Public Enjoyed Maple Sugaring Fest

It was a cloudy cool March day but inside the sugar house, the air was filled with the warm sweet vapors of boiling maple sap. The occasion was a Maple Sugaring Fest hosted by Dick Maynard and Moose Mountains Regional Greenways on Maynard’s conserved 12-acre farm in Farmington.

Participants watched with fascination as the sap bubbled and frothed while Maynard stoked his wood fired evaporator. The event attracted old and young, families and singles, including a few of Maynard’ neighbors just down the road and curious folks from as far away as Alton, Dover, and Wolfeboro. A highlight for the children was getting a taste of the sweet maple “tea”. MMRG Education Coordinator Kari Lygren noted that “Everyone expressed appreciation for the chance to see a traditional NH maple sugaring operation.” Several of the more adventurous adults and children struck out on snow shoes, accompanied by MMRG Executive Director Virginia Long, to admire the snow-covered fields, pond and stream, and open woods.