The Fruit Company

by Jed, eCommerce/CS

When I first moved to the Hood River area my wife and I spent several weekend days driving around aimlessly trying to find somewhere to explore. We had talked with several people who had passionately tried to explain all the glories to be seen in the area that surrounds The Fruit Company. But after multiple hours of directions explained, and eventually forgotten, we gave up with our search.
Within a week a close friend of ours was listening to me express my disappointment and failure as a directional specialist (Guy), when he clued me into the best kept secret in the gorge. Curious Gorge.
At first I was not interested. Why would I want to read a book with a play on words of a children’s classic? After moving past that I began thumbing through the book. And to my amazement all the information that we had been searching for was laid out in front of me. Organized and including all the facts we needed to know. It included directions to many locations all over the Gorge area. All the hiking and biking trails leading to lakes and running along streams explained and rated as to the difficulty of the endeavor.
Still skeptical I found a hike that didn’t look too hard. We set out the next Saturday only to find the directions given accurate and easy to translate. After a great afternoon hike I was ready to go buy my own personal copy.
So if you’re in the area and looking for things to do that doesn’t involve windsurfing or all the in town amenities that Hood River, White Salmon, and Bingen have to offer I would recommend adding this book to your visit.
It’s a little more difficult to find but I did find it at Dog River Coffee in downtown Hood River. If you’re planning ahead of time you can order it online at REI.

Happy Explorations!

Once again our fair hamlet has made a national magazine’s top list of the best places to live in the United States. The September issue of National Geographic Adventure touts Hood River as one of the best towns in the West to live and play. While I could go on longer about how wonderful our town is (especially as they failed to mention the plethora of fruit and fresh goods made here, but hey, that’s not the magazine’s focus. We understand.), I’ll let the magazine summarize their impression of our hometown.

5. Hood River, Oregon
A River Town’s Next Wave
The steady westerlies churning the mighty Columbia nearby have been drawing windsurfers and kiteboarders to Hood River for years. But lately an almost equal number of mountain bikers, powderhounds, and whitewater paddlers have started calling it home as well. Judging by the signs above all the new restaurants, the recent arrivals are partial to sushi joints, wine bars, and bistros with hard-to-pronounce European names. But this recreational boomtown hasn’t abandoned its roots—the focus here is still centered squarely on the action outside. Tucked between the looming basalt cliffs of the Columbia River Gorge, an hour east of Portland, Hood River is cementing its multisport identity with a new riverside park. Plans call for a long public green, a swimming beach, and, naturally, kiteboarding and windsurfing put-ins. Kayakers dip into the placid Klickitat River, where local outfitters hold beginner lessons on the gorge’s Washington side, or navigate the gauntlet of Class IIIs and IVs on the aspen-flanked White Salmon. Landlubbers get their fat-tire fix at Post Canyon, where freeriders have been adding jumps, bridges, and seesaws. And half an hour south of town, the lifts on Mount Hood’s Palmer Glacier stay open straight on through summer, giving snowboarders and skiers access to 1,524 feet of vertical corn nearly year-round.
Population: 6,710
Median home price: $369,300

We couldn’t agree more. Almost everyone here at The Fruit Company is involved in one outdoor sport or another, all of which take place almost literally in our backyards. Between all of us you have a fair number of people who go mountain biking, hiking, camping, mountain climbing, skiing, snowboarding, whitewater rafting and backpacking. We’re an active bunch!

One thing we wonder about though: what local bistros have hard-to-pronounce European names? We can’t think of a single one.

One of my favorite times of the year is nearly here… the flowering trees growing at the lower elevation along the Columbia River have already begun blooming, and the trees up the valley where our facility is located are about to burst into bloom. We’re talking acres upon acres upon acres of white and pink blossoms from the valley’s pear, apple, cherry, and peach trees. Absolutely stunning. With the forecast for phenomenal weather this weekend (77 degrees and sunny!), those remaining buds will pop open at just the right time.

Naturally we celebrate this gorgeous time of year with the Hood River Valley Blossom Festival, taking place this year on April 19th and 20th. Thousands of people from around the world come to our charming hamlet to view the cheerful blooms set against the looming snow-capped peaks of the Cascade mountains and relish the opening weekend for many of our local fruit, food and craft stands located all along the Fruit Loop.

Here at The Fruit Company we’re cleaning up the store for its one-day-only debut, to happen on Saturday the 19th, before closing again until Memorial Weekend. We fully encourage anyone who is taking the weekend to visit the Hood River Valley to stop by that day, say hi, and snag up any of the delicious gourmet goodies we’ll have on hand. We look forward to seeing you!

by Stephanie, Graphic Designer – Brand Manager

This year’s Harvest Festival rang in the season not only with a bounty of fresh produce and handcrafted goods, but also heavy doses of rain, rain, rain. Despite the inclement weather thousands flocked to the Hood River Expo Center to find a pumpkin, eat a New York City Sub, and get started on holiday shopping. We had a shiny, happy green booth right at the entrance, where we proudly displayed our catalog photos, new baskets, and (the most popular) ample samples of our Chocolate Covered Cherries, Blueberries, and Pistachios, among other fine edibles available for purchase.

There we also had the chance to meet a number of loyal customers and personally hand them the new catalog, which was more than well-received. In fact several began brainstorming ideas for business gifts for the holidays on the computer kiosk we had set up.

The above picture is our Fruit Buyer Nasario and myself at the booth with a young fruit lover signing up to win a 12 month HarvestClub Classic. I can’t tell you if she won or not, but she was determined and knew that by signing up herself AND her mother she was increasing her odds at winning. I had no idea raffles were taught in schools these days.

Overall the festival was a great time and we all had fun partaking in the fervor and appreciation for local goods and the beauty of the season. Raindrops and all.

For a more in depth synopsis of the weekend, head on over to the Hood River County Blog. You can still order exclusive t-shirts with the always gorgeous work of Mark Nilsson emblazoned on the front!

by Stephanie, Graphic Designer – Brand Manager

The region’s biggest event and celebration of the harvest season will start off with a (literal) bang this Friday. For the first time a dazzling array of fireworks worthy of any July 4th will light up the night sky over the Columbia River, kicking off 3 days of homegrown favorites, homespun crafts, homemade gourmet treats, and all around merry-making at the Expo Center. In short: food, beverages, music, buyables, frivolity.

This year we’re a happy sponsor of the event and will have a giant green booth (that’s grown to be more like an exhibit) featuring some of our gourmet chocolates and edibles, copies of our brand-spankin’-new catalog that debuts this week in mailboxes nationwide, actual pear trees, a computer kiosk for ordering gifts, and our smiling faces. If you visit us on Friday or Saturday and say the blog sent ya we’ll give you a free box of our famous Chocolate Covered Cherries just for being attentive out there in the blogosphere. We love you that much!

We’ve also uncovered some recognition for the Harvest Festival. The incessantly useful Epicurious.com’s blog Epi Log gave us a shout out in its listing of the best food events worth seeing in the country this week. The Best of Portland Blog lists the festival under a plethora of categories including Best Annual Events, Best Entertainment, and Best Art. The always impressive Travel Oregon proudly shouts out the festival in its Oregon Bounty feature. Considering it drew over 21,000 people last year it’s easy to see that the word has spread greatly over the past 25 years.

If you’re smart (and if you have a a free day or two) come see the festival and all the related events in the area this weekend. The foliage on the slopes of the Hood and Columbia Rivers is some of the finest in the nation (the Gorge is frequently named in the top 10 spots for colorful fall leaves) and truly at its peak right now. Celebrate the harvest with us and our friends! More information can be found with the Hood River County Chamber of Commerce. See you then!

by Stephanie, Graphic Designer – Brand Manager

The summer is definitely nearing a close. The nights are chilly, the mornings crisp and clear, and the leaves throughout the Columbia Gorge are beginning to turn. That also means that we’re harvesting this season’s bounty of pears. In case you haven’t heard our proud boasting in our eNewsletter Fruition, Hood River County grows almost a third of the nation’s pears and we have dozens upon dozens of proud families growing pears throughout the valley.

This weekend is the Hood River Pear Celebration, timely enough, and almost all of the fruit stands, shops, and businesses (including The Fruit Company) along the Fruit Loop are celebrating our largest export. Take a winding tour along the loop through the orchards with views of stately Mt. Hood and charming vistas and enjoy the season’s bounty.

Speaking of bounty, TravelOregon.com has been a wealth of information about tourism in Oregon, including its celebration of the Oregon Bounty. Check out their fun website for further information on events, festivals, culinary delights, and more throughout our amazing state. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have a huge case of Oregon Ego, and the publications and various media produced by Travel Oregon only increase that tenfold.

By Ryan, eCommerce Manager 

On this past Labor Day I swam the Roy Webster swim for my third year in a row. It’s not really that difficult but pretty cool to say you swam across the MASSIVE Columbia River. Our team from The Fruit Company was the largest of around 21 people. Scott Webster, our CEO and President, convinced our Production Manager Pepe to swim, when Pepe’s swimming skills are little to non-existent (he might have almost drowned as a teenager). So…Pepe shows up to the swim with 2 wetsuits on, flippers, a kickboard, and one of those old school orange life vests. Needless to say it was quite amusing. My swim day started at 5am in the morning and everyone participating in the swim boarded the historic Sternwheeler and rode to the Washington side of the river. Where I jumped off the boat into the chilly Columbia River. The swim took me roughly 30 minutes and then after finishing I was greeted by other employees of The Fruit Company with fresh fruit for everybody participating in the swim. Everybody from The Fruit Company finished the swim(including Pepe) and then we went to a great breakfast together hosted by the Hood River Inn on the waterfront. Props to Roy Webster for starting this unique swim event and the Hood River Chamber of Commerce for hosting it each year.

by Stephanie, Graphic Designer-Brand Manager

We recently rediscovered this gem of a poem written by Scott and Addison’s grandfather, Roy Webster. Every year here in Hood River the community holds the Roy Webster Columbia River Cross Channel Swim on Labor Day weekend, in memory of a visionary orchardist and health enthusiast. He wrote this poem in 1984, when he was 83 years old. His last swim was in 1986 at the age of 85.

The Big Swim

Sometimes I feel my youth has been spent
When I think where my getup and go has went.
But nevertheless I can manage to grin
As I ready myself for the annual swim
Across the Columbia about a mile wide
From Washington State to the Oregon side.

There are kids in their teens and swimmers mature
Who succumb each year to the swimmathon lure
Of the cross-river swim– not too far away
Held up in Hood River on each Labor Day.
It tickles me pink to think I still swim
When I think where my getup and go has been!

So once again for the fortieth time
I’ll be swimming the river as I did in my prime.
And hoping the weather is sunny and warm
With no clouds in the sky and no trace of a storm.
For 200 or more are planning to swim it
Which is this year’s maximum security limit.*

Not a race, nor a contest, but just an achievement
To accomplish a goal– and thus bring appeasement
To tha turge that lies dormant in everyone’s soul
To do something noteworthy however modest the goal.
And so to each swimmer who embarks on the swim–
Good luck and good swimming as you respect win.

Respect of those who wish that they too
Could swim as well and as far as you!

* – Now the “maximum security limit” is 500 people, rather than 200. Sign up now if you’re in the area and swim for Roy!

by Ryan, eCommerce Manager 

Hood River has a 4th of July annual parade. The parade is a great opportunity for the community to come together. The community allows anyone to enter and this leads to many interesting entries into the parade, which can consist of anything from a float, to bikes to people walking with signs. It makes for a very LONG and unique parade. The Fruit Company express/tractor pulling cars cruised the streets of Hood River for the parade throwing out candy and greeting the crowds, we did not get any pics of the tram in the parade, sorry. The 4th of July parade reminds you of how great this small little community of Hood River is. For more info and pics of the parade visit the Hood River News.

I took part in the annual 4th of July run. This was my first race and what a blistering day to run, like 90 degrees. The last section of the race runs right alongside the parade. It was awesome to hear everyone cheering (not for you but the parade) but still nice and motivating. Hope everyone else had a great 4th.

by Scott, CEO and Cofounder

Fruit trees in the Hood River Valley are getting ready for spring. Currently they are in the growing stage called “bud swell,” which means just as it implies: the once dormant buds are swelling, and the light colored edges of the bud scales are becoming visible.

The tree’s leaves are still over a month away from showing. The orchard floor is fast becoming a lush and vivid carpet of new grass growth, and every now and again you’ll find crocus flowers emerging. Pear growers choose this time to spray an organic, horticultural dormant oil to protect against a number of pests, the main one being an insect called Pear Psylla (pronounced sill-uh). The psylla creates an undesirable black sooty mold on the tree’s fruit, leaves and bark, as well as dark patches of dead tissue on leaves. Heavy infestations can weaken fruit buds, reduce shoot growth and cause premature leaf drop. Dormant oil applied in early March will prevent the psylla from laying eggs on the pear trees for about 6 weeks until leaves emerge.

Horticultural oils like this are organic contact insecticides that work by suffocating the psylla eggs, larva, pupae, and adult insects. Other pesticides eliminate pests by interfering with biochemical processes; however this method is much safer than many pesticides.