Maple Syrup Festival

Don't miss the fun in 2011:
Saturday, March 5 & Sunday, March 6
7:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.

Catch your pancakes in the air with the famous flapjack flipping talents of Chris Cakes! The first weekend of March is the time to come and get a taste of spring – real maple syrup, of course. As always, Maple Syrup Festival promises to fill you up with all-you-can-eat pancakes topped with maple syrup. Breakfast also includes sausage, coffee and milk.

Guests are invited to park at Cedar Heights Elementary School and ride the shuttle to Hartman Reserve Nature Center. Doors open at 7:00 a.m. on Saturday, March 5 and Sunday, March 6. The pancakes will keep stacking and syrup bottles will be flowing until 1:00 p.m. each day. Be sure to buy some raffle tickets for your chance to win great prizes.  

Don’t miss live maple syrup processing demonstrations in our very own Sugar Shack. Join a syrup expert in collecting sap from a maple tree, pouring it into the boiling pans, and through  the cooking process. Witness the change from sap to syrup as you hear an explanation of the entire process. Sample the results for yourself atop your pancakes.

Help us commemorate our 26th year by entering the pancake contest. See if you stack up to the challenge as you attempt to consume 26 pancakes. Entry fee is an additional $6. Those meeting the challenge will have their name on our website and will recieve five complimentary entries in the raffle drawings!

Ticket information will be posted in early 2011. Funds raised will be used to support our mission: “Hartman Reserve Nature Center is dedicated to understanding our environment through education, recreation and community involvement and to the stewardship of a unique natural area.”

If you have questions or would like additional information, please contact Constance at constance.hrnc@gmail.com.

MAPLE THANKS IN 2010! 

Another record breaking year translates to sweet success at Hartman Reserve’s 2010 Maple Syrup Festival. Thanks to the community's support, more than $23,000 was raised for the sake of environmental education. The secret of the success belongs to the whole of the Cedar Valley, including 2,227 people who feasted at the festival, nearly 200 volunteers who generously donated their time, Chris Cakes’ amazing flapjack flipping skills, Friends board members, the staff of Hartman Reserve, and the following honored event sponsors. 

Three brave souls accepted the Pancake Stack Challenge and attempted to eat 25 pancakes in celebration of our 25th Maple Syrup Festival. Contenders included Michael Caswell, Paul Jones and Trevor Byram. Unfortunately, Trevor Byram only made it one third of the way to the top of the stack and Paul Jones pushed just over half way before raising the white flag (pictured at right). Michael Caswell stacked up to the challenge, eating every sweet bite.

Grand prize raffle winners included Lisa Olson (bike pacakge) and Ann Robinson (kayak package). Thank you to Bike Tech and CrawDaddy Outdoors for these wonderful prizes!



Hartman Reserve thanks everyone who helped make the Maple Syrup Festival another sweet success. Plan to come and feast at next year’s Maple Syrup Festival on March 5 & 6, 2011. If you have any questions about this event or others held at Hartman Reserve, please contact Constance at
(319) 277-2187 or constance.hrnc@gmail.com.

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Chris Cakes: A flip and a catch!

Father and son try out a hand drill for tapping

Chris Anderson charms the crowd as they wait

Two challengers in the pancake eating contest

Raising the white flag at 13.5 pancakes

Michael Caswell's winning bite ... 25 pancakes!

The Acorn Gift Shop offers many souvenirs