PETERSBURG — Spring has arrived and visitors flocked to Shaver’s Creek Environmental Center for the annual Maple Harvest Festival on Saturday, March 22, and Sunday, March 23, celebrating the season with maple syrup demonstrations, live music, nature and of course, all you can eat pancakes.
During the two-day festival, 1,786 guests experienced the tradition of maple sugaring through live demonstrations. Costumed presenters showcased techniques used by Indigenous tribes, pioneers and modern-day farmers, while visitors also learned to identify sugar maples, all about tree tapping and even watched sap transform into syrup.
The pancake breakfast is a beloved part of the Maple Harvest festival and this year around 7,272 pancakes were devoured by guests with real maple syrup, sausage patties and applesauce. In addition to the all-you-can-eat pancake breakfast, there were opportunities to explore the environmental center, live music and live animal programs for visitors to learn about the birds, reptiles and amphibians living at Shaver’s Creek.
The annual festival was made possible thanks to its 219 community volunteers, the 16 Penn State students who taught along the Maple Harvest Trail and the team at Shaver’s Creek. These folks play a pivotal role in the success of the Maple Harvest Festival each year, helping out with everything from preparing food and guiding visitors to running educational stations and explaining demonstrations.
The Maple Harvest Festival made its debut in 1984 with a small group of maple syrup enthusiasts. Since then, it has evolved into a community tradition marking a warm welcome to spring.
“Maple sugaring has been a part of Shaver’s Creek for a while. It’s always been something that is intriguing to people,” Laurie McLaughlin, a primary coordinator for the festival and a program director and instructor at Shaver’s Creek, told the Gazette following the festival’s 40th anniversary in 2024.
Shaver’s Creek has been part of the community since 1976. Open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. every day, the nature center offers educational and recreational activity opportunities, trails, conservation education and much more to the community. For more information visit shaverscreek.org.
