Tag: CT Travel

Maple Syrup in Connecticut’s Litchfield Hills and Fairfield County

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.

Trees are being tapped...
Trees are being tapped…

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

Lamothe's Sugar House
Lamothe’s Sugar House

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.

Sugaring Off at Stamford Museum and Nature Center
Sugaring Off at Stamford Museum and Nature Center

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.

MapleSugaringFestival

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.

Sweet Delight!
Sweet Delight!

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.

sullivan farm maple sugar

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.

flandsere maple

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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Cross Country Skiing in Connecticut

Imagine the quiet swoosh of a cross country skier gliding across the winter landscape in one of the many state parks and nature centers that abound in this unspoiled northwest corner of the state. Here are a few of our favorite spots to cross country ski.

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White Memorial Foundation, on 71 Whitehall Rd. (off Rte. 202) in Litchfield offers 35 pristine miles of trails to explore. The Apple Hill Trail is especially scenic for x-country skiing as it meanders for approximately two miles from Laurel Hill to the summit of Apple Hill, the highest point around Bantam Lake. An observation platform located on top of Apple Hill provides stunning views of the lake, hills and unspoiled countryside as far as the eye can see. Gliding through open fields and forests you may catch a glimpse of a white tailed deer or a red fox.

Burr Pond State Park, on Burr Mountain Rd. in Torrington offers a lovely blue blazed three mile trail with very little elevation that circles Burr Pond making it easy to ski on. The trail takes you through a portion of Paugnut State Forest with its sheltering pines and hemlocks. In addition to including many fine views of the pond – popular with ice fishermen, you will also glide through a variety of habitats.

Collis P. Huntington State Park on Sunset Hill Rd., in Redding is a quiet hideaway park that offers several unexpected charms. The hill at this park is excellent for sledding and sliding and the network of trails here, most were former roads offer excellent and easy cross -country skiing. The Blue Trail circles the park in a 5.7-mile loop that is perfect for an afternoon excursion. A highlight of the park is the unique bronze animal sculptures made by Anna Vaughn Hyatt, one of America’s most prolific sculptors.

Housatonic Meadows State Park located one mile north of Cornwall Bridge on Rte. 7 offers idyllic cross country skiing along the Housatonic River. Swoosh through pine scented trails along the river keeping your eye peeled on wildlife that makes this area their home.

Perhaps one of the most scenic parks for cross country skiing is Topsmeade State Park located on Buell Road off East Litchifeld Rd. of Rte. 118 in LItchfield. Nestled in a setting of great natural beauty you will find a maganificent Tudor style home that was once the summer estate of Miss Edith Morton Chase, heiress to a brass family fortune in Waterbury. There are numerous trails to explore here as well as a number of unpaved roads. Look of rhte 7/10 of a mile nature walk with interpretive signs.

In 1917, Miss Chase received from her father approximately 16 acres on Jefferson Hill in Litchfield. Here she built a rustic cabin, which was replaced with a more substantial summer home in 1923. She hired noted architect Richard Henry Dana, Jr. to help her design and build the English Tudor style house which was completed in 1925. The exterior woodwork is of cypress, the downspouts are lead, the walls of brick and stucco, and the roof is slate. Upon her death in 1972, Edith Chase left her beloved country estate to the people of Connecticut and to be known as Topsmead State Forest. In her will, Miss Chase requested that Topsmead State Forest “be kept in a state of natural beauty”. To ensure that Topsmead would remain undisturbed, Miss Chase left an endowment to be used toward maintaining and operating the buildings and grounds as they were upon her death.

For more information about crossing country and down hill skiing in Litchfield Hills, visit www.litchfieldhills.com.

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Native American Drum Making Workshop at The Institute for American Indian Studies

The most important Native American instrument was and still is the drum. Most Native Americans prefer to use drums made from traditional materials made by a master drum maker or make their own. This is because of the strong spiritual associations of the drum….it is the heartbeat of Mother Earth.

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Indigenous peoples made several kinds of drums; log drum, water drum and the most common, the hand drum. Hand drums could be single or double-headed. In the northeast region they were traditionally made using a wooden base and an animal hide; typically deer or elk.

The drum is considered to be the first musical instrument used by humans; historians believe the drum has been virtually every culture known to mankind. The original purpose was for communicating over long distances as a type of signal.

On Saturday, February 23 from 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. Allan Madahbee, Ojibway artist and musician, will instruct participants in making their own single-face drum while sharing the importance of the drum in Native American culture. This workshop is recommended for cildren ages 12 and up. The workshop fee is $150; $125 IAIS Members. Reservations and a $50 nonrefundable deposit is required by calling 860-868-0518. The museum is located on 38 Curtis Rd. in Washington Connecticut. For additional information www.iaismuseum.org. For area information www.litchfieldhills.com

About The Institute for American Indian Studies

IAIS is a Not-For-Profit organization. We do not receive monies from the State, Town of Washington nor any other museum or gaming facility. We reply on membership, programs and contributions for support.

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Winter Wonderland Children’s Ball February 23

Calling all little princes and princesses! Stepping Stones is rolling out the red carpet as the museum transforms into a snow-kissed wonderland for its fifth annual Winter Wonderland Children’s Ball on Saturday, February 23 from 6:00 – 8:30 pm. Children are invited to dress up in their party best for a memorable evening of fun and entertainment.

Moms and Dads, sons and daughters will be treated like the princes and princesses that they are as they enjoy a magical wintry celebration featuring dancing, hors d’oeuvres and full access to all the exhibits in the museum. Families will enjoy posing for the paparazzi as they arrive, learning ballroom moves from Robin Poska’s Ballroom Magic of Norwalk and making wonderful winter crafts.

Be sure you bring your camera. Photo opportunities abound as we celebrate the magic and wonder of the season amidst a whimsical winter backdrop of a lighted courtyard, a play-sized igloo, a life-sized snow globe, spectacular winter murals, snowflake-adorned galleries and a myriad of snow people.

Tickets for this unforgettable evening for the whole family cost $10 per person for museum members and $12 per person for non-members. Children under the age of one will be admitted for free. Winter Wonderland Children’s Ball tickets are non-refundable and non-transferable. Registration is required. Space is limited, so register early. Call 203 899 0606, ext. 247 or visit www.steppingstonesmuseum.org/wonderland. For area information visit www.visitfairfieldcountyct.com.

About Stepping Stones Museum for Children

Stepping Stones Museum for Children in Norwalk, Conn., is an award-winning, private, non-profit 501(c)(3) children’s museum committed to broadening and enriching the lives of children and families. Located on five acres in Mathews Park, the LEED Gold certified museum encompasses five hands-on galleries, state-of-the-art Multimedia Gallery, Family and Teacher Resource Center, cafe and retail store.

Stepping Stones is located at 303 West Avenue, exit 14N or 15S off I-95 in Norwalk. Museum hours are Monday – Sunday, 10:00 am – 5:00 pm. Admission is $15 for adults and children. Children under 1 are free. To learn more, call 203 899 0606 or visit www.steppingstonesmuseum.org.

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February Fun at White Memorial Foundation in Litchfield Hills

The White Memorial Conservation Center, an Environmental Education Center and Nature Museum, is located in the heart of the 4000-acre White Memorial Foundation in Litchfield.

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The Conservation Center operates a Nature Museum with exhibits focusing on the interpretation of local natural history, conservation, and ecology, as well as a Museum Nature Store.
The grounds includes the wildlife sanctuary maintained by the White Memorial Foundation that comprises 4000 acres of fields, water, and woodlands, trails, campground and boating facilities.

In February, White Memorial is planning some exciting programs for children and adults. On Feb. 3 for example, at 1 p.m. learn to paint a winter sunset in watercolor with internationally celebrated botanical artist Betsey Rogers-Knox. Step by step instruction will be offered for all levels for ages 12 and up. The cost is $30 for members and $40 for non-members and pre-registration and payment is required.

The Center is also hosting the 2nd Annual Adult Museum Sleep In: A Sense of Wonder! So, pack your sleeping bag, your love of nature, sense of childlike wonder, and hearty appetite and stake out your floor space in the Museum or the Carriage House Bunk Room and celebrate the life and times of Rachel Carson! Night walks, day walks, and readings by Ilvi Dulac and David Leff, sing-alongs too are all part of the fun. This program is limited to 20 happy campers! All meals provided but BYOB! Members: $70.00 Non-members: $ 90.00. Pre-registration and pre-payment are required.

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If you are interested in winter wildlife tracking, don’t miss the free walk on Feb. 9 at 10 a.m. with Deneen Bernier to look for clues left behind by animals that tell the story of how they live this time of year.

The Star Party, an astronomy program organized by members of the Litchfield Hills Amateur Astronomy Club and the Mattatuck Astronomical Society is back on February 15. The topic will focus on our magnetic sun and weather permitting there will be star gazing after the program at 7 p.m. Children under 16 must be accompanied by an adult. You are invited to bring your own telescope or binoculars.

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On February 16, Gerri Griswold leads participants on a winter walk through five ponds to look for animal tracks and listen for birds. This brisk stroll is capped off with hot chocolate and a sweet treat in the A.B. Ceder Room. Meet at the museum at 2 p.m. and head to the trailhead to start this invigorating walk.

White Memorial Foundation is located on 80 White Hall Rd. in Litchfield. For program information call 860-567-0857 or http://www.whitememorialcc.org. For area information http://www.litchfieldhills.com.

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Atka the wolf visiting New Canaan Historical Society

On Saturday, January 12 at 3 p.m. Atka, a beautiful white wolf will pay a visit to the New Canaan Historical Society in conjunction with the current exhibit, “Little Red Riding Hood Visits the Historical Society,” on display until March 2.

atka_4

Little red Riding Hood is a fairy tale that has fascinated generations from the 1800s to the present day. To celebrate this tale, collector, Peg Rice has amassed all things “Little Red” and much of her vast and impressive collection is on display at the New Canaan Historical Society located on 13 Oenoke Ridge in New Canaan.

On January 12 at 3 p.m. the Society will welcome a special guest on behalf of Little Red Riding Hood Atka, a wolf ambassador from the Wolf Conservation Center. The program begins with an informative and entertaining look at the history of wolves in North America, their biology and the mythology that surrounds them. Atka is a beautiful wolf that loves to meet people, and, as a great “wolf teacher,” he will educate all in attendance on the importance of his wild “brothers and sisters”! Atka always receives rave reviews and never fails to impress children and adults alike!

Atka is the oldest ambassador wolf at the Wolf Conservation Center (WCC). He arrived at the WCC from Minnesota when he was just 8 days old. The WCC staff, volunteers, ambassador wolves and Eno raised him. Eno was the WCC’s resident German Shepherd and ambassador wolf nanny.

Atka’s visit will be an indoor event and is appropriate for all ages Atka: $10 per person
Seeing Red exhibit: $5 per person Atka + Exhibit: $13 per person. Reservations are not necessary. For additional information http://www.nchistory.org. For regional information www.visitwesternct.com.

About the New Canaan Historical Society
Founded in 1889, he New Canaan Historical Society has carried out its mission “to bring together and arrange the historical events of the town of New Canaan, the genealogies of the families who have lived in the town, to form a library and to collect relics and curiosities, to form a museum.”

About the Wolf Conservation Center
The Wolf Conservation Center teaches people about wolves, their relationship to the environment and the human role in protecting their future. It was founded in 1999. For more information visit http://nywolf.org.

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