Deerfield, IL– It’s a sure sign of spring when maple sugar hikes begin at Ryerson Woods. Jen Berlinghof, an environmental educator at the 552-acre conservation area owned by the Lake County Forest Preserve District, leads the hikes. She’s also the manpower behind tapping 35 trees each year, boiling the sap, and making the syrup. Hikes begin in the green architecture Welcome Center, where families sample sap and syrup, and learn the age-old process. Then it’s off to the woods.
“We put our arms around the trees, and if our hands don’t reach, it’s big enough to tap,” says Berlinghof of the 15-in. diameter minimum tree size for tapping. There seem to be plenty of big sugar maple trees, however, and she points out “Big Mama”, a giant tree with two buckets.
Hikers see the taps up close, practice hand-drilling into a log, learn how to identify sugar maples by their branches, and even taste test some maple sugar candy.
Two more weekends remain for the hour-long maple syrup hikes, but reservations are suggested.
