Maple Syruping with Kids in the Twin Cities

March is maple syrup month in Minnesota, and with an abundance of nature centers around the Twin Cities, we have ample opportunities to learn about and participate in the maple syruping process. We’ll keep adding events as they trickle in – usually by late February. Look for one or more of the following activities: tapping the maple trees, collecting the sap, boiling it into syrup, and the best part — according to my kids, anyway — a sample of the finished product.

MAPLE SYRUP IN THE TWIN CITIES CENTRAL METRO

Fort Snelling State Park

• 3/15/20: Maple Syrup in Your Backyard | 1-2:30pm | FREE with $7 state park vehicle permit. | Learn about the equipment necessary and process for tapping maples in your own backyard.
• 3/29/20: Maple Syrup for Women and Families | 1-3pm | FREE with $7 state park vehicle permit. | Join a naturalist for a fun afternoon of learning about maple syrup history and method. Please pre-register 612-725-2724.
• 3/29/20: Maple Syrup in Your Backyard | 1pm-2:30 | FREE with $7 state park vehicle permit. | Learn about the equipment necessary and process for tapping maples in your own backyard.

MAPLE SYRUP IN THE NORTH METRO

Eastman Nature Center | Dayton

• 3/8/20, 3/15/20, 3/22/20, 3/29/20: Sap to Syrup ( Vénga y Pruebe la Miel de Arce) | 1pm-4pm | FREE | All ages, bilingual drop in program. Discover maple syruping history and techniques. Taste the final product.
• 3/7/20: My Preschooler & Me: Nature Discoveries – Maple Syrup | 10-11:30am | $5/pp | Learn about maple syruping with your 2-6 year old Registration required.

French Regional Park | Plymouth

• 3/28/20: Maple Syrup Festival | 10am-1pm | $6/pp |Tap a tree, collect sap, and watch it boil down. Sample the park’s natural sweetness with pancakes. Pre-Registration Required.

Harriet Alexander Nature Center | Roseville

• 2/29/20, 3/1/20: It’s Tapping Time! | Noon-4pm | A FREE event, volunteers welcome.

Tamarack Nature Center | White Bear Lake

• 3/14/20: Sap into Syrup | 1-3:30pm | $7/person|  Sign up for one of three sessions. Learn all about tapping trees, collecting sap and making syrup.
• 3/21/20: Sap into Syrup | 1-3:30pm | $7/person|  Sign up for one of three sessions. Learn all about tapping trees, collecting sap and making syrup.

Wargo Nature Center | Lino Lakes

• 3/5/20: Nature Play: Magical Maples Search: Maple | 10am-11:15 | $6/child + vehicle fee | For Ages 2-5 with a parent, includes outdoor play, stories and crafts. Pre-Registration required.
• 3/21/20: Maple Syrup Festival Search: Maple | 2-4pm | $5/pp+ vehicle fee | Learn about the tradition of gathering maple sap and cooking it down to make maple syrup and sugar. Make maple crafts and go on a scavenger hunt. Pre-Registration required.
• TBA: Maple Syrup Family Program | Wargo Nature Center, Lino Lakes | TBA | $5/pp+ vehicle fee | Get an in-depth look at tree ecology and maple syrup production. Hike through the woods to identify maple trees, learn different ways of collecting sap and how to refine sap into maple syrup. Taste some fresh maple syrup too. Pre-Registration required.

MAPLE SYRUP IN THE EAST METRO

Carpenter Nature Center | Hastings

• 3/22/20: Making Maple Syrup Public Program | 1-3pm | $6/pp | Listen to a story about maple syruping, go outside to tap a maple trees, and sample some maple syrup. Ages 2-5 with adult. Pre-register/Limited space, call 651-437-4359.
• 3/29/20: Making Maple Syrup Public Program | 1-3pm | $6/pp | Listen to a story about maple syruping, go outside to tap a maple trees, and sample some maple syrup. Ages 2-5 with adult. Pre-register/Limited space, call 651-437-4359.
• 3/20/20: Preschool Story Time: Syruping | 10-11am | $5/child | Hike to the “sugar-bush” to tap maple trees, watch the process of turning sap into syrup and then sample. Program starts indoors, but be ready to hike in the spring snow and mud. Pre-register, limited space.

Maplewood Nature Center

• TBA: Tap & Sap Family Event (Search: Sap) | TBA | $5/child | Families with children ages 6+ can learn about how trees wake up in the spring. Get acquainted with maple tree tapping tools and equipment, and help tap a real tree. Taste maple sap and real maple syrup! Pre-registration required.
  
• 3/21/20: Maple Sap into Syrup With ECFE (Search: Sap) | 10-11:30am | $5/child, ages 0-preK | Parents stay with their children during the entire class. Pre-registration required.
  

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MAPLE SYRUP IN THE SOUTH METRO

Cleary Lake Regional Park, Prior Lake

• 3/21/20: Tapping Into Nature | 10am-1pm | FREE | Drop in program to identify, tap and collect syrup from maple trees. Then learn how to boil into syrup.

Dodge Nature Center, West St Paul

• TBA: Pancake Breakfast | TBA | Enjoy pancakes and pure maple syrup. Explore this Minnesota tradition with a naturalist-led hike to learn about the process of maple sap collection and syrup production. This is a free event, walk-ins are welcome, and donations are appreciated.
• TBA: Maple Syrup Morning Program | TBA | $7/pp | Tree tapping demo, collect sap, visit the evaporator, and sample maple syrup. Geared for K+. Pre-registration required. Program also held Saturdays 3/23/19 & 3/30/19.
• TBA: Nature After Dinner: Maple Syrup Time | TBA | $10/child ages 3-8, adults free | Learn about making sugar and syrup from maple sap, how to identify the maple trees and taste the whole process. Families welcome. Pre-registration required.

Pond-Dakota Mission Park | Bloomington

• 3/8/20: Maple Sugaring | 2pm-4pm | FREE | Outdoors, learn about choosing trees to tap, collecting the sap, and boiling it down to make syrup. Inside the house, watch syrup transform into sugar and sample maple candy. Drop-in program for all ages.

Richardson Nature Center | Bloomington

• 3/7/20: Maple Syrup Time | 2-3:30pm| $4/pp | Learn to identify a maple tree and collect sap. Watch sap boil in an evaporator and taste test real maple syrup. Drop-ins welcome (space permitting). Reservations recommended. 

The Landing | Shakopee

• 3/10/20: My Preschooler & Me: Early Explorers – Maple Syrup | 10am-11:30am | $5/pp | Explore historic Eagle Creek with kids ages 2-5. Play, sing, read stories and create a craft. Reservations required.

Wood Lake Nature Center | Richfield

• 3/8/20: Saturday & Sunday Special: Magical Maples | 3-4:30pm | $3/pp | Hike into the woods to help collect and boil syrup and learn a little history. Limit 30 people. Program also takes place 3/14/20 & 3/15/20.
  

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MAPLE SYRUP IN THE WEST METRO

Baker Outdoor Learning Center | Maple Plain

• 3/8/20, 3/15/20, 3/29/20: Family Maple Syrup | TBA | $6/pp includes tasting syrup on pancakes.

Gale Woods Farm | Minnetrista

• 3/2/20: My Preschooler & Me Puppet Escapades: Maple Syrup Magic | 10-11am | $4/pp | Ages 2-5 with adult, pre-registration required. 
• 3/23/20: My Preschooler & Me Farm Beginnings: Sap to Syrup | 9:30-11am | $6/pp | Ages 2-5 with adult, pre-registration required. 

Lowry Nature Center | Victoria

• 2/29/20, 3/7/20: Laura’s Adventures: Sugar on Snow (Search: 1LNC2500) | 2:30-4:30pm | $7/pp | Age 5+ | Learn about Laura’s life in the big woods from one of her books, hands-on learning, and old-fashioned crafts and treats. Visit the forest, tap a maple tree, and see how syrup is made. Taste syrup on snow or ice cream, and make a small hand-sewn nine-patch quilt. Reservations required.
• 3/9/20: My Preschooler & Me: Lowry Little Ones: Maple Syrup | 10-11:30am | $5/pp ages 2-6 | Indoor and outdoor maple syrup fun with your Pre-K. Bring a picnic lunch for after or hike on your own. Reservations required
• 3/23/20: My Preschooler & Me: Puppet Escapades: Syrup Time | 10-11am | $4/pp ages 2-6 | Take in a puppet show and explore activity stations before the performance. Bring a picnic lunch for after or hike on your own. Reservations required. 

Minnesota Landscape Arboretum | Chaska

• 3/28/20: MapleFest | 8:30am-2:30pm | $15/pp ages 13+, under 13 admitted free (attend a brunch for an additional $10-$15/pp) | Hike the maple trail to learn about the syruping process, then get a taste of it in the Sugarhouse. Special brunches will take place on the weekend for an additional charge.
  

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MAPLE SYRUPING ROAD TRIPS

3/21/20: Maple Syrup Family Day | Forest History Center, Grand Rapids | 10am-4pm | Included with $6-10 site admission | Participate in collecting sap and boiling it down. Sample maple treats like candies, popcorn, and lemonade. Then tour a local sugar bush and commercial syrup production facility.

3/28/20: Maple Sap, Sugar & Syrup Demo | Mille Lacs Indian Museum and Trading Post, Onamia | 11am-4pm | Included with $6-10 site admission | Learn about traditional and contemporary sap harvesting and processing methods. Sample maple sugar.

TBA: Maple Open House | B&E Trees, Cashton WI | TBA | FREE | Tours of the farm and sugar house, self-guided tours, outdoor games, and more. Visitors are invited to taste maple syrup hot off the evaporator, tap a tree, and come along for a day of adventure. Bring your boots, and be ready to get muddy.

Home School Maple Syruping Activities

3/11/20: Homeschool: Sweet Science Search: 6ENC1036 | Eastman Nature Center, Dayton | 10am-12:30pm | $5/pp | Ages 10-14 | Create tasty treats to explore the chemistry behind making candy and maple sap sugars. Reservations required.

3/16/20: Homeschool: Maple Syrup Program Search: 6REC1035 | French Regional Park, Plymouth | 1:30-3pm | $6/pp | Ages 5-17 | Identify maple trees, tap them, and collect the sap. See how sap boils into syrup and taste a delicious sample. Reservations required by two days prior.

3/19/20: Homeschool: Maple Syrup Program  Search: 6SCT1035 | Cleary Lake Park, Prior Lake | 1:30-3pm | $6/pp | Ages 5-17 | Identify maple trees, tap them, and collect the sap. See how sap boils into syrup and taste a delicious sample. Reservations required by two days prior.

Maple Syruping With Scouts

3/1/20: Scouts: Maple Syrup Program Search: 6NWS5010 | Baker Near-Wilderness Settlement, Maple Plain | 3pm-5pm | $5/pp | Ages 5-17 | Identify and tap maple trees. Collect the sap and cook it to make tasty maple syrup or sugar. Reservations required.

3/7/20: Scout Day: Making Maple Syrup | Carpenter Nature Center | 1-3pm | $6/scout | Space is limited so call 651-437-4359 to pre-register and ask about how this program meets badge requirements. 

3/11/20: Girl Scounts: Sweet Science Search: 6ENC5225 | Eastman Nature Center, Dayton | 6-8pm | $5/pp | Ages 10-17 | Create tasty treats to explore the chemistry behind making candy and maple sap sugars. Reservations required.

3/16/20: Scouts: Maple Syrup Program Search: 6REC5040 | French Regional Park, Plymouth | 4:30-6pm | $5/pp | Ages 5-17 | Identify and tap maple trees. Collect the sap and cook it to make tasty maple syrup or sugar. Reservations required by two days prior.

3/12/20: Scouts: Maple Syrup Program Search: 6LNC5000 | Lowry Nature Center, Victoria | 4:30-6pm | $5/pp | Ages 5-17 | Identify and tap maple trees. Collect the sap and cook it to make tasty maple syrup or sugar. Reservations required.

3/19/20: Scouts: Maple Syrup Program  Search: 6SCT5040 | Cleary Lake Park, Prior Lake | 4:30-6pm | $5/pp | Ages 5-17 | Identify and tap maple trees. Collect the sap and cook it to make tasty maple syrup or sugar. Reservations required by two days prior.

3/22/20: Sunday Special: Scouts Maple Syrup Time | 3-4:30pm | $3/pp | Hike into the woods to help collect and boil syrup and learn a little history. Limit 30 people.