth stopping for
U-pick, straight off the tree
A dozen-plus farms let you walk into the orchard and pick your own. Denver Dan’s has apples and grapes you pull straight from the vine, 24Carrot Farm throws pumpkins and fall vegetables into the mix, and Sloan Winters Mountain Orchard & Garden covers both pears and apples.
Cider donuts, the real reason people drive out
Rainbow Orchards makes the hot apple cider donuts everyone in the Sacramento area seems to have a strong opinion about, and Shorty’s Doughnuts covers a gluten-free version on weekends. Neither needs a reservation — just a line.
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Wine and hard cider
Boeger, Lava Cap, and Edio Vineyards handle the wine side with affordable tastings and patio seating built for lingering. Hidden Star Camino pours 15-plus hard ciders, and its picnic tables come with the kind of mountain view that makes you order a second flight.
Getting there, and what to skip
Apple Hill sits right off Highway 50 in Camino, about an hour from Sacramento and roughly 2.5 hours from San Francisco — close enough for a day trip, easy enough to stretch into a longer weekend. None of the farms, orchards, or wineries charge for parking or entry.
Keep driving east on 50 and you’ll hit Lake Tahoe in under an hour, which makes this an easy add-on if you’re already headed that way for a long weekend at the lake.
Trip tips: grab a rental car to get out here, lock in your hotel before the good rooms are gone, or skip both and book a camper van instead.
Rules and fees change — always confirm current requirements before you go.
