You can visit a sugar bush and have a maple syrup experience near Toronto this winter
As a child growing up in Canada, one of the best parts of winter would be to visit a sugar bush to tap some trees and make maple syrup snow candy at the end of the day.
If that's something you dearly miss then I've got some good news for you because you can visit a sugar bush and have a maple syrup experience near Toronto this winter.
Located in Erin, Elliot Tree Farm is about an hour and a half drive north of the city.
The family farm is known for its Christmas trees and has been selling maple syrup for years. The farm opened its maple syrup tree tapping experience to the public last year for visitors to learn about the process of making maple syrup.
The Maple Syrup Experience will take you on a tour through the forest to check on sap buckets all while educating guests about maple syrup.
After the sap collection, you'll be led to where the sap gets boiled down to syrup and will be able to watch the process.
Once the syrup has been cooked down, you'll be able to make some maple sugar candy by pouring the hot syrup in fresh snow and rolling it up with a popsicle stick. You'll also be able to learn how to make your own maple toffee from the fresh syrup.
If you can't get enough of the sweet maple syrup, you'll be able to end the tour with an all-you-can-eat pancake buffet with fresh maple syrup and a side of either bacon or sausage.
After all that food, you can walk on one of their various trails around the farm that will lead you to the horses at the barn, to help you digest all that sugar.
You can also purchase a bottle and other maple sweets to take home at the Heritage Barn. The farm only accepts cash so make sure to withdraw some if you plan on buying anything at the gift shop.
The experience is mostly outdoors so make sure to dress appropriately for the weather. Dogs are also allowed on the farm but must remain on a leash the entire time.
The Maple Syrup Experience is open on select weekends from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. starting Feb. 26 through Apr. 10
Tickets must be purchased in advance online and prices start at $42.50.
Hector Vasquez
