Mt. View Orchards in Parkdale, Ore., and Swans Trail Farms of Snohomish, Wash., were each named to Travel+Leisure magazine’s “20 Best Places to Go Apple Picking in the U.S.”

“I’m not exactly sure how that happened, but we’re thankful,” said Trina McAlexander, owner of Mt. View Orchards.

Nate Krause, owner of Swans Trail Farms, said the publicity was great, but he and McAlexander agreed it was difficult to measure the article’s impact.

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Their businesses were already busy with U-pick visitors in the autumn.

“We can always use more friends at our farm,” McAlexander said.

During its annual Fall Festival, which runs from late September to Halloween, Swans Trail Farms offers many activities — including a farm stand, petting farm, corn maze and wagon rides — that the operation charges admission and even offers a season pass.

“We’re sold out this morning. This weekend, tickets will sell out, as well,” Krause said on Oct. 13.

Swans Trail Farms also offers U-pick strawberries and a pumpkin patch depending on the season. Visitors only there to pick fruit or grab pumpkins don’t have to pay an entry fee.

Mt. View Orchards has more than 100 varieties of apples, and also offers U-pick pears, plums, peaches, cherries and flowers.

Its fruit stand also has jams, honey, huckleberries and apple cider donuts.

The 50-acre farm includes a brewery, cidery and winery, and has a farm-to-table tasting of its libations in its vineyard, served with pizzas and pear salad.

Mt. View Orchards and Swans Trail Farms also host weddings and other events.

McAlexander said having a wide array of products is essential for her multigenerational farm.

“My parents wouldn’t have been able to retire and I wouldn’t have been able to come on if we didn’t diversify,” added McAlexander, who also works as a nurse practitioner.

Mt. View Orchards also grows commercial pears, but “You don’t get to control the pricing on that commodity,” McAlexander said.

“The more you can buy directly from the farmer, it’s a better price for the farmer and a better price for you,” she said.

The Krause family has owned its 150 acres since 1984 and started off as dairy farmers. But in 1997, they opened their Washington state corn maze — complete with cities and landmarks such as the Space Needle — and then decided to sell their cows and focus on helping people experience farm life.

Dairy wasn’t reliable as prices went up and down. “You’re stuck to the man’s price,” he said.

Snohomish is one of the first rural areas outside Seattle, so area farms are often how the public perceives agriculture, Krause said.

Agritourism sites such as Swans Trail Farms can serve as a bridge between rural and urban residents, Krause said.

“People are more likely to support agriculture if they are more exposed to it,” he added.

Though Washington and Oregon produce 70% of the nation’s apples, only two farms from the region were represented in the Travel+Leisure article.

“Would you believe you can also find excellent apple picking in the Pacific Northwest?” reads the entry for Mt. View Orchards.