Dry weather yielded smaller pumpkins, but Myers Pickle Farm in Gilpin has plenty

The roadside blaze of orange along Route 66 in Gilpin means one thing this time of year.

Pumpkinpalooza.

Every September, Alle-Kiski Valley residents in search of the perfect pumpkin can find their fix at Myers Pickle Farm, a popular produce stand in continuous operation since 1925.

Family owned and operated since 1866, their annual tradition of selling thousands of pumpkins began back in 1952, said farm owner Ralph Myers, 83, a fourth-generation farmer.

Myers plants more than 5,000 pumpkin seeds annually on his 300-plus acre farm. He said this year’s pumpkin crop suffered a bit because of Mother Nature.

“It’s been too dry,” Myers said. “Pumpkins need water, so they’re smaller than normal this year.”

Customers can choose from about a dozen pumpkin varieties sold in all sizes that include traditional orange, warty, polar bear and yellow.

The pumpkins are sold by weight for 35 cents per pound.

“We have a 300-pound Atlantic Giant pumpkin for sale,” said Seth Hepler, Myers’ grandson.

Myers said customers love to take advantage of the fall colors provided by the pumpkins for photo opportunities.

Hepler said people snap pics of their friends, babies and pets, with the pumpkins providing a classic fall background.

Last season a customer incorporated a bit of pumpkin passion during his farmstand visit.

“A guy proposed to his girlfriend by writing on a pumpkin, ‘Will you marry me?’ and she said yes,” Hepler said.

After perusing the pumpkins and picking ones to take home, large wheelbarrows are available to assist customers with transporting them to their vehicles.

Myers said most customers leave with three or four pumpkins.

“The biggest sellers are the orange ones, but the warty ones sell, too,” Myers said.