POWASSAN, Ont. — One of Northern Ontario's largest maple syrup festivals takes place on Saturday, April 27.
Powassan's Maple Syrup Festival has many returning events and a few new ones geared to people of all ages.
Organizer Kim Bester says Mayor Peter McIsaac will officially open this year's festival at 10 a.m. which is immediately followed by the traditional pancake flipping contest that involves several area dignitaries.
The unofficial start is at 7 a.m. with several organizations holding three pancake breakfasts.
The Lions Club has its pancake breakfast at the curling club, St. Joseph's Church and the local Legion branch are combining for a pancake breakfast at the Legion hall while St. Mary's Anglican Church is hosting its breakfast at the 16 Memorial Park Dr. E location.
The mayors of North Bay, Nipissing, Chisholm and Callander will join McIsaac for the traditional pancake breakfast before being led in a short march by the Callander Pipe Band to the opening ceremony site on Main Street.
Bester says the festival easily attracts 5,000 people. During years when the weather is pleasant, more than 10,000 people take part in the annual event.
Bester says, in addition to people coming from the Almaguin Highlands, residents from Sudbury, west of Sudbury, Mattawa, Huntsville, Parry Sound and North Bay drop by the festival.
“People with families here also coordinate their visits for this time of year because it's Maple Syrup Festival time,” Bester said.
Numerous past events are back, and they include the Great Canadian Lumberjack Show. This very popular event features axe throwing, chainsaw carving, wood chopping, cross-cut sawing and chainsaw races. As a bonus, organizers have re-introduced the Amateur Lumberjack competition after being absent for several years.
Five teams with six people per team make up this competition and the first-place team wins $500. The second-place team is awarded $250, and $150 is given to third-place. The lumberjack show begins at 12:30 p.m. across from the Sportsplex.
Another popular returning feature is Glendale Farms with pony rides for children. The farm owners also have a petting zoo, bouncy castle and candy truck.
Also back are buskers and face painters.
There is plenty of musical entertainment featuring well-known area artists, including the Gibbings Family Band, and Davey Meloy, both from Powassan; Lynn Blunt of North Bay; and, from Sudbury, the Bluez Brotherz Band who dress similar to the original Blues Brothers actors Jim Belushi and Dan Aykroyd.
New this year is the Natural Curiosity exhibit from Science North. This is a new exhibit created by Science North and features seven hands-on activities and interactive tables.
Also new is a 30-foot trailer from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry which focuses on the various natural resources Ontario offers.
Bester says the festival includes another new component.
It's a special guest whose identity will be unveiled during the opening ceremony. The only thing she will say is the special guest is aimed at entertaining children.
The majority of activities and events occur on Main Street which includes about 100 vendors who will take up several blocks along Main Street.
However, this year's festival sees a major change that may become permanent. Normally the smaller vendors take over the Sportsplex where the Powassan Voodoos junior hockey team plays. In the past, festival organizers have laid down plywood over the ice allowing the vendors to set up over the ice covering.
The protective cover is removed after the festival allowing the Voodoos to continue their post-season playoff games.
To simplify the process this year, the festival committee decided to relocate the vendors to 250 Clark, and they will display their wares in the building's gym, the Maple Room and front foyer.
Bester says the move affected 54 vendors.
A sign will be posted at the Sportsplex entrance notifying the public about the change.
The five area maple producers, Matthews Maple Syrup, Long's Maple Syrup, Sugarstone Farm-Maple Syrup, Bella Hill Maple Syrup and Golden Treasure Maple Syrup will be on-site, and they will be selling maple syrup-related goods.
There are two more new events this year with a maple syrup theme.
The town's events coordinator, Kathie Hogan, has created a butter tart competition for men, women and children where participants make six regular-sized butter tarts.
Hogan says the sole criteria is one of the ingredients in the butter tarts has to include maple syrup in any quantity you like.
The butter tarts need to be dropped off at 250 Clark the Friday before the festival between 9 a.m. and 11 a.m. The tarts will be simply identified with a number, so the judges won't know the names of the bakers.
Hogan says the first prize will receive a $250 gift card from Powassan Home Hardware Building Centre; Powassan Auto Service will award the second prize winner $100 cash while the Carriage House is giving out a $50 gift card to the third place winner.
Additionally, Hogan got VB Steel in Chisholm to make a crown that will be awarded to the top winner.
The judging is at 250 Clark at 2 p.m.
The second contest was created by Julie Gohm, the owner of the Original Bug Shirt Company.
Gohm wants the public to create a dish involving maple syrup and then take a picture of them with the food item they made and submit it on social media through Facebook or Instagram using the hashtag #BugShirtMapleContest.
Complete contest details are available at bugshirt.com/pages/contests, and image submissions need to be sent by April 27th.
Gohm and her staff will examine the pictures and the ingredients and announce a winner on April 29th.
First prize will be awarded a Bug Shirt and a $50 gift card.
The second-place winner receives a $25 gift card and Bug Shirt accessories, and third place wins a Bug Shirt swag pack.
Gohm says the dish can be anything including pancakes, waffles marinades, cookies or cakes as long as one of the ingredients is maple syrup.
Additionally, during festival day, Gohm wants the public to come into her Main Street shop and fill out a ballot to win a hoodie.
The hoodie features the company's new logo which is an image of three pine trees over a canoe and the Canadian maple leaf.
To keep the festival site from being congested with passenger vehicles, the public is asked to park at Evan Hughes Excavating at 118 Highway 534.
Bester says the site has plenty of free parking to accommodate the public.
She says two buses will pick up people continuously from the parking site at no charge and take them to Matthews Maple Syrup for a tour of the sugar bush if they want and then to 250 Clark where they can begin their festival fun.
When they're done, they can board the bus again at 250 Clark for a ride back to their vehicle.
The festival runs until 4 p.m.
Rocco Frangione is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter who works out of the North Bay Nugget. The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada.
