5 maple syrup festivals to check out this month near Toronto

The sweet season is here, and there are many ways to celebrate maple syrup in Ontario.

Maple trees typically produce sap in late winter and early spring. The trees are tapped by drilling holes into their trunks. The sap is heated to boil off the water to make a sticky and tasty syrup.

Here are five maple syrup festivals near Toronto.

The Sugarbush Maple Syrup Festival is on now at Kortright Centre for Conservation in York Region. It runs on weekends until Easter weekend on April 6.

Visitors can see authentic early European settler and modern sugar shack maple syrup demonstrations, as well as special activities for families. There are also hiking trails .

The Maple Magic Festival is at the Bradley Museum in Mississauga until March 22. Visitors can learn about the Indigenous origins of the maple harvest, experience the process of making maple syrup, indulge in pancakes with real maple syrup, and enjoy crafts, games and guided tours of the site.

Purple Woods Conservation Area Maple Syrup Festival in rural Oshawa runs every weekend in March and during March break. Activities include maple syrup demonstrations, an all-day pancake breakfast and self-guided hikes.

Maple Syrup in the Park is an annual festival hosted by Credit Valley Conservation to celebrate the season in Ontario. It is on at the Terra Cotta Conservation Area in Halton Hills during March break and the last weekends in March.

Visitors can watch historical demonstrations, learn how maple syrup is made, take a wagon ride and hike the trails.

Bronte Creek Provincial Park in Oakville also holds a Maple Syrup Festival every weekend in March and during March Break.

Events include guided tours from interpreters costumed for the 1890s, maple taffy, games and a maple gift shop.

Those planning to attend one of the above festivals should purchase tickets in advance.

Lead photo: Clément Proust