When Leon Risenhoover,76, looks out the windows of his Dolores farmhouse, apple trees stretch out before him.
Whe he looks at the trees, he sees a history of Montezuma County that can be told by the apples themselves.
Risenhoover has trees on his property that were planted in 1906, when trains still trundled into the county and hauled the apples out.
"This was supposedly the first double red delicious in the valley," Risenhoover said as he gave a recent tour of his orchard, with towering trees sporting large gnarly trunks and sheep milling about.
This year, there was a late frost, so few bright red apples dot the trees. Late rains delayed the harvest. His crop last year was small too.
Being an apple farmer in Montezuma County isn't easy, Risenhoover said. "You get about six years of good crops out of every 10 years."
This could explain why apples aren't as abundant as they were in the early 1900s.
"It is too much work for very little return," he said.
Still, Risenhoover was planning on going out in the field to pick and be ready to sell them for about $1 a pound.
He grows the double red delicious, winesaps, Romes and golden delicious.
When asked his favorite, he reached into some branches.
"The red delicious, hands down," he said.
With a rub on his shirt, the apple took on a shiny glow, and it tasted, well, delicious.
"You see," he said. "Those red delicious types in the store - they don't taste anything like that. They are probably a year old in the store."
In fact, their thick skin and beauty is what earned the red delicious such popularity, but their longevity was ultimately their downfall and the reason they have a bad name today.
"You have to get them fresh from the orchard, my orchard," he said, smiling.
To buy Risenhoover's apples, drive to 14856 CR 26, Dolores. Risenhoover said to be sure to honk to get his attention and be patient.
"I don't move fast anymore," he said.
