On a bluebird day in mid-June, a group of visitors stood at the edge of admiring the property’s 77-acre orchard. Despite the location in the middle of the high desert on Colorado Western Slope, the leafy green trees stood tall and verdant, almost mirage-like against the rocky backdrop of the Dominguez Canyon.
However, something was amiss, though not totally obvious upon first glance. The cherry, peach and pear trees should have been heavy with fruit at this time of year, ripe for the orchard’s you-pick and farmers market seasons. But a late spring freeze wiped out the entire 2026 crop, worth about $300,000, said sales and hospitality manager Erica Frank.
Luckily, Honey Rock Landing’s business model does not rely solely on agriculture. Since owners Leslie and Colby Barrett bought the property in 2018, they have invested in making the desert oasis a tourist attraction with lodging options like its cave suites, which are built into entrada sandstone rock formations. There’s also a special events venue and a gift shop built into the stone, which are not only aesthetically stunning but also functional. Because they are constructed into the earth, the spaces naturally stay cool during the heat of summer.
Since it can’t offer you-pick fruits this year, the farm is hosting open hours on Friday afternoons throughout the summer when the public can experience its amenities for free. The onsite kitchen will host ticketed events, too, like specialty dinners and wine pairings, and Frank expects the newly constructed natural swimming pool will be filled before the season is over for overnight guests to enjoy.
“Farming does not pay the bills,” Frank said. “That’s why (the owners) expanded because this is making money. The only thing making money on this farm right now is the suites and these events.”
Honey Rock Landing is one example of how farms and ranches across Colorado are embracing agritourism. The term refers to any instance in which an agriculture-based business opens its doors to the public for learning or experiential opportunities. The concept is centuries old if you look at Old World destinations like Italy, where travelers have long stayed at vineyards and helped harvest grapes or take part in winemaking, said Corry Mihm, executive director of the .
But agritourism has received renewed attention in recent years as Colorado’s rural communities look for new revenue streams and American tourists seek out ways to get a break from the hustle and bustle of city life. Approximately 900 farms in the Centennial State reported making income from agritourism in 2022, , according to the latest U.S. Department of Agriculture census.
For farmers and ranchers, agritourism can bolster the bottom line amid the increasingly unpredictable growing seasons due to climate change and even help revive regional economies that revolve around waning industries, such as mining. Equally as important, rural Coloradans get to showcase their craft and feel a sense of pride in their family’s legacy, Mihm said.
“Agriculture is a tough industry, very cyclical, and so this helps create another economic revenue stream, which oftentimes can help bring in another generation or family member thatap able to keep the operation going,” she said. “One thing that is so special to me and to other people who do this is you share the legacy of the lifestyle of farming and ranching and educate consumers about that — America’s rural heritage, the hard work that goes into it.”
Sustaining small farms
in Montrose pivoted to include agritourism for the first time in 2025, after what co-owner Audrey Gehlhausen describes as a particularly tough harvest season the preceding year. Mites on the crops were problematic, the weather inclement, and labor costs skyrocketing, all against the backdrop of decreasing beer sales in an industry that favors large producers over mom-and-pop hop growers.
Gehlhausen and her partner, Chris Della Bianca, knew they needed to do something differently or get out of the business altogether. “It was brutal and felt like we were hitting our heads against a wall basically doing the same thing every year,” Gehlhausen said.
Inspired by the success of their fall beer festival, Southwest Fresh Fest, the duo thought about other ways they could engage the public. They built a small shed they called the “beer barn” and installed kegerators to serve craft brews and ciders made with their homegrown hops. They designated about a dozen campsites for tents and sleeper vans, built a bathroom with showers and flushing toilets, and hoped for the best.
The scene grew organically, Gehlhausen said, drawing a mix of local beer drinkers and drifters who stayed for a week or just a night. She and Della Bianca felt confident enough to invest more in infrastructure this year, adding glamping units and several grain siloes to provide shade for Friday night crowds. One silo is now a permanent stage for bands that help cater to the vibe.
Diversifying has enabled Gehlhausen and Della Bianca to start considering the future of the farm and how to make it more financially feasible, all while bringing in revenue during the growing season. The couple is considering expanding the campgrounds or maybe even adding a brick-and-mortar taphouse down the line.
“All the things we’re doing are basically to keep the hop farm alive,” Gehlhausen said. “We like hop farming, we want to keep doing that, but it doesn’t work on its own.”
A natural revitalization
When Shannon Ullmann started in 2018, agritourism wasn’t part of the business plan. Ullmann had begun growing herbs for her original blends on a 5-acre property in Hotchkiss and wanted to focus on selling wholesale, so she wasn’t obligated to sell at farmers markets and other direct-to-consumer events.
But friends and neighbors were naturally curious about her garden and the tea-making process. So Ullmann began opening to the public during special events, like the Colorado Lavender Festival, and eventually for family-friendly you-picks. Nowadays, anyone can schedule a time to visit from Monday through Saturday when Ullmann is typically pruning and picking the chamomile, peppermint, lemon balm and other plants in the field.
Interest had led Ullmann to expand, too. This year, she planted an entire flower garden for people to come pick their own blooms and so she could host bouquet-making classes. The farm has become something of a hotspot for kids and seniors who get to put all their senses to use.
“There’s just this magic, childlike thing that happens when you’re in nature, eating a lot of berries, enjoying the flowers, touching and feeling plants,” Ullmann said. “Plus, my plants are very aromatic. Every one is different.”
In addition to tours, the farm offers painting classes and includes a retail store selling Ullmann’s original photography and artwork, honey from her hives and, of course, tea. Though the company’s wholesale business still makes up that majority of revenue, it is shifting. About 60% of her revenue comes from the wholesale side, Ullmann said.
Agritourism is on the rise across the North Fork Valley, Ullmann said, helping sustain the local economy that was once driven by coal mining. Since moving there in 2015, she has watched coal plants steadily decline, causing something of an “economic vacuum.” Small-scale agritourism has helped fill that void in what she describes as youthful and creative ways.
“We have a really great valley organic growers association that facilitates the education of farmers. There’s a girl I know who’s starting a tallow business thatap beautiful. There’s lots of lavender things happening there and, of course, the wineries,” Ullmann said. “I’m quite proud of how the valley has evolved.”
Onboarding the next generation
Growing up on a 400-acre ranch in Durango didn’t initially inspire Cynthia James Stewart to join the family business. In fact, she and her four siblings all left the when they were young adults. James Stewart, for her part, had no interest in working the land.
But something changed as she and her siblings got older. One by one, they moved back to the ranch, home to 200 head of cattle and an active dairy, and each added their own unique perspective to its operations. Her eldest sister Jenn began growing vegetables organically, while another sister, Julie, helped codify the ranch’s regenerative methods. Her younger brother Dan moved back and started making cheese.
James Stewart saw their products and believed they needed a place to showcase them. In 2011, she opened a food “wagon” selling the family’s beef, produce and cheese. In 2019, she upgraded to whatap now the , serving guests the family’s homemade and homegrown products in true farm-to-table form.
As the ranch has evolved, itap also added educational components, James Stewart said. There’s a self-guided tour for visitors to learn about regenerative farming. Folks can watch the cows get milked every morning or join a kids’ story time about animals on Wednesdays. There are also baby goats each summer “just for fun,” she said.
“We’re doing everything we can to be that place for people who want to learn. Or they just come and taste the love and taste our food,” James Stewart said.
Part of the family’s mission is to connect locals to their sources, especially as more become interested in pesticide-free products and farming practices that give back to the land. James Ranch is an apt place to do that since it opened in 1961. “People feel safe to come and get their food,” James Stewart said.
The family’s approach has also now inspired the next generation. James Stewartap nephew Gunther Ott currently runs where kids can learn how to bake, plant and harvest vegetables, among other life skills. Ott’s brother, Abe, is expected to take over the beef business in the next couple of years, she said.
Thatap unusual, considering the average age among farmers in Colorado is 58.3 years old, . Agritourism could be a key to getting younger producers to enter — or stay — in the industry, said Mihm at the Colorado Agritourism Association, since farms brings in an average of $73,000 annually from consumer-facing parts of the business.
“When you think about that in a small rural area, that means maybe one of the kids could afford to stay and live there and raise a family and reinvest in the community,” Mihm said. “Itap nothing to sneeze at.”
