If it seems as though this
winter will never end, take heart, The sweet scents of maple syrup in the
making clearly announce that spring is coming—and they are a good reason to
plan a visit to Litchfield and Fairfield counties in Western Connecticut.
Sugar maples are plentiful
in these scenic areas and more than a dozen sugarhouses from private farms to
nature centers welcome visitors during peak syrup season in March. Guests will
view the process from tap to tastes, see how the big bubbling kettles of thin
sap boil down to thick fragrant syrup and get to sample the delicious results.
Some operations are open every weekend, some have special maple celebration
days and some smaller farms request a call to be sure they are ready for
company.
For the sap to run, nights
below freezing and warm days are required, so dates can vary. A call always is a good idea before visiting.
The Maple Calendar
Lamothe’s Sugar House on 89
Stone Rd. in Burlington starts the season early with the chance to see how
syrup is made every weekend from February 9 to March 24 from 1 p.m. – 4:30 p.m..
This family owned operation began as a hobby with seven taps and has grown to
over 4500 taps and a year-round showroom.
Coffee and cider are complimentary to visitors. The shop has a multitude
of interesting maple sugar products that includes: maple sugar spice rubs, maple
candy, kettlecorn and nuts, and even maple barbeque sauce. Check their website for a special discount on
Lamothe’s spices. Along with the maple syrup business the family also raise
pigs, and mini-lop bunnies. For more
information www.lamothesugarhouse.com/
One of the busiest sugaring spots is the Flanders Sugar House
at Van Vleck Farm Sanctuary in Woodbury. Staff and volunteers conduct
maple syrup demonstrations on on March 2, & 3 and 9 &10. On March 3 the day begins with a
pancake breakfast, topped with Flanders own maple syrup, a treat not to be
missed. The maple sugar season ends with the annual grand finale Maple
Celebration on March 16. The final festival on March 16 features
music, vendors, walks, cooking and maple candy making demonstrations,
maple food sampling and special kids’ crafts and activities.
Audubon Sharon will be holding its annual MapleFest on
Saturday, March 16 between 10 am and 4 pm at the Sharon Audubon Center, Route
4, Sharon, CT. On-going guided 40-minute
tours will lead visitors through the Center’s sugaring operation, including a
working sugarhouse and a re-creation of Native American and early colonial
sugaring methods. Participants can watch
as pure sugar maple sap is collected from the trees and turned into delicious
maple syrup. Admission for the event
is $5.00 adults and $3.00 children.
This hands-on, sensory-based experience focuses on trees as living
organisms and the concept of sustainable agriculture in a forest ecosystem. Our
teaching method incorporates forest ecology and cultural history into the joy
and excitement of maple syrup production. Fresh syrup will be available for
purchase in the Sharon Audubon Center Nature Store while supplies last. For more information on MapleFest or the Audubon
Sharon sugaring operation, contact the Audubon Center at (860) 364-0520 or
visit www.sharon.audubon.org. Depending on sap flow, the sugarhouse will
also be open each weekend in March for visitors. Call ahead to see if Audubon staff will be
boiling sap.
At Warrups Farm on 11 John Read Rd. in Redding, visitors are welcome the first three
weekends in March to watch the whole process, sap to syrup in the log cabin
sugar house, to take a taste of the sap direct from the trees and as well as
the almost-ready syrup. Guests can savor all of the harbingers of spring on a
farm. The sugaring demonstrations take
place from noon to 5 p.m. For more
information www.warrupsfarm.com.
Special Maple Days
March 2
The
Institute for American Indian Studies will have a different take on sugaring at
its annual festival on the March 2. Demonstrations in the outdoor Algonkian Village
will show how local Native Americans
traditionally made maple syrup and its importance to their culture. Pancakes
made by IAIS staff will be served with local maple syrup. The festival will
take place from 11 a.m. – 3 p.m. Fee: $10 Adults; $8
Children. www.iaismuseum.org.
The Indian Rock Nature Preserve located on
501 Wolcott Rd. in Bristol is hosting a maple sugaring and pancake breakfast on
March 2 from 8 a.m. – noon. Along with breakfast, visit with the farm
animals and learn how maple syrup is produced from sap to syrup. Sample New
England syrup, which will also be available for purchase. Admission is $8 for
adults, $5 for children under 10 years old, and free for children under 2 years
old. For more information call (860) 589-8200 or visit www.ELCCT.org.
Maple Sugar Saturday and
Sunday at the Stamford Museum and Nature Center, the museum’s traditional
family festival, will offer the chance to learn how sap from their own trees is
made into syrup, to sample the syrup and to enjoy lots of fun for children
including a scavenger hunt, maple-themed crafts, games, storytelling, and
music. On Staurday, watch local chefs create
delicious dishes using local maple syrup and vote for your favorite. On Sunday, enjoy the populat pancake brunch
from 11 a.m. – 3 p.m. Admission fees:
Members $5, non-members $10, kids 3 and under free. www.stamfordmuseum.org.
March 9
The Annual Maple Festival at Sweet Wind Farm in East Hartland will be a busy day with a tree tapping
demonstration, maple syrup and sugar making with free syrup samples at the
sugar house, a narrated slide show and video, a cooking and recipe class
story time for kids, and --almost everyone’s favorite activity-- a
sugar-on-snow candy making demonstration. The event takes place rain or shine
from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
http://www.sweetwindfarm.net
March 2 – 3 and 9-10
At the Open House Maple Festival at the Great Brook Sugar House on
Sullivan Farm, located on Rte.
202 in New Milford is a maple sugaring program for families on Saturdays
and Sundays March 2,3,9 and 10 from 10 a.m. – 11 a.m., 11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
and 1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. Participants will learn the natural and cultural
history of maple sugar as well as try the bit brace drill, see sap flowing as
well as cook and taste the syrup. For more information http://sullivanfarmnm.org.
March 16
This busiest
March weekend is when the New Canaan
Nature Center from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. will
hold tree-tapping demos, and
a real maple sap boil down at their Sugar Shack, as well as give a look at
historic methods of making maple syrup. Families can also enjoy a delicious
Pancake Brunch with maple syrup, join naturalists for a hike along "Maple
Lane" to learn tree identification tips, warm up around the campfire to
share tall tales, make a Maple craft and take home souvenir treats from a Maple
Bake Sale. Members $8 and
non-Members $12, kids 2 and under free.
Audubon Sharon will be holding its annual MapleFest on
Saturday, March 16 between 10 am and 4 pm at the Sharon Audubon Center, Route
4, Sharon, CT. On-going guided 40-minute
tours will lead visitors through the Center’s sugaring operation, including a
working sugarhouse and a re-creation of Native American and early colonial
sugaring methods. Participants can watch
as pure sugar maple sap is collected from the trees and turned into delicious
maple syrup. Admission for the event
is $5.00 adults and $3.00 children.
This hands-on, sensory-based experience focuses on trees as living
organisms and the concept of sustainable agriculture in a forest ecosystem. Our
teaching method incorporates forest ecology and cultural history into the joy
and excitement of maple syrup production. Fresh syrup will be available for
purchase in the Sharon Audubon Center Nature Store while supplies last. For more information on MapleFest or the
Audubon Sharon sugaring operation, contact the Audubon Center at (860) 364-0520
or visit www.sharon.audubon.org. Depending on sap flow, the sugarhouse will
also be open each weekend in March for visitors. Call ahead to see if Audubon staff will be
boiling sap.
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