Headed to the Pacific Northwest, Road Trips Gardeners? The Washington State Apple Blossom Festival takes place Apri 27 through May 7, 2017, in and around Wenatchee, Washington. It’s said to be the oldest major festival in the state.

There’s a carnival, of course, a parade, food fair and golf tournament. But, for us, the draw is the multitude of blooming trees in orchards throughout the region that provide a scent of heaven.

Apples found their way to Washington State in 1826 on a Hudson’s Bay Company sailing vessel. Seeds of a “good luck” apple were planted at Fort Vancouver, Washington, in the spring of 1827. Since then, the Washington apple industry has grown to national significance, producing about 100 million boxes of apples each season.

According to organizers, the Festival was born in 1919, the brainchild of Mrs. E. Wagner, wife of the district’s first apple shipper and a native of New Zealand. She enjoyed the festivals of her childhood so much that she suggested beginning a similar festival in the Wenatchee Valley. The Ladies Musical Club produced the first festival in 1920.