GAYS MILLS – After a great growing season, the Gays Mills Apple Orchards have yielded a bumper crop of apple. Combined with all the other goodies available, a trip to the orchards is well worth the effort.
Fleming Orchard
The Fleming Orchard is one of the smaller orchards in Gays Mills, but it has lots to offer customers looking for apples and more.
Jim Fleming is running the orchard established by his family decades ago. It’s definitely a well-run operation with lots of local help.
Like many other orchardists, Fleming thinks this crop’s quality is very good and the yield may be down slightly from last year. The Macs, Cortland and Galas are excellent.
Fleming also has a decent crop of Honey Crisp this year.
Fleming is also very happy for his help most of whom have supported the orchard for 20 to 25 years at this point.
One unique and popular feature of the orchard is the U-pick, which allows customers to pick their own apples in a section of the orchard directly behind the salesroom.
In addition to apples, Fleming sells squash, pumpkins, mums and more. They also have a large line of jams and jellies.
This year, Fleming’s added donuts which are baked from scratch.
“They’re not frozen and they’re not fried,” Fleming explained. “They’re baked from scratch.”
Fleming’s also sells ‘seconds’ of every variety at discounted prices. In addition to some of the varieties already mentioned the orchard offers Greening, Golden Supreme, Granny Smith, Empire and many more.
Sunrise Orchard
The Sunrise Orchard is the largest orchard in the Gays Mills area.
The orchard has 225 acres of apple trees planted and operates two retail locations. Sunrise Orchards is located at 48340 State Hwy 171, Gays Mills, Wisconsin, and is open daily during the 2026 retail season. September and October hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily.
In addition to a very large salesroom, this is also the headquarters of the operation and operates a packing line where apples are graded sorted and packed.
Sunrise at Hillcrest is used as a salesroom location. Sunrise purchased the Hillcrest Orchard from Robert Zimpel two years ago. Sunrise Hillcrest is located at the intersection of Highway 171 and Highway 61 in Rolling Ground.
The big news at Hillcrest this year is that Sunrise has planted two acres of strawberries to be sold in the early summer. That revives an old Hillcrest tradition of growing and selling strawberries. Sunrise Hillcrest also sells Christmas trees another longstanding Hillcrest tradition.
So, we asked Sunrise Orchard President Allen Teach about this year’s crop.
Teach was upbeat about the quality of this year’s crop.
“It’s a very nice crop,” Teach said. “It’s not the bin buster of last year, but that’s to be expected. Often you see a big crop begets a smaller crop in the next year.”
While that may be the case, there are lots of apples in what is probably an average size crop. How big was last year’s crop? Well they were not done packing until May, according to Teach.
This year there were a few frost events, but the apple crop was not majorly affected.
The thing that Teach likes in this year’s crop is the excellent quality seen in all the different varieties Sunrise grows.
A new road project on Highway 171 was completed recently. Handicap parking spaces were relocated to the parking lot across the street and a new handicap ramp was created to facilitate handicap access to the salesroom.
What else is new at Sunrise? Well, how about a brand new apple named Kudo. Sunrise harvested a first crop of Kudos from a one acre planting that yielded about 20 bushels. Next year will be a larger harvest. The reaction of those who had a chance to try a Kudo apple was very positive, according to Allen Teach.
Kudo is a cross between the extremely popular Honey Crisp and Zestar! It’s the latest product of an apple breeding program at the University of Minnesota.
The Kudo apple variety produces attractive, well colored fruit with a unique combination of traits including an excellent crisp, juicy texture and a sweet, well balanced flavor with occasional tropical overtones.
Kudos was developed by crossing the University of Minnesota hits Honeycrisp and Zestar!, making it a sister to the popular SweeTango apple. It will be ready to harvest in late September, similar to or slightly later than, its parent Honeycrisp, and is hardy to USDA Zone 4.
It may take a few years to get quantities, but it appears orchardists are interested.
On another growing note, Sunrise did not call on its irrigation system much this year, because of rainy wet conditions through most of the growing season. However, the orchard did irrigate for three weeks during a dry spell in July.
The labor situation remains positive for Sunrise. There are apple pickers available, local help is present in the salesroom and elsewhere at the orchard; and South Africans are again present with ag work visas working on the packing line.
Sunrise has used South African labor with ag visas for quite a few seasons now. Teach is very satisfied with the labor present at Sunrise.
Sunrise sells about one quarter of the harvest in the salesrooms and the other three-quarters are sold wholesale.
But make no mistake, there’s a lot more than just apples being sold in the salesroom.
One of the biggest sellers at Sunrise are the apple cider donuts, which are regionally known, according to manager Sandy Jeffers. The woman in in charge of cider donut production is Elsie Clark.
“Some businesses order 10 dozen or more at a time,” Jeffers said. “Apple cider donuts come sugared or plain; and recently, we’ve some glazed.”
And there’s a lot more to eat being sold in the Sunrise salesroom than doughnuts. For instance there’s popcorn, sorghum, and some gluten-free cupcakes made by the Opportunity Center. There’s also the famous corn salsa made for Sunrise by a company in Wisconsin.
“Mostly we try to sell Wisconsin products,” Jeffers explained. “Almost everything comes from Wisconsin, Iowa or Minnesota. We try to keep it local.”
Another big product for Sunrise is apple cider it's a blend of all the different apples and there is a Honey Crisp apple cider made with the juice of only that variety.
“The cider is grown, squeezed, pasteurized and bottled at Sunrise,” Jeffers said.
There’s more…including locally produced Amish Candy and Valley Fudge produced in Coon Valley.
Jeffers wants people to come to Gays Mills experience Gays Mills and cherish the memories of the visit.
“It’s lot of fun to go to Gays Mills and visit three or four different orchards,” Jeffers said.
Kickapoo East/West
1913 Kickapoo Orchard – East and West owners Noel Miller and Harrison Heilman seem upbeat about the apple crop they’re harvesting. An early season late frost had them worried for a while, but now, all seems well.
“The growing season was remarkably good. After the late frost, we were genuinely worried that we had lost much of the crop. Early in the season, we saw so little fruit that our concerns seemed justified,” Miller said. “By mid-July, however, the apples had begun to size up, and we realized the trees were carrying a much stronger crop than we initially thought. In some areas, the fruit set was heavy enough that we needed to thin the trees.”
Heilman clarified that 2026 was also their first season transitioning the 1913 Orchards West location toward organic growing practices. He said that the strong crop and overall tree health gave them an encouraging opportunity to test and refine those new methods.
Miller expanded that timely summer rain made an enormous difference.
“We received an extended stretch of moisture in mid-summer, paired with plenty of heat, just as the trees and fruit entered an important growth period,” Miller said. “Although the muggy weather may not have been especially comfortable, the warmth and moisture helped the apples size up beautifully.”
The orchards have already been open for a month, and will remain open at the West facility until Sunday, Oct. 18, and at main orchard until Wednesday, Nov. 15.
Their extensive offerings will remain available throughout, with different apple varieties coming in waves during the season.
“For Apple Fest Weekend, we anticipate having Honeycrisp, two of our very own varieties, Kickapoo Spice and Dick's Driftless, as well as Orange Winter, Cortlands, Ruby Mac, Tsugaru, and Triumph,” Heilman said. “In addition, there will be Granny Smith, Golden Russet (in limited quantities), Wolf River, Jonagold, and Story Inored. Several other varieties will be ready a little later. Some of these apples will be available from our orchards for the first time, so we are especially excited to introduce them to our guests. As always, availability depends on harvest timing and how quickly each variety sells.”
New and exciting
Heilman said that at their main orchard (1913 East), one of the biggest changes is their completely rebuilt and modernized 1913 Cider House and cider press. The updated system makes the pressing process more efficient, and their first batches of cider made with the new press have been “some of the best we have ever produced.”
“At 1913 Orchards West, we began the multi-year process of transitioning the orchard toward organic production,” Miller explained. “Guests can also enjoy the more open, exploratory side of the orchard experience there, including seasonal U-Pick opportunities.”
Their offerings
Heilman said that 1913 Orchards offers two newly renovated locations along Highway 171 in Gays Mills:
“Visit our 1913 orchard markets, Cider House, and Orchard Kitchen for fresh-picked apples (bagged, orchard run seconds and U-Pick), 1913 Heritage apple cider (and our 1913 Apple Cherry Cider coming soon),” Heilman shared. “Of course, we also have delicious apple cider donuts, 1913 Original Caramel Apple Pizza, pantry goods such as 1913 apple butter, Dazzle and Drizzle Limited Reserve apple and apple maple syrups, gifts, and be sure to pick up the 1913 limited edition Apple Fest t-shirts, with new designs available this year!”
Special events
Heilman said that during the Gays Mills village-wide Apple Fest Weekend, September 25–27, visitors to 1913 Orchards can enjoy free apple and cider tastings, U-Pick apples, a free corn and sunflower maze, our Wisconsin Cheese Curd Buffet, the 1913 Outdoor Market, bakery, ice cream, and a selection of regional hard cider, beer, wine, and spirits.
“We have also kicked off our 1913 Fall Outdoor Market,” Heilman shared. “You will find a bounty of all your fall favorites, including pumpkins, mums, fall plants, squash, gourds, and more.”
He said they are also excited to welcome featured food trucks. ‘Fin’s by the River’ will serve breakfast Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to noon, and ‘All American BBQ’ will be at the orchard Saturday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Families are welcome, and pets can join the fun in our 4 Paws Park across from the store (sorry, they are not able to join you in the store or orchards).
Heilman said that, looking beyond Apple Fest, their fall calendar continues with special experiences celebrating the flavor and story of the orchard, including:
Saturday, Oct. 10: join them for their free ‘1st Annual Pomologist’s Palate’ event, which offers guided opportunities to taste and compare over 75 distinctive apple varieties (at 1913 Orchards, they grow over 118 varieties of apples, and more are added every year), while learning what makes each one unique. Have a special apple you would like to share too? Bring it along!
Saturday, October 17: their annual 1913 Cider Fest is planned. ‘Meet the Makers’ brings together regional cidermakers for free tastings, orchard-inspired food, and conversations about the craft behind the pour. Roots to Fruits Nursery will also offer fruit-tree talks, and a special Orchard Pack sale for fall planting.
“We know families are looking for budget-friendly ways to spend meaningful time together, so many of our Apple Fest activities—including the maze, tastings, and enjoying the amazing orchard views—are free,” Heilman emphasized. “Come hungry, bring the family, and fall into the Driftless with us.”
Heilman urged everyone to stay tuned for exciting news about the 1913 Cider House! Like and follow @1913kickapoo for all the latest event information and apple variety availability.
Turkey Ridge Organic
Turkey Ridge Organic Orchard (TROO) seemed quite enthusiastic about the 2026 growing season, and the crop. The area’s only organic orchard has been under current ownership since September of 2009.
“The apples came on really early - at least three weeks early,” a staff member explained. “We're assuming that had to do with the combination of those really hot days, where the heat index was well over 100 degrees, and a lot of rain in the spring, and then no rain throughout the summer.”
“Because of our early start, things are going to wrap up fairly quickly this year,” the staff member explained. “We've got a lot of Liberty, some Anonymous, and some New Yorker. We've got a little bit of Williams Pride left, and the Enterprise wasn't on super hard this year, but we're getting a little bit of it in, so we'll have that as the later variety.”
The staff member explained that Liberty is really good for pie. He said that actually, all of the varieties are great for just eating, and the William’s Pride is great, great for applesauce.
In the ‘new and exciting’ category, the orchard now has a maze that is coming in quite beautifully. The maze is composed of flowers and curly willow.
Of course, the orchard’s beloved apples and apple cider will be available. In addition, they have organic jams and jellies, and honey. They also have grapevine wreaths, and some wooden crafts and toys.
The Turkey Ridge staff member said that they'll be in Gays Mills at Apple Fest Friday, Saturday and Sunday from nine to five.
“We're excited to see everybody come up and see us,” the staff member said. “We'll have plenty of cider, and good goodies.”
