Blossom trails - driving tours to appreciate fruit blossoms - Cover Story

Sunset, March, 1999 by Lora J. Finnegan, Jena MacPherson, Peter Fish, Bonnie Henderson

From Hood River, Oregon, to Grand Junction, Colorado, these buds are for you: Flower-filled drives to dazzle the eye and gladden the heart

Winter was cold and gray and damp. But right now, in the West's orchards, something is stirring. Dormant trees sense the longer days, the warmer sun. Almost imperceptibly at first, then with sudden insistence, long-bare branches explode in bloom: white blossoms for almonds, pink for peach, red for nectarine. And chill winter gives way to ardent spring.

Such seasonal splendor should not go uncelebrated. That's why we've devised driving tours along the West's most colorful blooming backroads. Each of these four drives leads you through prime orchard country - and into a friendly small town or two.

Fruit blossoms are famously subject to the whims of weather - for that reason, we suggest you call the numbers listed before you set out. But these drives offer the West's most reliably stunning blossom displays. And if exposure to so much fecund loveliness inspires you to steal a kiss from your driving companion - well, that, too, is what spring is all about, isn't it?

Fresno County, California

When it comes to farming, Fresno County boasts the statistical bona fides: it is, simply, the top-ranking agricultural county in the nation. Its bounty results from rich soils washed down from the Sierra Nevada and from intensive irrigation. Together they mean that this time of year the county's backroads are drop-dead beautiful with blossoms.

This 70-mile loop drive from Fresno east to the Sierra foothills and back again shows you some of the best blossom views the county has to offer. The Fresno area's rapid suburban growth means that it takes longer to reach the blossoms than it used to. But head a few miles east on State Highway 180 and the rows of almond, peach, and nectarine trees appear to have popped off old fruit crate labels. Farther east, in the folding foothills of the Sierra Nevada, oranges and lemons dominate, just as beautifully.

Highlights along the way include the Minkler Cash Store, a country general store that appears to have changed not a whit since 1920, and the venerable Sherwood Inn, a 1921 schoolhouse turned into a good dinner spot. Reedley is a classic San Joaquin Valley farm town with an appealing downtown; Na-Vanilla, in an amply proportioned Victorian, is good for coffee. On your way back, you can stop at Simonian Farms, which specializes in local produce. And don't ignore Fresno itself: this month, its Metropolitan Museum sponsors the 13th annual Met in Bloom show, which salutes the local blossoms with elaborate floral displays.

Area code is 559 unless noted.

- Peter Fish

Hood River Valley, Oregon

Mention Hood River today, and most people think windsurfing. But a generation ago, the first association was orchards. And fruit trees - cherries, apricots, peaches, and apples - will still dazzle anyone who ventures past the bustling, gentrified downtown and up into the steep valley carved by the Hood River rushing off Mt. Hood. Here, come April, the world is nothing but pink and white blossoms. (The valley's rise up to the mountain helps extend the bloom season; if blossoms are past their peak when you arrive in Hood River, head to Parkdale, 15 miles south and 1,600 feet higher.)

State 35 can zip you through the valley to Mt. Hood, but a map produced by the Hood River County Chamber of Commerce traces a more meandering, scenic 45-mile route mostly on side roads. You'll find a scattering of country stores and - thanks to the wonders of cold storage - fruit stands along the way. Another option is to hop onboard the Mount Hood Railroad & Dinner Train, which offers round-trip excursions from Hood River to Parkdale mornings and some evenings, On April 17 and 18, the valley will celebrate its 45th annual Blossom Festival. Scattered from Hood River to Parkdale, events include bake sales and craft fairs plus open houses at an alpaca ranch, a vineyard, and a microbrewery.

Area code is 541 unless noted.

- Bonnie Henderson

Grand Valley, Colorado

It takes only a short drive southeast of Grand Junction to reach East Orchard Mesa. Cottonball clouds hang over the pointed prow of Mt. Garfield to the north, flanked by white serrated headlands called the Palisades and striated ocher bluffs known as the Book Cliffs.

Pioneers began planting fruit trees - peaches as well as cherries and apples - here as early as the 1880s. Today three-quarters of Colorado's entire peach production comes from Mesa County.

That means that in early April acres of blossoming fruit trees stand against a backdrop that would look at home in a John Ford western, as the undulating mesa becomes a riot of pink, rose, and salmon blossoms; puffs of wind send petals blowing across the highway. The 15-mile drive also allows for stops at the area's growing number of wineries and for shopping in the Victorian town of Palisade; the Palisade Pride store is good for local jams and dried fruit.

Area code is 970 unless noted.

- Lora J. Finnegan