ahhhh..I'm so jealous. They look incredible, at an incredible price, and what fun to pick them yourself. The picture is great too. let us know how the preserving and dehydrating etc go!

Wow! That is really cheap! They look like they're really nice cherries, too! Yum!

Oh my god, why have I never been cherry picking? $1/lb! In WI we only got to pick strawberries and apples at those pick-your-own places, and of course we had the big raspberry patch out back. Send me some of them yummy looking things, ok?

megan - Thanks! I'll definitely be posting about my cherry adventures. :)

jenny - I know! I was so surprised. They were listed on their website as $2 per pound, but I think they lowered the price because the rain ruined a lot of them.

shananigans - I don't know, why haven't you?? Actually I'd never been before this morning. I've only picked strawberries once before this. I'm so excited to pick apples this fall. Around here we have a lot of different pick-your-own stuff... strawberries, cherries, peaches/nectarines, plums, apples, pumpkins, and pretty much anything else if you feel like driving a bit further. I do live in Amish country after all. :) I'd send you some, but I have a feeling fresh cherries wouldn't make it through the mail too well.

I seriously tried the bobby pin trick at lunch - do you use the part that's two ends of the loop end? I had it working 'best' with the loop end, only one juicy mishap.

ooh now i'm jealous. I have no cherry orchards around here and while I'm not a big cherry person a few other people in my family are. I'm anti cherry and anti artifically red food (because it is usually cherry flavored).

living near amish country does have it's benefits! Have you ever tried some of that home made root beer the amish make and advertise on those wooden signs at the end of their driveways? I love those signs but have never bought any.

jess - I use the loop end as well. It took a few tries to get my technique down, but now I've got it working pretty well. I did get splattered a few times, but I think that's inevitable with cherries. Normally I love buying new kitchen gadgets, but a cherry pitter is such a single-use thing that it seems unnecessary.

jessie - I'm anti-cherry flavored things. They all taste like cough syrup, which I am also anti. I'm particularly anti-artificially blue food. That stuff is nasty. But I do love cherries, so yes, in this instance living in Amish Country definitely has its advantages. :) I've never even seen the root beer signs, but then again I'm notoriously unobservent while driving. It seems the only thing I ever spot is dead animals. It's the most depressing tunnel vision ever, let me tell ya.

Hey, that's so funny... i feel the same way about cherry- and also orange-flavored anything. Reminds me of Robitussin and baby aspirin...

Gimme the real thing, baby!

Great bobby pin hint. I'll try it out!

I'm getting really fed up with this Blogger today. I lost my comment message again. It's been happening to me all day.
Anyhow, cherries...I like them well enough, but not 12 pounds worth. Holy doodle that's a lot of cherries! I can't wait to see what you do with them all. Your picture looks fabulous, BTW.

glorious! cheery picking is my new dream date. i wonder if they have pick-your-own-produce fun in southern california?

I love the price difference with pisck-your-own fruit. Over the summer holidays (so long ago now, here in Aus) I worked at a berry farm where they grew blackberries, boysonberries, raspberries, gooseberries and tay berries. The berries sold for $4.50 per 150 grams in the shop, but $9 per kilogram (that's 1000grams if your not good with the metric system lol) to pick your own!! Even better, if we bought in morning tea to share with the other workers we got to take home big tubs for free!
I must admit I really don't like cherries, but I've always found them very pretty.

A cherry pitter can also be used as an olive pitter. :)

In addition to being anti cherry flavoring I'm anti almond flavoring though I have no problems with actual almonds. I am also a much better passenger than a driver. Not that I can't drive well, i just don't like it and prefer to not drive when possible.

kleo - I don't mind orange flavored stuff, but cherry? Ew. I'm not overly fond of grape flavored things either. The Boy hates banana, coconut, or melon flavored things, all of which I adore. Of course the real thing is always better. :) If you try the bobby pin thing, use the loopy end!

carrie - Thanks! I probably didn't need 12 pounds of cherries, but picking them was fun and I figure I can always freeze them or dry them to use later. Blogger has been a bit tempermental lately for some reason. It 's pretty frustrating.

holiday at sea - I think picking fruit/veggies would be a really fun date. And they have to have pick your own farms in souther california, right? Isn't CA pretty famous for its fresh produce?

freedom - Wow! That is a huge difference, even more than the cherries. I love love love blackberries, but they're really hard to find around here for some reason. I'd love to work someplace like that... tea and free berries sounds so lovely. :) I think part of the love I have for cherries is based on how pretty they are. They're very photogenic.

anonymous - True, but I don't like olives. :)

jessie - I don't mint almond flavoring. I prefer to drive if at all possible because I get motion sick very easily when I'm in the passenger seat, or the backseat especially.

I just hate driving. I propose we all go back to riding horses and here is why:

1. Riding horses would be good for the environment by causing less polution
2. Would force Americans to get our growing waistlines undercontrol because the horses couldn't support a 600 lb person.
3. It would cause society to slow down and enjoy the scenery
4. It would reduce our dependancy on foreign oil.
5. It would certainly give a booming industry to horse breeders.
6. Farmers would need to grow more hay to feed the horses.
7. A lot less traffic.
8. A lot more fertilizer. Because road apples are fun.
9. More business for Equine Veterinarians.
10. Naming your ride would become standard opperating procedure.

I used to say that all the time. I've since become a bit wary of riding horses, though. I've never done it myself, although I've always wanted to... but now I don't know if I would even if I had the opportunity. I just can't help but think that a horse doesn't want to be carting my ass around, you know? It's not beneficial to them in any way. They wouldn't just do it naturally. You don't see wild horses sidling up to strangers and offering them rides. I don't know enough about horses and riding them to make some sort of definitive judgement, but I have doubts.

I do like your reasons, though. Especially 8 and 10. :) There are cops on horses here in Lancaster, so occasionally you come across a nice big pile of poo on the sidewalk. Awesome.