I went here on a Saturday morning, and it wasn't too busy until noon hit. There were a good variety of apples! Quite a bit were on the ground, but there was a good amount still on the trees when I went in mid October. I got the apple cider brat, and it was great! However, I wish that there were more activities and that there were more fresh products (like fresh, warm donuts). Also, beware of all the wasps! read more

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Recently had an adult child moved to the area and I was looking for some fall activities. Came across this Apple picking/you pick farm, which is very close to where she lives plus downtown Madison. There was plenty of parking out front when I arrived on Monday probably around 10 AM/10:30 AM. There was a small cashier station out front. A lady was short brown hair was explaining how the process works and that you would buy a choice of two different size bags. I chose a smaller bag for $22. I was shown the map and I took a picture of it and headed out to the Orchards. Everything is clearly marked and the paths are also well marked however, if you have any mobility challenges, this might be an issue for you. I don't know if there's any tractors that travel out there. There are wagons for younger kids, etc. I went all the way out past the final orchard to the Honeycrisp. I was surprised to see quite a bit of apple still on the tree. Please follow the directions on how to pick them because you do not want to damage the trees. I got a bunch of varieties which all tasted delicious. I then walked through the little store behind the initial cash register. They have already pre-picked apples, frozen cider donuts, and fresh cider for sale. On the day I arrived. They were already sold out of the fresh cider donuts and they were on their way, but I was already departing the location. Before I left, however, I opted to do the you pick raspberries and cherry tomatoes, which was fun although a bit arduous for the raspberries. Everything actually tasted delicious. I would definitely come back for other activities and of course, supporting local farm. I think this is really good for all ages, etc.. I did see a mix of families and young adults on this visit. Be advised of the closing times I believe it closed at 1 PM on Monday. It was just a fun experience. read more

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I was there for fruit picking on a weekend. Apple picking was $20 for 10 lb bag and $38 for 20 lb bag. That was a lot of apple for me. So went for grape picking. That was $7.50 for a bag. I think it was concorde grape. It had seeds. I much prefer seedless grapes. There was horse drawn hayride. I didn't go though. The farm store was much smaller than I thought. Stuff appeared more expensive though. Apple pie was my favorite item. Apple cider slushie was good as well. Apple cider donut was my other item. There was pre picked apples - 3lbs and 5 lbs - in store. I picked an apple cider bottle as well. read more

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Eplegaarden is a local spot for all things autumn. They offer a variety of activities including berry picking, grape picking, flower picking, apple picking, pumpkin patches, hay rides, apple cider & donuts, honey, and much more. The apple cider brat was truly amazing and a must try. I recommend avoiding lunch/early afternoon as those seem to be peak times. Overall, great environment for a fun fall day! read more

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Great farm for pick your own apples and raspberries, situated between Oregon and Fitchburg. Reasonably priced for the quantity you get, and a fun thing to do on the weekends with friends or family! Highly recommend their cider donuts as well read more

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This place is top notch. They have plenty of variety of apples to pick from their orchards. We went in mid October and they place was open and ready to hand us a cup of hot cider and donut as we walked into the shop. Picked up a bottle of maple syrup and apple cider jam. Come and enjoy picking apples and raspberries and pumpkins. I highly recommend for you and your family! read more

my favorite cider donuts! Great cider selection, including pear. Definitely worth the trip

Only a 20 minute drive from downtown, Eplegaarden is a fun place to check out during the fall. It's not a large operation but it's cute and charming. The setup for pick your own is fairly simple-pick your bag size, pay, and off you go. Point of clarification from past reviews-they do, now, accept credit card for purchases. They availability of apples is dependent on when you go but you find your typical varieties-cortland, pink lady, etc. For those that don't wait to toil for their fruit, pre-picked apples and other apple related goods are for sale in the barn. They also offer horse driven wagon rides (short but fun) as well as pick your own pumpkins (again, dependent on timing of your visit). All in all, a fun couple of hours to be had just outside of Madison read more

Great family venue for groups. Lots of apples to choose from at a decent price per pound. The store offers some great items for selection at great prices. Try the bread! However, I was disappointed in that they offered an option to pick raspberries but limited how many people could take a basket. As someone who doesn't really care for apples (my girlfriend really does, which is why we were there), raspberries were a great alternative. We couldn't purchase a basket because of the limit. With that said, great family atmosphere for the kids. Check this place out soon! read more

Eplegaarden - Pick Your Own Farms Near Me - Fitchburg, Wisconsin

What an amazing hidden jem in the middle of Wisconsin! Being new to the Madison-area, we stumbled upon this adorable farm! Trust me, you want to carve time to get to this place during the fall season. Pumpkins. Check. Apples. Check. Hayride with horses. Check. Cider Donuts. Check. Hot cider. Check. Other yummy foods. Check. Cute little store. Check. I've been to another pretty famous farm in south eastern Wisconsin. I feel like that place has nothing on Eplegaarden. The apple picking was WAY better. There were so many apples still on the trees! And, huge pumpkin patches! Cute little signs and things for smaller children. If you're looking for the amazingly #basic fall day with your friends or fam... look no further! read more

Came here Labor Day weekend and they ran out of apple cider donuts... NOOOO! That's sort of why we came here. But they did seem to have a wide variety of apples! We were able to get Priscilla, Gala and a few others. $18 for 10lb bag wasn't terrible. We would like a 5lb option since we were traveling on the road, we both ate two apples a day for the next few weeks to maintain a healthy diet on the road. :) read more

The rating depends on the audience... The apples are delicious. You can pick them yourself or buy them from their store. You can also pick raspberries or pick out a pumpkin. If you're just looking for apples, a pumpkin, or raspberries, this is a good place to go. However, if you're looking for a fun farm with activities to entertain your kids, this probably isn't the place. If you have older children, they would probably enjoy picking their own items. However, there isn't really anything else to do here. There was a sign that says they have hay rides, but it depends on the weather. I've never seen the hay rides running when I've been there. I have come here every year to buy apples, so I do recommend this farm if that's what you're looking for...just not a place that will be entertaining for young children. read more

Soooo cute! My fiance and I went to Madison over the weekend to visit some friends. On our way back we decided to stop here and pick some raspberries. It was $4 per pint and we ended up picking 3 pints then had some lunch on their outdoor patio. The weather was perfect and if we had more room in the car, we would have picked up some big pumpkins too! read more

I've been here several times to pick apples and find pumpkins. It's a nice way to spend a fall day. They have plenty of apple trees to pick from. A 10 lb bag costs $15. read more

Eplegaarden - Pick Your Own Farms Near Me - Fitchburg, Wisconsin

During October, we visited this cute farm (actually red like the children's books) with the family and had a great time. They have hayrides pulled by Clydesdale horses; a "petting zoo" (free roaming goats and horses behind a white wood fence); live Polka band; picking of all types of apples, pumpkins, and raspberries. They have a store where you can buy typical items like apple spice mix, pumpkin pancake mix, and apple butter. They offer wagons to either put your toddler in or the items in the orchard. Except for the items you picked or buy at the store, everything is FREE. We took some nice pictures there and had a good time. www.eplegaarden.com If you attempt to visit, you should go eat at Buraka in Madison (8 miles away) and it will end your day just perfect. read more

I love visiting! In fact, I planned a fall trip just to go apple picking. The grounds are so perfectly Wisconsin picturesque and always a different experience. Apples, raspberries, pumpkins, plus a small store for extras. read more

Eplegaarden - Up the hill to the apples - Pick Your Own Farms Near Me - Fitchburg, Wisconsin

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I love the smell of apples! And since it was a crisp, early Fall day, I thought it was a perfect opportunity to get off the coach. This was great. When we pulled into the gravel parking lot and saw it filled with minivans and families, I thought there might not be enough adult things to do. But, food is awesome, especially when you get the chance to pick it yourself. We stopped by the wooden stand in the middle to get a pre-paid bag for apples and pay-after bag for grapes. At first I thought it was a pricey for apples, but then realized I really like the ability to pick apples from trees. Spending an afternoon seeing the difference between apples and apple trees is awesome. Cortland, Jonathan, Red Delicious, Golden Delicious, Honeycrisp, etc. etc. The type of apples varies, so if you're particular, I'd call ahead or even more proactive, get on the mailing list for when certain varieties will be ripe. The grapes were also awesome too and a pretty good deal. You usually can't get concord grapes in the grocery store since they're skin breaks pretty easy, and the Dane County Farmer's Market sells the grapes for double the price. I think I'm going to make grape picking here a yearly tradition. They also had raspberries, but this late in the year it was picked over pretty well. We skipped over the haunted house and the corn maze, though did stop by the food stand for popcorn. They were serving hotdogs and apple sundaes (only, good thing I wasn't hungry). Nothing too special. Overall - the nice selection of apples, grapes, raspberries to pick make it a fun afternoon. read more

Velkommen til Eplegaarden!! Cue the background setup: A gorgeous autumn afternoon. Golden trees along the Wisconsin countryside putting on early foliage like it knew I was coming for a show! Brava, Wisconsin! Now to those "selv plulkk" apples! The main attraction. While raspberries, pumpkins, other fruity lovelies are offered seasonally. I was on a speicific mission. This "Mission Possible" was to pick apples for pie making, and dance through the rows and rows of the red and yellow apple-scape paradise! Think of a Sound of Music mountainside musical number and you would be accurate. The experience was nothing more than an afternoon of heaven on Earth! Weaving through a few specific apple varieties (known for their sturdy pie making reputation), my squad and I skipped, we frolicked, we giggled, we plukked! All the plukking! About an hour later we had a few stretched bags and a nice haul being trotted back to the car. We were ready to cut, dice, bake, blend, and simmer apples for days. We even crunched into 2 or 3 each adding to the overall pleasure too! It paid off to visit the website beforehand! Payments are cash and check only - 1/2 peck or full peck apple bags (I can't remember the exact prices but ~$15/25 for the 1/2 and full). Specific apple varieties are also listed and updated throughout the season. As the Norwegians say, "Mange Takk!" (Many thanks!). This was really fun! read more

I enjoyed a Wednesday bike tour from Central Madison to Eplegaarden on a blustery late summer day and was enchanted by great fruit sellection, friendly staff, beautiful Wisconsin countryside... With my ride being a comfortable 60-90 minutes each way (depending mostly on the wind) I think this is a great outing for any Madtowner. Look up REAP Foodgroups coupon book for a great incentive (20% off you pick apples and berries on Wednesdays) http://www.reapfoodgroup.org/buy-fresh-buy-local-campaign/coupon-booklet here's a great blog posted the day before I did my visit. http://www.madisonbikelife.com/2012/09/featured-bike-ride-route-eplegaarden.html read more

Great place for all your apple needs. We have only shopped the pre-picked selection and never done the you-pick. They have a lot of different varieties (probably a dozen or so the last time we stopped in) and big bags of seconds that we pick up for making apple sauce. They also have a very good cider. They do not accept credit cards, but take checks. It seems like they always have some kind of activity going on geared to family fun... last time we were there it was a scavenger hunt. read more

I'm so disappointed at the lack of flavor in their apples! I paid $25 to do the apple picking myself- they didn't have many apples left - just little ones on the trees - (i went on sept 16th). This place is better for just buying the apple cider in their little store/ don't make the trip for apple picking. Update: I realized that if you just leave the apples out abut 1-2 weeks they start to taste good- maybe I was suppose to do that and didn't know. read more

As an apple orchard, they're a bit overpriced and you can't self pick a majority of the apple varaties. When you do pick apples, the grounds are very unkempt. Overgrown grass and weeds make it difficult to walk around, particularly with small children. Pumpkin picking is the same. The fields are overgrown with weeds and grass. At the very least they should mow the grass to make it easier for their customers to walk around. read more

I have been going to this orchard for years. I took my kids when they were young and now they take their kids. It's a great working farm, with hard working people and well-treated animals. If you don't think this is a healthier, cheaper, more fun thing for kids than Disneyland, I feel sorry for you and sorrier for any kids you may have. Mark O read more

The setting was certainly beautiful, even with the lousy weather. It would be a great place to spend a nice day wandering around to enjoy the scenery, but if you're looking for pumpkins, this is not the place. There are many to choose from, but unfortunately, not many of them of are of great quality. The apple selection is great here, and even though it was a bit late in the season for us to get out and pick our own, I wouldn't hesitate to go back for just that reason. The raspberry picking was a pleasant surprise, so even though we couldn't go picking apples yesterday, we were still able to have some fun at the farm. The "scarecrows" were a nice touch, and so were the carved trolls, but the haunted house looks like it had been thrown together at the last minute. All in all, we came away from the trip picking up everything we wanted (apples, raspberries, pumpkins), but were left a bit underwhelmed. read more

Very straightforward process--choose your apple bag size (small or large) and pick from what's available. The website states their policies very clearly (ex: cash or check only, hours, apple selections, etc). The website's apple variety availability is more of a guidelines--when you get to the orchard, the staff will tell you which apple varieties you can choose. So if you are really obsessed with a particular apple type, call them to see if it's available for picking. This is almost purely an orchard, there's not an all year petting zoo or other attractions on all time. It's really easy to get to Eplegaarden from Madison, so it's definitely my U-pick orchard of choice. read more

Went here with a friend the other weekend and had a blast! Great place for families. There was a little band playing live music with picnic tables. Parking could have been better, but I think we went at a busy time (Sunday afternoon). There were several types of apples available to pick, and you get a 10 lb bag for $15. Some aisles were overpicked, and even though it was busy, we could get to the trees we wanted very easily. Bring a tall person if you're short though! :) read more

Terrifying. That's the only way to describe the horse ride I experienced today at Eplegaarden. I was really looking forward to a horse-drawn hayride with my daughter and grandson this afternoon, but soon after the passengers (among them children and elderly) boarded the wagon, the driver took off at a gallop without warning as if he were angry. He took us over deep ruts that nearly ejected us from the wagon and through narrow orchards where branches whipped past our faces. A woman sitting next to me ended up with a 3-inch gash on her face. She and others left the wagon pretty shaken at the end of the ride. We later saw the driver racing down a path between the two pumpkin patches like Ben-Hur, oblivious to the families crossing there. Needless to say, this was not what I would consider a family-friendly experience. read more

This is the real deal. Family friendly with something for the whole family to do. It is free to enter which you do not see much in Illinois. The staff is very friendly which adds to the atmosphere. You csn pick your own apples or purchase some in the store. We rode on the hay ride which was the best I have ever been on. Our driver was so nice even though he was tired from putting in 12 hour days. There were raspberries for picking on many bushes so you were not crowded. You can pick your own pumpkin and some were HUGE. Come out here and feel the country warmth if this orchard. read more

As a kid, my family and I would make an annual trip to pick apples from our local apple orchard. Although it has been years since my last trip, I was somewhat disappointed with my experience at Eplegaarden. The overall location was extremely close to downtown Madison, but the selection of apples was quite limited. Although it seems as though there are rows and rows of apples, most of them were the same two or three types. This may have been because we went a little early in the season, but even then, many of the trees seemed quite picked over. Also, make sure to bring cash or check because they do not accept debit or credit cards! read more

Eplegaarden - Pick Your Own Farms Near Me - Fitchburg, Wisconsin

You could do a lot better in apple orchards and pumpkin picking around the Madison area. For starters, be prepared that you need to pay in cash or check (does anyone still carry a checkbook regularly?). And bring a lot of cash because everything is expensive. They charge $4 per person (age 2-and-over) for a 10-minute tractor ride. (It is a tractor ride, by the way, and not a hayride as advertised on the web site). We've been to many places type of ride is free of charge. Instead, we paid $12 for the three of us (yes, even our 3-year-old) to take a ride. Granted, the site is pretty. I will give it that. But everything comes with a cost, including the "haunted" play area for kids. We've been to so many of these orchards around the area that provide these attractions -- along with other kids activities, such as petting areas, corn mazes, play areas, etc. -- for less money or even free that I don't see any appeal in going back to Eppel Garden. To top it off, the apples seemed overpriced. We won't be going back. read more

Last fall, I woke up one morning to the perfect apple picking weather. I had moved since the last time I'd gone, and wanted to bring some friends who had never experienced apple picking before. After a bit of research, we decided on Eplegaarden. (I liked it so much I went again this year---twice!) They bill themselves as "the orchard with the Norwegian exposure", and it's certainly evident in all of their signage and terminology for things. It's corny but funny. My one beef with the place is that most of the good apples are reasonably out of reach for most human beings, and they do not allow you to climb the trees nor do they aid you with ladders or those apple picker things attached to a long stick (they are provided at other orchards I have been to). It actually made for more excitement in the form of running jumps and riding on each other's shoulders in attempts to reach the best apples. Other than that, it's all you could ever ask for from a pick-your-own farm, and it's especially kid friendly. The fruit is inexpensive, plentiful, and tons better than anything you will ever buy at a grocery store. Make sure to stop into the barn before you leave and grab a cup of the delicious homemade apple cider, and then to the store to buy it by the gallon. read more

OK not great. Nothing that significant to say that was bad about the experience, but comparatively not as great as other orchards (e.g. Door Creek). read more

Absolutely horrendous. Overpriced, horrible selection, and the quality wasn't even very good. $14 for 10lbs? Not only was the woman who checked us in extremely rude, she was also inattentive and wouldn't respond to questions. I will not be going back. read more

this is the cutest little apple orchard to go to on a beautiful autumn day! my husband, paul and i picked a bunch and i confess, ate a couple of very juicy braeburns! come on up to fitchburg, wi - it's fun for the whole family! read more