Maple syrup lovers young and old are welcome to The Rocks this spring, where the New Hampshire Maple Experience will return for the last three weekends of March and the first weekend of April.
With hands-on lessons in maple sugaring, horse-drawn wagon rides, and a visit to The Rocks’ working sugar house and its resident sugar maker, the Maple Experience is a sweet welcome to spring.
“It’s a fun interactive thing for families and couples to do,” said Nigel Manley, manager of The Rocks. “The idea is you could actually go home and make maple syrup after learning the process at the Maple Experience.”
Before embarking on a tour of the historic and scenic 1,400-acre estate, Maple Experience visitors will learn the history of maple sugaring and how the process has evolved from the time of the first European settlers to today’s high-tech operations.
Visitors will take a horse-drawn wagon ride through The Rocks and discover how to distinguish sugar maples from other species of trees. They’ll learn how to safely tap trees to collect the sap needed to make maple syrup and sugar. A tractor-drawn wagon will carry Maple Experience participants to the Maple Museum and working sugar house, where 4th-generation sugar-maker Brad Presby will demonstrate the process of boiling sap into syrup.
The Maple Experience concludes with a syrup tasting, complete with the traditional donut and a Rocks sour pickle. Chefs from local restaurants will also give maple cooking demonstrations each day at noon, and there will be maple kettle corn and maple cotton candy available during each day of the Maple Experience.
The Maple Experience at The Rocks will run Saturday March 17, March 24-25, March 31-April 1, and April 7. Tours begin at 10 a.m., 10:45 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m., 1:15 p.m., and 2 p.m.
Reservations are highly recommended and may be made by calling The Rocks at (603) 444-6228.
The Rocks is the North Country Conservation and Education Center of the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests (www.forestsociety.org). The Forest Society is a non-profit membership organization founded in 1901 to protect the state’s most important landscapes and promote wise use of its natural resources.
The landmark 1,400-acre Rocks includes numerous buildings listed on the National Register of Historic Places and offers Agri- and Eco-tourism opportunities throughout the year. For more information please visit www.therocks.org For reservations and other inquiries e-mail [email protected] or call 603-444-6228.