Eplegaarden

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.

Fun afternoon with kids…

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).

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.

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! :)

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)

here’s a great blog posted the day before I did my visit.

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.

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.

My girlfriend and I had a Tuesday off and it was beautiful so we tried this place. We got a couple pumpkins and they suggested that we pay for them and then put them in my car so they didn’t accidentally get scooped up while we were getting apples. We agreed. Then, I’m wheeling this red wagon about 50 feet to where my car is parked and 25 feet into it, Vern (one of the owners) scolds me like a 14 year old kid and tells me «ya gotta leave the wagons here and drive your car up to load them… we can’t be leaving wagons all over the place.» I was so thrown off guard by this codger’s rudeness that I didn’t say anything back other than, «ok, all right.» I walk the 20 more feet to my car. Start it up. Drive it 20 feet back to my wagon. Load up my pumpkins, drive it back 20 feet where it was parked before. During this, I pass the sign that says as you enter the parking lot, «please return wagons.» This seems to suggest that wheeling your wagon to the cart is encouraged as long as you return it. Obviously we planned to return this wagon as we were going to pluck apples. We did pluck apples, but we certainly didn’t take a wagon for fear that the wagon nazi would come and scold us a second time.
In summary, the place is great. Everything is pretty much as good as could be expected from an apple orchard, but to have an employee, the owner scold me for something that I didn’t do anything wrong was enough to make me a) never go back there again and b) tell everyone I know that I was treated like a «naughty teenager» when I was doing exactly what the sign suggested. Great orchard, pathetic owners.

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!

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.
If you attempt to visit, you should go eat at Buraka in Madison (8 miles away) and it will end your day just perfect.