Take a step back in time to Highland County, “Virginia’s Switzerland.” Travel back roads and mountain byways to the annual Highland Maple Festival. Held on the 2nd and 3rd weekends of March, the Maple Festival has been an annual event in Highland County, Virginia, since 1958.
Each year, thousands of visitors are drawn to this unspoiled, rural region of Virginia to celebrate the “opening” of the trees and observe the process of maple syrup-making. Sugar camp tours provide a unique and educational experience that portrays a rapidly vanishing way of American life.
Held annually on the second and third weekends in March, the 2010 Highland Maple Festival will be on March 13-14 and March 20-21.
The Sugar Tour
- Sugar Tree Country Store & Sugar House – “Located near the center of McDowell, this operation employs a modern reverse osmosis concentrator and oil-fired evaporator. Informational tours all day. Antique maple producing tools are on display. Country store merchandise, pottery, maple products, jams, Brunswick Stew, maple doughnuts, and other food will be for sale.” Closed on Sunday.
- Eagle’s Sugar Camp – “Follow signs to Eagle’s Sugar Camp, located north of McDowell off Rt. 654 (Jack Mountain Road) in Doe Hill. Syrup producers for more than 200 years, the Eagles still use open pan wood-fired evaporators as the latest advanced computerized oil-fired evaporators. Observe sugar water collected in buckets. Local honey, maple products, buckwheat, cornmeal & baked goods. Home-cooked food and maple donuts. Local arts & crafts. Tour buses welcome.”
- Southernmost Maple Products – “Located 15 miles south of Monterey on Route 607 (off US 220 at Bolar) (Big Valley Road). Sugar water is funneled into the only piggy-back evaporator to be found in the southern states. Rustic country store, with a variety of maple products, flour, honey, jellies and baked goods. Food: Maple pit-cooked BBQ, pork skins and maple doughnuts. Handicapped accessible.” Closed on Sunday.
- Rexrode’s Sugar Orchard – “Located north of Hightown on Route 637, (Maple Sugar Road), Rexrode’s Sugar Orchard features some large maple trees over 200 years old. The Rexrodes use the old-fashioned “open pan” system of evaporation as well as the newer wood-fired evaporation method with miles of plastic tubing to gather the sugar water. Food and maple products available.”
- Puffenbarger’s Sugar Orchard – “On Route 637 (Maple Sugar Road), southwest of Blue Grass is the Puffenbarger Sugar Orchard. The Puffenbargers have rebuilt their sugar camp following the devastating fire in 2008. A vacuum pump is used to increase the flow of sugar water and miles of plastic tubing make it easier to gather. The process of maple syrup-making is started by reverse osmosis and finished by oil-fired evaporators. Maple doughnuts and other foods are available here.”
- Duff’s Sugar House – “At Fair Lawn Farm, southwest of Monterey (3 mi. south on U.S.220 and 3 mi. west on Route 84), Duff’s Sugar House is a small, family- run sugar house where the trees are still “opened” by hand and the sugar water collected in buckets. Cooking is done in a wood-fired open pan and finished in an iron kettle. Hands-on participation is encouraged. Tours all day.”
Pick up a map of the tour at your first stop. Watch for “Maple Sugar Tour” signs.
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