Autumn Only

Pick a autumn Saturday and start it with late morning cider and donuts at Beardsley’s Cider Mill in Shelton. Beardsley’s grows its own apples and presses them onsite for cider. As for the donut part of the equation, you should go with the cider donuts, one of Connecticut’s great taste treats.

No, it’s not big-time college football anymore, but games at New Haven’s storied Yale Bowl summon up 100 years of autumn Saturday afternoons there, and the people-watching is superb. So roll your car up onto the grassy parking lot, fire up the grill, mix a cocktail and toss a football around.  After the game, get on I-95 East for your overnight and next day’s activities.

In the morning, after breakfast at the inn, get down to Mystic and B.F. Clyde’s Cider Mill, the oldest steam-powered cider mill in the United States. Clyde’s was first established in 1881 and still knows how to turn out the goods, including hard ciders and apple wines, jams, jellies, local honey, maple syrup, fudge and baked goods. On Saturdays and Sundays in October and November there are cider-making demonstrations.

Now all you need is a nice pumpkin to take back home with you. For this, we suggest Holmberg Orchards in nearby Gale’s Ferry, where the pumpkins are ready for your inspection by mid- to late September. You may also be tempted by the squash, gourds, Indian corn, mums, cornstalks and hay bales.