So, as my wife and I took to the Anderson County Farmer’s Market a couple of weekends ago for the first time this season, we came upon a lovely aroma that we couldn’t resist.

While the fresh-baked bread from Black Cow Bakery and the apple pies from Grits and Groceries were amazing, it was the fresh strawberries that beckoned us with their sweet smell. And with my wife’s need to eat strawberries as often as possible and my want to make her happy (and make homemade strawberry daiquiris), we headed off to pick some of our own berries.

The last time we tried to pick strawberries, it was fun but hardly fruitful. We went at the tail end of the season and had a dilly of a pickle of a time finding those ideal strawberries for smoothies or storage or eating right off the plant.

But we found them and had a grand time eating them in a variety of incarnations.

This year, thanks to the Farmer’s Market, we made sure to get out there early — that day, in fact — and when we did, we were met with some of the most fantastic sights we have seen on a berry farm.

Hardy Berry Farm sits on (fittingly) Strawberry Road in Anderson. Take Market Street west from downtown and follow the signs. You can’t miss it.

You also can’t miss the dozen or so cars and four dozen or so people who are picking gallons upon gallons of strawberries this time of year. Young ’uns, old ’uns, medium ’uns. They are all there picking and placing and rooting and searching. Searching for that elusive “perfect berry.”

The nice thing is that at the peak of strawberry season, there are thousands of “perfect berries” out there. Strawberries are flowing like water over the sides of the hundreds of rows of strawberry plants.

As Stella and I picked our gallon each, visions of strawberry preserves and strawberry drinks and strawberried strawberries danced in my head as I made it down the row of plants. They ranged from deep red to mildly pink, and each had its own characteristics that made it “perfect.”

Not to be hyperbolic, but it was about the most fun I had randomly had on a Saturday in a long, long time. The people who run Hardy Berry Farm are great. The price is right. And when you go in, don’t hesitate to buy a pound of locally produced ground beef or a push-up pop from the freezer.

And they encourage you to put as many strawberries as you can in your basket or bucket or whatever you might be using. The more you pick, the better you feel. But there are some precautions to take, such as not letting your basket get bigger than your storage abilities. It’s imperative to store the berries properly when you get home. Otherwise, you get a lot of spoiled berries and not a lot of strawberry joy.

After all, raspberry, blueberry and blackberry season is just around the corner.