DAY TRIPPING

Maple sugaring operations are opening their doors throughout March this year, though if you plan to stay and watch the sap boil, you might need to make an appointment. &emsp;&emsp;"You can support your local sugarhouses during the pandemic and help keep the sugaring tradition alive," says Dave Kemp, the vice president of the New Hampshire Maple Producers Association. Each sugarhouse will have COVID-19 protocols for visiting and/or buying during the pandemic, Kemp says, so check out their listings at our website, www.nhmapleproducers.com/directory. &emsp;&emsp;Kemp said sugarbush farms across New Hampshire are gearing up for Maple Month 2021 and hope their neighbors visit and maybe pick up a quart or two. &emsp;&emsp;In the past, he notes, the association promoted maple weekend but canceled it last year due to the pandemic. &emsp;&emsp;"What it did was create this great influx of people over one weekend," says Kemp, which wasn't ideal, considering a national emergency had just been declared. &emsp;&emsp;This year, many sugarhouses will be asking folks to make an appointment to visit. While this might seem like a bummer for people who like to drive around and drop in on a sugarhouse, this will guarantee the safety of both the producers and their visitors, says Kemp. &emsp;&emsp;"People who are interested in a visit can go to our website for contact information," he says. &emsp;&emsp;Not all sugar makers require appointments, said Kemp, but it's a good idea to check instead of just dropping in and being turned away. He reminded visitors to wear a mask and maintain six feet of distance from the syrup producers and their families. &emsp;&emsp;"This will allow people to come by, get the story of each operation and see how maple syrup is made," says Kemp. &emsp;&emsp;He said this allows visitors to spend more one-on-one time with a producer. &emsp;&emsp;"Sugaring is part of our heritage, our history and folklore, and science, all rolled into one," says Kemp. "It's a wonderful educational experience, too." &emsp;&emsp;Jon Miner taps about 800 trees in Harrisville with his wife Jillian and his sister Anna at Grand Monadnock Maple Farm. &emsp;&emsp;Last March, he says, when they were boiling sap, it was unlike any previous March. &emsp;&emsp;"With all the uncertainty, it was eerily quiet," Miner says. &emsp;&emsp;He hopes this year, his friends and neighbors can stop in, and he's looking forward to meeting some new people, too. Miner is asking people to make reservations at jon@monadnockmaple.com. He says he is also open to weekend drop-ins, but they have to maintain COVID safety with masks and social distancing. &emsp;&emsp;"We really enjoy sharing how we make the syrup, educating people on how it's made," he says. "I'm hoping people turn out." &emsp;&emsp;Down in Fitzwilliam, Chrissy and Eric Peterson have about 650 trees. They are taking appointments for visits at petersonfamilymaple@gmail.com. &emsp;&emsp;Chrissy Peterson says the hardest thing for her family has been not being able to say hello to their customers. &emsp;&emsp;"We've been doing contactless pickups," she says. "We haven't gotten to see a lot of people. It will be nice to have conversations with people again." &emsp;&emsp;Kemp says that for many producers in New Hampshire, making maple syrup is not a big moneymaker. &emsp;&emsp;"It's a labor of love," he says. "But these are our neighbors, and this is a chance to support them." Robert Audette writes from Swanzey, New Hampshire. FRESH MAPLE SYRUP IS AVAILABLE AT THESE LOCATIONS THROUGHOUT THE MONADNOCK REGION. PLEASE CALL AHEAD TO MAKE AN APPOINTMENT TO VISIT THE SUGAR HOUSE. ACWORTH Bascom Maple Farm 603-835-6361 Dustin's Sugarhouse 603-835-6070 American Wing Farm Maple 603-835-6952 Clark's Sugar House 603-835-6863 ALSTEAD Mighty Maple Sugarhouse 603-204-8284 ANTRIM Chris-Mich 3 Farm 603-588-2157 Old Pound Road Sugar House 603-588-3272 DUBLIN Morning Star Maple Sugar House 603-563-9218 FITZWILLIAM Peterson Family Maple 603-585-9440 FRANCESTOWN Cilley's Sugar House 603-547-6612 Molly's Maple Barn 603-801-0731 HANCOCK Longview Forest Products 603-525-3566 HARRISVILLE Goosebrook Meadows Sugarhouse 603-381-3694 Grand Monadnock Maple Farm 603-933-0832 Mayfair Farm 603-827-3925 Townsend Farm (Formerly Railroad Express Sugarhouse) 603-827-3245 Best Family Maple Farm 603-313-7571 HILLSBOROUGH Hunts Sugar House LLC 603-478-5568 JAFFREY Boutwell Sugar House 603-532-7621 Mr. Erlene's Brown Dog Sugar Shack 603-903-8188 Monadnock Sugar House 603-876-3626 KEENE Borden Maple Tree Farm 603-352-6466 Stonewall Farm 603-357-7278 Whip's Sugar House 603-352-4868 LANGDON Clark's Sugar House 603-835-6863 Short's Sugar House 603-835-2909 LYNDEBOROUGH Butchbee's Maple Syrup 603-487-2281 Four Saps Sugar Shack 603-714-4503 Mountain-Gold Maple Mill 603-654-7260 The Maple Guys Sugar Shack 603-801-3158 MARLBOROUGH Maple Homestead Farm 603-209-2000 Webber Sugar House 603-876-4554 MARLOW Grassy Brook Maple Products 603-446-3324 Over The River Sugar House 603-393-5518 MASON Babel's Sugar Shack 603-878-3929 MUNSONVILLE Arkwood Farm 603-903-3882 NEW IPSWICH Sawyer's Maple Farm 603-878-5003, 603-233-7766 Somero Maple Farm 603-562-0822 PETERBOROUGH Blue Line Maple 603-674-7095 RINDGE Fieldstone Farm Sugarhouse 603-899-6009 Maple Row Sugaring 603-801-4690 Sunflower Field Farm 603-899-2817 SWANZEY Minnich"s Sugarhouse 603-357-3688 SURRY Crescendo Acres 603-352-9380 Woodard's Sugar House 603-358-3321 TEMPLE Ben's Sugar Shack 603-942-3111 Connolly Bros. Dairy Farm and Sugar House 603-924-5002 WALPOLE Great Brook Farm Sugar House 603-756-4358 Homestead Farms 603-756-4800 Walpole Valley Farms 603-756-2805 Wood Family Maple 603-756-4778 Iron Kettle Farm 603-762-9168 WASHINGTON All Good Farm 603-495-0520 Atkins Family Sugarhouse 603-495-3000 Fletcher Farm 603-495-3554 WESTMORELAND Stuart & John's Sugar House 603-399-4486 WILTON Brookview Sugarhouse 603-654-7961 WINCHESTER Manning Hill Farm 603-239-4397