megram - Index

megram - Guide To Spring Fun In Ottawa's West End - Index

Maple Syrup Season
How sweet it is!
It’s time to tap into the Canadian
version of liquid gold: Rich and
scrumptious maple syrup.
The “harvesting” of this unique
treat is a perennial rite of spring.
Cause for celebration, feasting and
trips to the sugar bush, it’s all natural
and pure bliss.
Authentic, chemical-free goodness
right from the maple trees in
this neck of the woods, it’s also a distinctly
delicious part of our heritage.
Back in the early days, before the
Europeans even settled in the region,
the Aboriginals were onto something
sweet. They discovered sugar water in
PANCAKE HOUSE & SUGAR BUSH
CORPORATE TEAM BUILDING
GROUP TOURS
OPEN DAILY UNTIL
April 20 9am – 5pm
• Trails, Games Self Guided Tours, Camp Visits, Maple
Taffy, Cotton Candy
• Horsedrawn Rides, Music & Face Painting Saturday
& Sunday.
• March Break and Easter Weekend all above
activities daily.
• March 22nd and 23rd, 10am –3pm Easter Egg Hunts.
• Groups of 15 or more call for reservations
Indulge in sweet maple products
and meet local craftspeople and
fine artists in the historic village
of Pakenham and surrounding
area. For studio tour details
check www.maplerun.on.ca
or call 613-624-5932
at Three Yellow Tulips
www.fultons.ca info@fultons.ca Tel: 613-256-3867
Due West Magazine • Page 42 • Spring 2008
the maple tree. Since it was tasty
and a source of energy, they used it
for drinking and cooking. The
Algonquins called it Sinzibuckwud,
meaning drawn from wood. In those
primitive times, roughly 300 years
ago, tomahawks were used to cut
into the tree. A piece of wood or a
reed would be stuck in to direct the
water or sap into a bucket made of
birch bark.
It was a ritual that heralded the
change in seasons. Once the days
got longer and warmer and the
nights stayed freezing, the sap started
to flow and the tapping began.
On those bright sunny days, when
the snow’s still on the ground,
the maple sap starts flowing and
the fun begins.
Fast forward to 2008 and you’ll
discover that the process has been
streamlined a bit.
Today, at many sugar bushes,
sophisticated tree-to-tree tubing
systems are used to run the sap
directly to the sugar shack or house.
At the maple tree, a metal tap or
spigot directs the sap into a bucket,
which is made of metal or plastic.
The buckets usually have lids to keep
the sap clean.
Still, the results are much antici-