One step into a brisk cold breeze. Orange leaves crunch beneath my feet as I walk out. We all meet up where the vans are huddled together, and we all climb into one. “Who wants the aux?” someone asks as they turn the knobs on the radio. We start rolling off, and onto the highway. We talk about some recent funny events that have happened and excitedly turn towards each other, taking turns sharing stories. Our driver turns into the wrong exit and we laugh harder as the van hastily bends sideways.
We finally arrive at a meadow of wonder. Pumpkins stack on top of the hay, and children scream in pure glee. Llamas in the pen chew thoughtfully on some strands of hay and smells of beef waft into our nose. Faint smell of dried corn hangs in the sharp cold air.
This is Wiard’s Orchard. There weren’t just apples hanging on lines of trees; there were various sites stationed throughout the cider mill. Children can shoot apples through a vacuum machine across a field. There are mountain slides that wind down. And even a karaoke barn.
All of us took turns going on the haunted hayride, with gentle scares, but won't send someone into a heart attack. Oversized spiders in a dark tunnel, and skeletons lounged around drinking some coffee. We saw a beautiful stretch of mini pumpkins basking in the sunlight.
GSP people separate into a couple groups, and we all go to a different attraction.
The highlight? The cider and doughnuts. The doughnuts don’t crumble and taste dry- it’s an apple cinnamon cake with crispy sugar. Everyone chats and laughs around the tables. Even though the weather is unbearably cold, the warmth of everyone’s happiness radiates enough to balance it out. No one has to worry about spending money on food here all thanks to GSP.
Going back, we all felt like we knew each other a little better, even though the time at Wiard’s had only been for a couple hours. As we got off, we waved and told each other we’d see each other soon, but all knew bumping into each other was inevitable. We smirked as a gust of wind swept over the pavement, twirling stray leaves up from the ground.