Sap is flowing: Time for maple syrup hikes, festivals in Northern Illinois.
A popular rite of spring in northern Illinois involves tasting the sweetness of tree sap as it begins to flow, signaling a new season.
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Squirrels get into the act, sipping the sap as it drips from trees, while humans attend maple syrup hikes and festivals at local nature centers and forest preserves to get their own taste and learn how maple syrup is made.
At Ryerson Woods in Deerfield, “hikes fill fast, and registration is required,” said Jennifer Berlinghof, the environmental educator for the Lake County Forest Preserves. The same is true at Heller Nature Center in Highland Park.
At the events, participants can practice tapping sugar maples, learn how the sap becomes syrup and get a taste of the final product. Some local festivals also offer the syrup for sale.
All trees contain sap, but sugar maples (Acer saccharum) have the sweetest tasting sugar water that can be boiled or evaporated into maple syrup. It takes 40 gallons of sap to make one gallon of syrup, Berlinghof said.
Sap flow depends on the weather, which determines how much syrup can be produced each year.
“Ideal conditions are sunny warm days above freezing and cold nights below freezing,” Berlinghof said.
Trees store sap in their roots in winter; when the conditions are right, the sap begins to defy gravity and flow upward.
“Once the temperatures hold steady above freezing, sap flow slows and the chemistry of sap changes and is no longer suitable for making syrup,” she said.
The production season lasts from two to five weeks in the northern Illinois area.
Berlinghoff expects the forest preserve district to tap 25 to 30 trees this year, and produce five to 10 gallons of syrup at Ryerson Woods. Though the forest preserve has embarked on a project to remove sugar maple trees from Ryerson Woods and other areas to allow more room for oaks to grow, that won’t change the amount of syrup made at the preserve, Berlinghoff said.
Here’s information on local spots to celebrate spring by enjoying nature’s sweetness:
Maple Syrup Hikes
When: Noon to 2 p.m., every half hour, Saturdays and Sundays March 5-20
Where: Ryerson Woods, 21850 Riverwoods Road, Deerfield
Tickets: $6 per person; registration required
Information: 847-968-3321; www.lcfpd.org
Hour-long hikes run every half hour and are open to all ages. Participants taste maple syrup, learn how it’s made and learn to tap trees for sap.
Maple Syrup Harvest
When: 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 1:30 to 2:30 p.m., March 12
Where: Sunset Woods Park, 1801 Sunset Road, Highland Park
Tickets: $8; Online registration required
Information: Email or call 847-579-3128 847- or 433-6901
Participants learn how syrup is made by tapping trees. Appropriate for children older than age 6. Children must be accompanied by a paid, registered adult. Registration deadline is March 11.
Sugar Bush Fair
When: 9 a.m. to noon, March 12-13
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Where: Spring Valley Nature Center, 1111 E. Schaumburg Road, Schaumburg
Tickets: Free for event; $4-$6 for pancake breakfast.
Information: 847-985-2100
The nature center celebrates maple sugar each year with demonstrations of maple syrup production, hay rides and a children’s puppet show. Syrup and other items will be available for purchase. A pancake breakfast with real maple syrup is also available for a fee. Parking is available at the District 54 Rafferty Administration Center, 524 E. Schaumburg Road, with shuttle service provided to Spring Valley. Hayrides will provide transportation between the Nature Center and Merkle Cabin where breakfast will be served for those with tickets.
Annual Maple Syrup Festival
When: 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., March 20
Where: River Trail Nature Center, 3120 Milwaukee Ave., Northbrook
Tickets: Free
Information: 847-824-8360; http://fpdcc.com/venue/river-trail-nature-center
Participants will walk through the sugar maple forest to learn about the history of making maple syrup. They can watch tree tapping demonstrations and engage in crafts and games for families including the bucket bug toss. Other activities are being planned. Call or visit the website for more information.
Sheryl DeVore is a freelance writer.