Guest Author - Jill Browne

In grade school long ago, I learned that there are three fruit-producing regions in Canada where apples and fruits of lesser hardiness could be grown commercially. These were the Okanagan Valley in British Columbia, the Niagara region of Ontario, and the Annapolis Valley in Nova Scotia. At the time, I lived in a town at the edge of the hardiness zone for cherries, where peaches were too risky to farm, but the sweet corn was, and still is, excellent.

Since that time, I've moved far away to the prairies. Even when fresh fruit is in season in the Okanagan (the closest fruit-growing region to me now), it isn't particularly cheap, since it has to be driven 500 kilometres or so to get here. (That's 300 miles approximately).

Without planning it, last week I found myself at a roadside fruit stand in British Columbia. I'd stopped to pick up a couple of peaches to snack on for the rest of my long drive home from the coast - 1,000 km in total, in case you wondered. Well, there were peaches. There were nectarines. Grapes. Blueberries, melons, squash, potatoes - more variety and better prices than I'd seen in some time. The colours! The smells! And of course, not too much later, the tastes.

I brought home a case of peaches and another of nectarines.

This made me start thinking about whether budget travel could include what's basically an extended food shopping trip. Instead of popping over to my local grocery store for a week's worth of apples and some peaches in season, how about buying a year's worth? Apples keep well in cold storage, provided you check on them regularly. So do potatoes. The softer fruits can be frozen, dried, made into jam and preserves - not that I am much of a jam maker, but it can be done.

I live in western Canada where we are able to grow a lot of things, but probably less than where you are. How far do you live from a place with a wide or at least interesting variety of agricultural crops available, and lots of specialty items - things like regional wines, honey and nuts?

If you appreciate fresh food and have even the slightest interest in stocking up, whether it's by way of a cold room, freezer, wine cellar, or your own jam making enterprise, food-based budget travel is a tempting possibility.

Things to take into account are:

- what you will save by buying the food in bulk
- what it will cost you to go there and get it
- the work you will have to do to preserve the food
- whether you have the space and the right equipment (e.g. a cold room, freezer, or wine cellar)
- whether you can split some of the costs with a friend or relative by bringing food back for them
- whether you personally will love the taste of the food in the middle of winter.

That last one is huge. Some people find it hugely uplifting to open a jar of homemade strawberry jam in December. It's a happy reminder of July.

In visiting farming areas, you will have the added advantages that come with getting off the beaten track, into places where the accommodation might be more rustic, but also more economical. Camping is more likely to be available. The pace will be restorative.

I say, go for it. I'm so glad I did.