Maple Syrup Day...

Yesterday was Maple Syrup Day. Doesn't that sound sweet?

When you think of Maple Syrup you probably think of Vermont or Canada, but in Southern Indiana there is a great Maple Syrup family farm that produces about 1000 gallons of syrup per year. That is about 60,000 gallons of maple water that gets boiled down to make syrup! That is a LOT of boiling and evaporation.

We had grilled chicken with maple Bar-B-Q sauce that was fantastic! We also bought maple cotton candy and maple sugar, but the highlight of the day for most of the gang we has with us was the hatchet throwing. Yes, you heard that right!

In a society where every playground is padded and every kid has to wear a helmet on a bike and be strapped in a car seat till they are practically adult--on Maple Syrup day adults and kids can throw real hatchets at a wood target. Sure, most don't stick and go flying off to the side--but there is a certain satisfaction is the act itself. And, after the flying hatchets, we went over to the cross cut saw area where two of us [or three if one side needs extra help] pull the huge saw back and forth, back a forth, until a round piece falls off. Success! The slice is then taken to the fire where a nice young man brands it with a maple leaf brand!

And the price--FREE! Yes the whole family fun day is free. All you pay for is whatever you eat or the 10 bags of maple cotton candy that you take home. [Oops, did I type that out loud? Now you know.] Yep, I took home 10 bags of cotton candy, 2# of maple sugar candy and a gallon of Maple Syrup.

I will post pictures in a day or two as soon as I can get my sticky camera plugged into my computer. Ugh!

Take care,
Jill