This summer something big is about to happen in the small town of Greensburg. Beginning at 1 in the afternoon on June 16, at High Point Orchard, G. Busy Blues Room, along with ACCDC, and High Point Orchard, present Blues, Grooves & Spirits—a night under the apple trees and stars, with continuous music, a beer and wine tasting tent, arts and crafts vendors and delightful orchard fare. Catfish Davis begins playing some amazing blues standards, at 4:00.

Followed by “Here for the Party” starring G. Busy, himself, and Greensburg’s own, “Top Hat Blues Revue, comes the amazing 14 year old Harmonica star, Carson Diersing. Topping off the day of rockin’ blues comes the 2011 Titled Kings of Beale Street, Tee Dee Young! Anyone over 21 can buy tickets for tasting samples, and after tasting, they can buy full size glasses of their favorite spirits.

Everyone is also welcome to venture inside the country store and barn on the grounds of the orchard. There they will find familiar and fantastic orchard food, snacks and drinks, along with home décor accessories. And we're very excited to be hosting several arts and crafts vendors, representing some of the finest "made-for-you" handcrafted wares in Southern Indiana! Some people think there is nothing to do in Greensburg, but many in the community are working hard to change that perception, and they are letting everyone know about it.

Check out email, FB or internet web sites, turn on the local radio station, read the newspaper, and pay attention to the posters all around town. Mark your calendars and plan your blues! See you at High Point Orchard on June 16, 2012.

Go to artsingreensburg.com

From August through November, apple season is in full swing at HighPoint Orchard & Winery near Greensburg. Visitors pick from dozens of apple varieties, which along with peaches and Asian pears are grown on Randy and Karen Cymans 18-acre fruit farm. Homegrown Pride Fall brings hundreds of school kids to the orchard to learn all about apples and sample cider made using an antique press. HighPoint also draws out-of-towners, many of whom arrive on tour buses to soak up the country ambience and the historic location, Pleaks Hill, which celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2008. In fact, the Cymans live in an 1858 house built by J.E. Pleak. Randy Cyman was drawn to the house at first sight and liked the idea of preserving a piece of history. I get satisfaction out of improving something, he says. We pride ourselves on the beauty of the grounds and historic nature of the house. The couple established HighPoint Orchard in 2005 and opened the following spring. Its name comes from the propertys status as the highest point in northwest Decatur County. The elevation protects the fruit from damaging spring frosts, and the nearby upland reservoir supplies plenty of moisture. Given the favorable growing conditions, Randy decided to indulge his passion for winemaking by carving out an acre to plant multiple varieties of grapes. At a prestigious winery in France, he learned about operating a vineyard. He plans to follow the French model by developing a small boutique winery, though it wont be fully operational for a few years. Still, the Cymans see it as another piece of the first-class agritourism experience they want to provide for visitors.

Farm to Table A key ingredient in the couples success from the outset has been Karen Cymans culinary prowess. She makes all of the food from scratch for their Orchard Café and Ole Mill Barn, except for the pies, which are made by another chef and baked on site. Customers rave about her signature chicken salad sandwiches, but her homemade doughnuts draw early visitors. In season, she makes an apple crisp doughnut mix, with the finished products iced or topped with cinnamon and brown sugar. We also do a pumpkin and a vanilla with different toppings, she says. Salads, wraps and other items are served in the cafe, which opens every June along with an adjacent gift shop. Just a few days after opening the cafe this summer, Karen says, people were already asking for her doughnuts. In 2009, the Cymans renovated the two-story barn, built in 1854, and began year-round food service that accommodates more than 100 customers at a time. Karen says guests love the cozy lodge feel inside and the expansive views from the spacious outdoor deck. With any small business, youre determining what do people really need, she says. It has turned into a year-round business, which is good because the bills come around every month. The Mill Barn is popular with area residents who want a special place to celebrate milestones such as weddings, bridal and baby showers, class reunions and retirement parties. We live in a rural area with a lot of fast food, Karen says. One of the needs for our community was to have a charming place to hold different events. We fill that niche. Randy has a management position at the nearby Honda automotive plant, but still finds time to care for the orchard grounds and trees. His wife handles menu planning, food preparation, supplies and customer relations with visitors to the farm, the cafe and those renting out the property for weddings and other occasions. After a nonstop week of hosting multiple events, she paused to reflect on the agricultural adventure she and her husband embarked on just a few years ago. This has been such a journey for us, she says. It has encouraged and surprised us. We keep putting our best foot forward and opportunities develop.

If You Go& The high point at HighPoint is the orchards annual Apple Fest, which takes place the second weekend in October. Its a fun, family event featuring activities such as a pumpkin roll, apple pie bake-off, wagon rides and those famous fresh doughnuts. Learn more about the festival, or plan your visit the farm, at www.highpointorchard.com or by calling 812.663.4534.

Indiana Covered Bridge Loop Highlights South Central Indianas Unique Bridges!

Indianas Covered Bridge Loop invites you to step back into time and marvel at the workmanship put into wooden bridges built throughout the 1800s by skilled craftsmen . Stand on any one of the nine bridges featured on the Loop and listen. You may still hear the faint clip-clop of horse shoes and the whirr of the wagon wheels as they spin across the plank boards. The pace was slower, the distractions fewer&but the craftsmanship is still there today for you to enjoy in the scenic Southern Indiana countryside. Six Counties. Nine Bridges. One Great Trail. That is the Indiana Covered Bridge Loop. Whether you drive the Loop and make it a long weekend or a day-long adventure, the approximately 216 mile route features nine historic covered bridges scattered over water ways in Bartholomew, Brown, Decatur, Jackson, Jennings and Lawrence counties. The loop features single, double, triple span bridges, and the only remaining double tunnel bridge in Indiana all built by well-known master craftsmen. Four of the bridges are featured on the National Register of Historic Places. See the oldest covered bridge in Indiana built in 1838, now residing at the Brown County State Park, and the longest covered bridge in the United States just outside of Medora, Indiana. Visitors can experience driving through six of the covered bridges. We receive lots of questions about Covered Bridges and are pleased to partner with our region to produce this piece which showcases the Westport Covered Bridge and 8 others within the region, says Melanie Maxwell, Decatur County Tourism executive director. The Indiana Covered Bridge Loop brochure serves as your information guide and is complete with a map, GPS coordinates and a brief description accompanied by bridge photos. Loop brochures are available at the Bartholomew, Brown, Decatur, Jackson, Jennings, and Lawrence County Visitors Centers and on-line. Its an unforgettable experience of being transported back in time while creating a memory that lasts a lifetime. For more information call 812.222.8733.Or visit our website @ www.visitgreensburg.com. Look for the Indiana Covered Bridge Loop logo.