All in the Family
Farmers in Washington State opens their doors to visitors for some October fun and games, with a bit of education thrown in for good measure.
September/October 2007
Ann Lenssen
 |
Ann Lenssen
|
Farmers looking for another avenue of revenue might consider the tale of the Gavettes and Stoney Ridge Farm. It isn’t autumn in Whatcom County, in northern Washington, without a visit to “The Farm That’s Fun for the Family,” open each October. The owners of Stoney Ridge Farm, Derek and Debbie Gavette, promote a harvest theme and good, clean fun.
RELATED CONTENT
Volunteers are the power behind North Dakota’s nonprofit Farm Rescue....
Heirloom recipes, often family recipes, hold history on cards or scraps of paper....
Get financial assistance to set up roadside and farmer’s market stands....
Your place for finding heirloom potato seeds....
Entity allocates millions to help finance clean energy projects....
Billy Goat Gruff, a shaggy white fellow with horns, attracts plenty of attention. Children send tin cans full of grain up to the feeding trough by way of a hand drawn pulley, then crane their necks to see if Billy or his pygmy pals will trot up the gangway to eat.
Children with mothers in tow wander through a huge box maze, then stop to check out the pens of goats, pigs and ponies. Farther down the path, chickens, geese and one huge turkey strut around the pasture.
“The name Stoney Ridge comes from a field on top of the hill,” says Lewis Stremler, Debbie’s dad and farm co-owner. “It’s so full of stones, it takes a half hour to dig one fence post.” But visitors notice only the country charm at Stoney Ridge, where antique tools and kitchen utensils decorate the buildings.
Every few minutes, tractors pulling hay wagons stop near the pumpkin tree for a fresh group of passengers. As they head toward the pumpkin patch, a panoramic view includes green fields, neighboring farm buildings, even the Canadian Rockies to the far north. Hundreds of brilliant orange pumpkins scattered across the field mean no one goes home empty-handed.
Decorative gourds fill another field, covering the ground in yellow, green, orange, stripes and speckles. Bright-red Jonagold apples hang in trees nearby, crisp and tempting. It doesn’t take many of the large fruit – 4 inches in diameter – to fill a U-Pick bag. Extra apples find their way to the cider mill where Derek turns them into freshly pasteurized cider.
Carol Stremler, Debbie’s mom, explains how everyone in the family works together to make some 400 fresh apple pies each season. Pies are left unbaked and are frozen until needed. Then a tantalizing fresh-baked aroma draws visitors into the farm restaurant to enjoy warm slices, topped with vanilla ice cream and a drizzle of caramel. Stoney Ridge apple pies are legendary around Whatcom County, but you’ll have to go there to sample them: The recipe is top secret, handed down from Carol’s mother.