🍎 SoCal’s First Sign of Ski Season Isn’t Snow

Apple season is starting in Oak Glen, and this Labor Day weekend I’m heading back toward the mountains.

Hey Ski Fam,

I know ski season is getting close when I start craving apples. 🍎

Not the sad little apple rolling around the bottom of my kid’s lunch bag. I mean Oak Glen apples.

Every September, Southern California still feels like summer. But drive toward Oak Glen and the mood starts to change. The air feels cooler, the mountains get closer, and my brain starts thinking about winter again. ❄️

And this weekend gives us a very good reason to go. Oak Glen says apple season runs from Labor Day through Thanksgiving, with official fall festivities starting Labor Day weekend.

🍎 Apple Season Is Here

If I wanted the classic Oak Glen apple day this weekend, I’d start with Los Rios Rancho. Its current 2026 apple-season page says the season begins Labor Day weekend, with Macintosh apples available now for U-pick.

Los Rios grows more than 32 kinds of traditional and heirloom apples. It says the harvest runs from late August into early November while fruit lasts.

There’s plenty more to do besides picking apples:

• 🍎 U-pick apples

• 🐐 Petting zoo and miniature farm

• 🚜 Horse-drawn wagon tours on weekends

• 🎵 Live music on weekends

• 🍖 Farm food and BBQ

• 🍺 Hard cider tastings

• 🌲 Nature trails

One thing to remember: apple supply can change fast. Los Rios tells guests to check current U-pick availability before visiting.

Apples are a crop, not a chairlift schedule. 😂🍎

🥧 Three Pies? Now You Have My Attention

Stone Soup Farm & Heritage Orchard has something else planned for Saturday. Its Pie Social runs September 5 from noon to 5 PM, with tickets at $25 for ages four and up.

Admission includes a trio of pie tastings, a cider-press workshop and fall crafts.

Three pies. Suddenly my preseason ski-conditioning plan has been moved to Tuesday. 😂🥧

There is one important catch for apple pickers. Stone Soup says unusual weather greatly reduced its 2026 crop, so it will not offer U-pick apples this fall. The farm says pre-picked Winesaps and other organic heritage apples will be available for purchase.

So I’d go to Stone Soup for the pie and fall fun, not U-pick.

🎻 Riley’s Farm Has Apples Too

Riley’s Farm gives us another option. Its current Labor Day update says it will be open Saturday, September 5, and Monday, September 7.

Even better, its U-pick update lists Gala apples available Saturday, with the crop rated “Strong.” Saturday also includes tomahawks, archery and candle-making from 11 AM to 4 PM, followed by Big Band Night in the evening. Some of those special programs require tickets.

Pick apples. Throw a tomahawk. Listen to a big band.

Then try explaining how all of this counts as ski training. 😂🎿

One last tip: U-pick fruit is available while it lasts, so check the farm’s current crop update before you leave home. 🍎

🏔️ My Oak Glen Game Plan

I wouldn’t try to hit every farm. Leave early, grab coffee and choose one or two stops. A simple day sounds pretty darn good to me:

• 🍎 Morning: U-pick at Los Rios or Riley’s

• 🥧 Midday: Find pie, cider and something good to eat

• 🌲 Afternoon: Walk around and let the kids explore

• 🚗 Drive home: Start talking about your first ski weekend

No lift ticket. No chains. No checking the snow report 14 times before breakfast.

Just a fall day outside with the family.

🎿 Why This Matters to Skiers

Here’s what I’ve learned after a lot of ski seasons: the best ski seasons don’t begin on opening day. They start with little things that pull us back toward the mountains.

Maybe it’s the first cool morning. Maybe it’s seeing opening day on the calendar. Or maybe it’s standing in an apple orchard in September and suddenly realizing winter isn’t that far away. ❄️

For SoCal skiers, it’s easy to think about the mountains only when they’re white. I think we miss something when we do that.

Go in September. Take the kids. Pick the apples and eat the pie.

Then come back when everything turns white. 🏔️➡️❄️

❄️ The Big Lesson

We spend a lot of time waiting for ski season. We wait for opening day, cold nights and that glorious first group text: “BIG BEAR GOT SNOW!!!” 😂

But this weekend, we don’t have to wait. Oak Glen’s apple season is getting underway, and that’s a pretty good excuse to point the car toward the mountains.

Pack the kids. Grab a sweatshirt. Pick some apples. Eat the pie. And start dreaming about winter.

Don’t wait for the snow to go back to the mountains. 🍎🏔️❄️

Know someone who would rather spend Labor Day picking apples than sitting in beach traffic? Share this with them and start planning your Oak Glen day. 🍎

– Sasha Everett ⛷️🍎

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