Know Your Grower: Hyline Orchard Farm Market

Hyline Orchard Farm Market, 8240 Hwy 42 in Fish Creek, has 150 acres of apple and cherry orchards, plus fruit and vegetable gardens. Photo by Aleah Kidd.

Location: 8240 Hwy 42 in Fish Creek

Acreage: 150 acres of apple and cherry orchards, plus fruit and vegetable gardens around the farm

Your growers: Marvin and Loretta Robertoy with their grandchildren Tracy Robertoy, Paul Robertoy, Justin Enigl and Nathan Delsart

Currently selling: Just-harvested apples and pumpkins, fresh cider and juices, and a wide variety of canned and dry goods 

Specialty items: Grandma Loretta’s pies and seasonal caramel apples 

Hyline Orchard, on Highway 42 between Egg Harbor and Fish Creek, has been a roadside farmers’ market for 62 years – long before they were trendy and well before “buying local” became a national movement. 

It was 1958 when Marvin and Loretta Robertoy – he from Juddville, and she from Baileys Harbor – opened the stand to sell cherries, raspberries, apples and more. Today, in addition to Marvin and Loretta, their grandchildren Tracy, Paul, Justin and Nathan work full time to keep the business running year-round. 

With seasonal produce and pick-your-own cherries, raspberries and apples, the growing and harvest seasons are always a whirlwind, and this year has been no exception. 

“It’s been a great growing season for cherries and apples,” Tracy Robertoy said. 

Apples and pumpkins are currently being harvested and sold, and Loretta, now 83, is still busy in the kitchen making pies for the bakery case and crafting seasonal caramel apples, which are a favorite item every fall. 

The grandkids process and can the operation’s many homemade products on-site, including jams, jellies, pie filling, canned fruit, salsa, honey, fruit sauces and more. 

“We also have a variety of juices that are a favorite item,” Tracy said, referring to the cooler holding cherry, peachy apple and apple-cranberry juice; and cherry, honey-crisp, cherry-apple and apple-raspberry cider.

Tracy is also in charge of managing orders that come in from phone and online orders. The online store (hylineorchards.com/shop) was added this year to sell items while in-person limitations were in place courtesy of the pandemic. 

When the snow starts to fly, the market will stay open to sell and ship frozen/dried cherries, frozen strawberries, dry goods and other local items. And come springtime, the family will get to work collecting sap to make its own maple syrup. It’s a true family-run operation all year, and a favorite place to stop each year for many visitors.