Get ready for sweet times at Taylor County Maple Fest April 26

The Taylor County Lions Maple Festival is set to return to the Simek Center located at 1037 W. Broadway Ave. in Medford on Saturday, April 26.

Doors open for the free event at 7 a.m. until 4 p.m. The craft and display exhibit area will open at 7 a.m. and run until the show closes at 4 p.m.

People are invited to take part in the pancake breakfast with locally produced Maple syrup. Breakfast will be served from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. Throughout the day there will be food and beverages for sale as well as a Maple Root Beer Float stand.

This year, visitors are invited to stop and meet Aaron Hansen of Marshfield, the 2024-2025 Maple Intern for Wisconsin Maple Syrup Producers Association.

He has been working with his family maple syrup operation, Hansen’s Sugar Shack, making syrup since he was able to carry a pail of sap to now cooking the sap to syrup.

Aaron will be at the WMPA booth at the Taylor County Lions Maple Festival to answer questions and share information about maple syrup production in Wisconsin. Wisconsin sugar shacks produced 458,000 gallons of syrup last season. Wisconsin currently ranks fourth in the country for maple syrup production. Taylor County sits in the heart of the range for sugar maple trees in the state.

This event is family focused, with something to do for all ages, including different activities, displays and educational events. There will be syrup judging, a pancake breakfast, food and beverages, craft displays, free bike drawings for kids and many more activities for the youth. There will be a peddle tractor competition from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. in the parking lot outside the Simek Center.

Area maple syrup producers are invited to take part in the Maple Syrup judging contest at Maple Fest. Entries should be ready to be judged by 9:45 a.m. Syrup should be in one pint jars with no label on the glass and be at room temperature. While waiting on judging, take the time to talk with other syrup producers and learn more about maple syrup production.

A feature event of this year’s Maple Fest is an interactive acrobatic juggling show from Bob & Trish promising “Serious Fun!” The jugglers have more than a decade of experience touring the country and were season 11 contestants on America’s Got Talent.

Other events include a chainsaw sculpture demonstration, free vision screen for youth with a SPOT camera, High Tech Rednecks displays and music throughout the day.

The event is family-friendly with children’s activities like face painting, scavenger hunt, and bouncy houses sponsored by Klingbeil Lumber.

The Lion’s club members believe that what benefits Taylor County as a whole, benefits everyone making Taylor County a great place to visit, work and hopefully live.

In addition, there will be 500 maple trees given away throughout the day as well as other drawings and activities including free children’s bike drawings at 10 a.m., noon, and 2 p.m.

The Red Wagon parade through the Maple Fest grounds will take place at 1 p.m. Students from area schools decorate wagons with maple-themed floats celebrating the area’s maple heritage and its importance in the state. Prizes are given out for the best floats.

In addition to celebrating all things maple, Maple Fest will also be a collection point for used eye glasses and hearing aids which go to the Wisconsin Lions Camp.

For those wishing to learn more about the mechanics of making maple syrup, there will be also shuttles from the Simek Center to tour area sugarbush operations and learn the ins and outs of what makes Maple Syrup so special.

History

In 2013 the Taylor County Tourism Committee was looking for an event that would highlight the beauty and industry in Taylor County. Maple Festival was the brain child of Tourism Committee members Ken Klahn and Dave Lemke. While Klahn has passed on, Lemke remains an active Lions member and maple syrup producer and enthusiast.

The goal was to create an event that encouraged visitors to come to Taylor County to witness the beauty and value of Taylor County, while supporting County businesses.

The sugar maple is Wisconsin’s State Tree, which contributes to everyone in our state. It was selected because of the dominance of maple trees in Taylor County and the significant impact it has on the economy of Taylor County.

Agriculture: Numerous large and small Maple producers in Taylor County help make Wisconsin the 4th largest producer of maple syrup in the country.

Wood crafts: Floors, furniture, guitars, and so much more are made from maple wood throughout our county.

Homemaking: Maple syrup and flavorings are used in thousands of recipes used daily by homemakers and chefs throughout our nation.

Environment: Maple trees contribute to clean air, shade and are home to many birds at an unmeasurable value.

Tourism: The maple tree fall colors attract tourism travel.

Taylor County Tourism needed an organization to create and manage the Maple Festival idea and found that there was one organization big enough to handle the event, the Lions Clubs of Taylor County. The 5 Lions clubs, Gilman, Jump River, Medford, Rib Lake, and Whittlesey, working together, have grown the festival into what it is today. The net proceeds from the event also benefit all of Taylor County because the Lions support numerous events and are donating their time to different needs in each community.

The goal of the Maple Fest Committee is to provide education about the maple tree and maple syrup production, through the provision of free maple trees, syrup judging, equipment displays, crafts and youth involvement.