Planning a trip for apple picking at Jeter Mountain Farm? This gorgeous farm hosts weddings, has seasonal u-pick flowers, fruits, and more plus an enormous indoor play area.
The views from the parking lot of Jeter Mountain Farm are sweeping shots of the nearby mountains, open space, and a beautiful building that seems to fit right into the landscape with its earthy hues of brown and green. The farm is a welcoming spot for families that has nearly two dozen varieties of apples, cider, live music, a wagon ride, and lots of other activities to enjoy.
This article includes:
About Jeter Mountain Farm
Market, Cider Donuts, and Hard Cider Flights
Tractor Wagon Rides and U-Pick Fruit and Flowers
Amazing Indoor Kids Play Area at Jeter Mountain Farm
About Jeter Mountain
Jeter Mountain Farms has an upscale, but welcoming, vibe from the signage to the tap bar. Every employee we met was super nice, kind, and helpful. And it’s beautiful. The first time I was there, I didn’t take a wagon ride so I didn’t see the whole farm and appreciate the beauty. This time I did (I’ll tell you more about the wagon ride shortly).
Jeter Mountain is a family-owned farm and is unique in several aspects. In addition to u-pick apples, guests can pick their own sunflowers, zinnias, elderberries, raspberries, peaches, blueberries, and grapes. They have added to the farm in the past couple of years including a massive market, indoor play area, and coffee shop. This place reminded me of Sierra Nevada Brewery and the Biltmore. In other words, it is gorgeous, the most beautiful orchard I’ve ever been to. They offer u-pick but also have a stunning wedding venue.
Scenes from Jeter Mountain Farm
We had a great day at Jeter Mountain Farm. Check out scenes from our day in the video below.
Cider Donuts, Coffee & Hard Cider Flights
Inside their Cider Barn is a hard cider tap room where adults can enjoy several different varieties of the fall beverage. Jeter Mountain offers pints of cider and flights of four flavors: $7 for a pint of cider, $11 for a flight.
In addition to the five flavors of Jeter Mountain Hard Cider that most are familiar with (Original, Pink Lady, Granny, Blackberry, and Grape), the orchard is also featuring a rotating seasonal small-batch cider. The first one up on tap is Whiskey Barrel Aged cider. It is delicious, and is available for a small up-charge of $9/pint since it is in such short supply and high demand.
They also offer cider slushies outside the tap room and cold apple cider in the market barn.
The market has handmade pottery, local apple butter and honey, baking mixes, canned sparkling cider, and t-shirts. I got a half gallon of the cold apple cider and the cashier was very kind and offered me plastic glasses so we could drink it then, which I was thought was quite classy since I was planning to just chug it because I wanted to drink it immediately.
There is a courtyard that is central to the Cider Barn, Market, coffee shop, and cider donut counter. It’s covered and there are picnic benches and live music. The donuts are amazing by the way – perfectly crisp on the outside and oh-so-soft on the inside. I could have eaten a half dozen by myself. If you’re hungry, you can get a 20-hour smoked pulled pork sandwich at 1813 Smokehouse. They also have two homemade BBQ sauces plus a traditional BBQ menu.
Then there are the bathrooms. These bathrooms are nicer than my house! They are spacious, have gorgeous flower wallpaper and benches. They are located on a hill overlooking the cider barn and courtyard and are huge and beautiful. Usually you don’t notice bathrooms, right? Impossible not to notice them here.
Tractor Ride & U-Pick Flowers and Fruit
Jeter Mountain claims they are the largest apple orchard in Western North Carolina. While we didn’t fact-check that claim, it seems accurate since there are 6,000 apple trees at the farm, which makes for an expansive orchard.
Some of the seasonal berries like the blueberries and blackberries, are within walking distance to the cider barn and are sold by pint or pound. You can pick your own apples or fill smaller bags right at the barn of different varieties of apples. The orchard grows 25 varieties and you can see what’s available here.
Since the farm is more than 400 acres and has so many apple trees, you have to take a wagon ride to get to the apple orchard itself and other areas to pick sunflowers and berries. You can only u-pick from the orchard once you’ve paid for your basket/bag. You pay for this at the courtyard and then you and your family jump on the wagon.
Once you are helped into the wagon by the very kind staff, you’ll be taken on a beautiful ride through the orchard with various stops at the areas you want to pick. So when we went, guests were able to peaches and zinnias and sunflowers so we stopped first at the flower field and then were dropped off at the peach orchard. We were given instructions on picking peaches and then got to it.
Once we filled our basket, we just waited for the wagon to come back and pick us up. The wagons were running maybe every 5-10 minutes so you won’t be waiting for too long and each drop-off point had tents so you could wait in the shade if you needed.
This was my first time taking the wagon ride and it was fantastic because I got to see the sweeping views of the orchard and the new plantings of apple trees.. The orchard is perfectly manicured and mowed, with trees all spaced the same distance. It’s very organized, which is kind of an odd way to describe an orchard but that’s how it looks. The wagon was super clean and covered so if you’re allergic to hay, no worries since it’s not in the wagon.
Kids Play Area & Field Trips
The 6,000-square-foot covered play area is perfect for kids. There is a hay mountain, slides, and plenty of things to tire out kids before heading home. The play area is huge. What’re 6,000 square feet, right? Big, like really big. And here’s the best part: it’s entirely covered so kids can play – for free – rain or shine. And there’s a high-top bar with stools that extends the entire length and overlooks the play area so parents can chill out and watch their kids.
There’s a little house with a chalkboard inside. There are tractor tire trampolines, an enormous haystack with a tunnel underneath, a John Deere-inspired climbing structure with a slide, and my favorite – a basketball hoop play area where you can shoot hoops with your kids. Or by yourself, no judgement.
The play area is right next to the coffee shop and market so you can get coffee and watch your kids play until you decide to pick apples or peaches or whatever it is you want to pick. Or you can do that first, get apple cider donuts, and then let the kids burn off energy before the ride home. I’d honestly say this play area is worth the visit to Jeter Mountain Farm alone.
U-Pick Pricing {2023}
U-pick peaches include a wagon ride for up to four people and a basket you can keep. A half peck basket for u-pick peaches is $20. As of July 23, 2023, u-pick peach season is over. They will have some pre-picked peaches for guests in the market.
Apples will be picked into a full peck basket for $32, and also include a wagon ride for up to four people and a basket you can keep.
For blueberries, u-pick are $7/pint and do not include a wagon ride because you can walk to them from the main barn and parking area.
U-pick flowers are $18/cup and allow up to four people to ride a wagon through the orchard and include a reusable Jeter Mountain Farm cup. You can pick as many flowers as you can fit in your cup.
Additional pickers or just to take a wagon ride is $3/per person.
Tips on Visiting
With lots of space to roam and play, the farm has certainly made it an appealing day trip for families. They also offer field trips every Thursday and Friday from 10 am – 2 pm from September 1 through October 31.
Additionally, the farm has a pumpkin patch that opens in the early fall.
One thing to note is that pets are not allowed at the u-pick orchards, inside the market, inside the tap room, coffee shop, and wagons. They also do not allow strollers or wagons in the orchards or on the wagon ride. You can park them before you get on the wagon and go to the orchard. They also request that you do not bring your own picking containers.
Jeter Mountain plans to be open through October. Check their website for updated details.
Hours: (The last U-Pick wagon leaves at 3:30 pm)
Saturdays & Sundays – 10 am – 5 pm
Jeter Mountain Farm
1126 Jeter Mountain Road, Hendersonville, NC
828.513.0404
Don’t miss our Ultimate Guide to U-Pick Apple Orchards around the Upstate!