The Kimmel Farm has been around since 1925, when Richard took over the farm from his grandfather.  In the rolling hills of South Dakota, the farm produces apples, strawberries, and cherries.  They offer u- pick for apples and strawberries.  The Kimmel gift shop offered jams, honey, sauces, and freshly baked goodies.  It was National Donut Day, and the aroma of fresh apple doughnuts was wafting throughout the shop.  We made our purchases – couldn’t leave without buying anything. Next, Mitch and I headed toward the wine tasting section.  We prefer dry red wines, but Amy coaxed us to try the new Honey Crisp Apple wine.  It was very refreshing, and of course, we walked out of the store with a bottle for later. There were two other Harvest Hosts couples for the night, and we had an enjoyable time conversing with them.  One couple was from Dunedin, Florida.  Literally, neighbors to our home in Palm Harbor.  It was interesting to see Kimmel farm partner with the University of Nebraska.  The college has a research center, a food lab, and meeting rooms on the premises as an extension of the college.  I can only imagine the crowds that gather during apple season and the fun events during that time.

The next night we visited……..

Humble Hill Winery – Garretson, South Dakota

This winery was on a much smaller scale than the winery visited the day before.  Rob and his wife own it, and the grapes are grown on their property.  We did a wine tasting and once again we walked away with the Honey Crisp Apple wine.  We sat under a shaded tree to enjoy the quiet and relax from our journey.  There were these plump birds I had never seen before and they made loud sounds. We found out they are called guinea fowl. Later that evening, we could load noises coming from our canopy. Mitch went to check out the noise and there perched on our bedroom canopy was a guinea fowl. With a little coaxing the bird decided to find another spot. When I asked Rob how he got into this business, his reply was, “I was bored.”  Rob was retired from the military, and one of his buddies had a winery in California, and he figured why not.  He joined Harvest Host in August, and he said he enjoyed meeting people and the interesting conversations.  We have to agree, meeting these hosts, and other travelers is a much more pleasant way to spend an overnight stop than in a Walmart or Cracker Barrel.  As of yet, we haven’t had to stay in either one but never say never.