“So where have you been? What have you seen?” Rav Natan asked my husband and me, married only a year. We’d both come out to Los Angeles to attend USC and had confined most of our exploring to the Pico Robertson neighborhood.
We shrugged and just looked at each other blankly. No wonder neither of us was enthralled with California; we hadn’t seen it. Our excuse for not having ventured beyond the county limits was that we had school and work and no money. Traveling was an expensive proposition and a big production, wasn’t it?
Rav Natan jokingly chided us, “Come on. What’s the big deal? Just get in your car and start driving. There’s so much to see.” And that is, in fact, what he and his family did on a regular basis. He and his wife piled their young children into their old Volvo station wagon, somehow packed enough food and clothing to meet everyone’s needs, and got on the road, often camping at national parks and cooking under the open skies.
So, maybe we could see what was out there, way out there, even on a tight budget and even if we had to be home by Shabbos. For the big road trips, we could even be in another state for Shabbos, with a little advance planning. But I’m getting ahead of myself. So let’s start with a day trip.
Many wonderful adventures on the road since that conversation with Rav Natan have helped us to fine tune the road trip prep time so that if we decide on a Sunday morning that we want to go somewhere we virtually have only to hop in the car. A few things we like to keep in the car when we’re on the road: a case of water bottles, a box of hand wipes, wide brim hats, sunscreen.
Special items for this trip: lunch and snacks, packed in a cooler if perishable, cash to pay for apples and museum.
Now, onto the road…
In search of autumn one year, we found the small town of Julian, CA. I grew up in Massachusetts where autumn is a beautiful season of red maple leaves, sweater weather, and apple picking. For the cost of a three hour drive into the mountains east of San Diego, you can have a little taste of a New England autumn.
The best route is to take the 405 South to the 5 South to Highway 78 East, which you will find in Oceanside. Take the 78 all the way up to Julian. It gets kind of convoluted around Ramona, but just watch the signs. As you approach Julian, you will see orchards and farm stands with fruit for sale. You can hit those places on the way back to stock up on the wide variety of apples only available during apple season.
Julian was once a gold mining town. Today it is all about the apples and the atmosphere. The center of town smells like apple pie and mountain air. Park on the street in town and walk around. There are lots of little shops with crafts, artwork, and different tasty honeys (please note that, according to Rabbi Eidlitz in Kashrus Conscience, all pure unflavored honey is fine.) It’s a nice place to pick up little gifts for people.
Strolling up and down Main Street is a horse drawn carriage which fits right in with the late 19th — early 20th century houses and shops in town. “The Country Carriage” offers half hour rides, and another way to take in the charm of Julian. It’s an appealing option if you’d like to see the town at a leisurely pace. By the way, if you’re really interested in horseback riding, Julian Stables has guided trail rides, but you’ll need reservations.
When it’s time for lunch, find a park bench and unpack the sandwiches you brought. Another reason to always have water bottles on hand is for washing. When on a road trip, be ready to picnic anywhere. And take the time to enjoy this new place you are in. The air in Julian is delicious and refreshing, and the wonderful scent of apple pies serves as an inspiration to bake your own when you get home. After eating, and exploring Main Street with its old fashioned storefronts, take a look inside the Pioneer Museum, located just half a block from Main Street. It’s a tiny museum, but those are often the most intriguing. It’s truly amazing what the smallest towns with the smallest museums can contain, and part of the fun is finding out. The docent we met, again true to small museum form, was enthusiastic and had lots of tidbits to share about the town.
For a self-guided walking tour of some of Julian’s historic sites, hit the Chamber of Commerce office in the Town Hall building (corner of Main & Washington) for a map, updates on what’s going on in town that day (and maybe inquire about the History Hunt while you’re there.) The October calendar of events includes an in-town melodrama and a free arts & crafts show in the Town Hall. I picked up a handmade hat pin last year.
There are hiking trails around Julian to enjoy the natural beauty of the area, and at this time of year, the air not only gets cold enough to make tasty apples, but it also turns the leaves the glorious hues of a New England autumn, best appreciated in the thick of it.
Whether you want to pick some of your own apples or buy bags and bags of them at a stand, you will want to go to Julian during the brief period when apples are in season. It does not happen at the exact same time every year, with the peak of season coming sometime between September and October. The word from Calico Ranch is that apple picking starts October 1st this year, and on Sundays they are open from 10am to 4:30pm. The great thing about apple picking is that it’s fun for all ages and you can actually pick the apples you want right from the trees. Long sticks with hooked baskets on the top are used to reach the out-of-reach apples and you can buy as many empty bags to load with apples as you like. Calico Ranch is two miles west of Julian on highway 78 and they don’t take credit cards.
The thing is, it’s worth it to drive all the way to Julian just to buy the fresh picked apples, even if you don’t pick them yourself. Once you have taken a bite of a crisp Pippin apple or seen how white the flesh of Red Delicious is supposed to be, it will be hard to find a tolerable store bought apple again. Have you ever had a Winesap or a Jonathan or even a Northern Spy? Many varieties of apples are only available near apple orchards during apple season because they diminish in quality very quickly. The amazing thing about having a variety is that when you bake an apple pie with three different kinds of apples, they produce enough of their own sweetness to make the pie moist and tasty without added sugar.
Take lots of pictures, stop at Meyer Orchards, on highway 78, (no credit cards) for a wide variety of apples and pears, and appreciate that there are small towns like Julian in the mountains a few hours outside of Los Angeles with crisp autumns and even snowy winters. What an amazing place we live in.
Please check out the Julian Chamber of Commerce website for the calendar of events for the coming months: www.julianca.com
The Country Carriage: $25-$40 for ½ hour ride, reservations preferred, (760) 765-1471
Pioneer Museum: $2 donation per adult, $1 for children over 8, free for 7 or under (760) 765-0227
2811 Washington Street
Calico Ranch: approx. $7.50 for a 5 lb bag, no credit cards,(858)586-0392
Meyer Orchards: (760) 765-0233
3962 Highway 78, Wynola, CA, no credit cards
Julian Stables: $45 per person, call for reservations (760) 765-1598
My Mom’s Apple Pie Recipe:
Preheat oven: 410 degrees Fahrenheit
Ingredients
Two 9” pie crusts*
8-9 peeled, cored and sliced apples of 3 different varieties, preferably (Cortland, Yellow Delicious, Macintosh, Baldwin, etc.)
¼ cup sugar
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon margarine
Spread sliced apples evenly into pie bottom, mix sugar, nutmeg and cinnamon together and sprinkle over apples. Sugar causes water to release from apples when baking, making a slight syrup. No sugar will give a drier, but still tasty pie. Dot apples with margarine. Cut vents into top crust, place on top of pie, trim and flute edges.
Bake at 410 degrees for 10 minutes
Then, reduce heat to 350 degrees and bake 45 minutes to 1 hour
To make my mom’s pie crust from scratch:
2 cups flour
2/3 cup margarine
pinch salt
5 Tablespoons ice water or apple cider
Cut shortening into flour until pea size. Add 5 Tablespoons ice water (or cider), toss with fork, form into ball quickly with hands, wrap and chill. Depending on humidity of day, more or less water may be required. Do not over-handle dough.
After dough chilled firm, split into two balls, roll into two 9” crusts.