In an average year, each tap hole will produce about 10 gallons of maple sap, enough for one quart of pure maple syrup. Each tree receives between one to four taps. During your visit, you'll also see the evaporator at work. An evaporator is continuously fired and fed. The boiling process reduces 30 to 50 gallons of sap into one gallon of pure maple syrup.
Most producers make fresh syrup available to guests for purchase.
No one is sure how long people have practiced the art and science of making this wonderful treat from the sap of a tree. However, there is a charming universal legend told among the Eastern Woodland Indian tribes. In the oral tradition of the tribes, the story explains how long ago, pure maple syrup flowed freely from a hole in the maple tree. One day, a young prince came upon a village of his people that was strangely silent. The prince searched and searched until he found his people in the nearby maple grove.