First ever Maple Weekend in Central Frontenac

Apr 08, 2015

Over the Easter weekend over 450 visitors curious about making maple syrup in Central Frontenac visited two farms located on Bell Line Road, where two local families have been producing maple syrup for generations.

The first ever Maple Weekend, designed to promote local syrup makers and their products, was organized by the Lanark and District Maple Syrup Producers Association with support from the Ontario Maple Syrup Producers Association, the Valley Heartland CFDC, and the Lanark County Tourist Association. If both Conboy farms are any indication of how successful the event was overall, you can bet that the organizers and participating producers must be pleased.

The farm of George and Darlene Conboy and Sons was one local hub of activity where guests were invited to take a horse drawn wagon ride through their sugar bush courtesy of Bill Lee and his team. They were able to collect buckets of sap and add them to a large outdoor boiling pot located near the family's state of the art evaporator house. The four Conboy sons, Jason, Trevor, Devon and Ryan were on hand, offering fresh maple taffy to guests and explaining in detail the entire process of maple syrup production from start to finish while also tending to the wood burning fire in their evaporator house where the sap was being boiled.

The Maple Weekend attracted many local families as well as families and individuals from as far away as Toronto, Ottawa, and Morrisburg. Guests also included visitors from Germany and Florida, some of whom were visiting family and friends for the Easter holiday weekend. Youngsters had a chance to hunt for Easter eggs and also participated in a maple-themed scavenger hunt around the property. Special guest, Mike Procter was dressed appropriately in early settler attire and was offering up tomahawk throwing lessons to visitors as well. They were also invited to sample the various types of syrup and other maple related products including maple butter, maple candy and brittle. Visitors came away with a much better understanding of how maple syrup is produced in the 21st century and for Darlene and her family the event was “not only worthwhile as a family reunion but also a chance to reconnect with many of our customers, who also have become part of the family over the years”.

Just down the road, Mel and Joyce Conboy, with the help of their son Clayton and daughter Lindsay, were offering up similar tours and sample tastes at their generations-old farm. Their guests included local families as well as guests from as far away as Seattle, Ajax and Ottawa. Joyce said that the Maple Weekend did exactly what it was designed to do: “educate people about what we do and how we do it and everyone who attended seemed to thoroughly enjoy the experience.”

Luckily for both Conboy families, the sunny bright weather probably helped with the stellar turn out. Joyce said that leading up to the event they had no idea what to expect and that she was both surprised and thrilled at how successful it was. Both families said that they would be happy to open up their farms again next year, so the first inaugural Maple Weekend of 2015 will likely not be the last.

For those who missed the event, please note that both farms are open all year round for those looking to purchase syrup and other maple related products.