The next day, we headed across northern New York state, taking a long roundabout tour along the shores of Lake Champlain into Vermont. Our destination was Bragg Farm, an historic sugar house renowned for making some of the best maple syrup in Vermont. In fact, the many ribbons adorning the walls in their gift shop underscore a rich history of maple syrup excellence that dates back through eight generations of the Bragg family.
Their products are outstanding and I got to taste four different types of their maple syrup, plus an exceptional maple ice cream cone!. The sugar house reminded me of my dear friend Dan’s old sugar house facility. Years back, I was fortunate to intern making maple syrup serving as Dan’s “wood guy”. You don’t get much lower in the maple syrup world than being the wood guy. My sole job was to stumble endlessly into the forest searching for wood to keep the maple sap bubbling. Dan was the head of the operation and that made him “stir guy”. His job was to stir the bubbling sap and order me to go back into the cold to find more wood. It was a humbling experience for sure, but I got a deep appreciation for wood and the effort it takes to keep maple sap bubbling.
At Bragg Farm, they do things a little differently. They have no need for a wood guy due to the fact that sitting beside their sugar house is an acre of the tidiest pile of wood to keep the sap bubbling for days. Even stir guy would be impressed. I think.ands Bridge in the distance. A nice start to our Eastbound adventures.