Welcome to Fulton's

Sugar Bush Gazette

April 2018 News

Scribbles by Shirley

Well, we are half way through our winter/ spring seasons. We experienced super exciting winter-like weather during March Break and it's looking like we can expect spring-like conditions over Easter weekend.

 

Fulton's is all about people. Here are some highlights:

FAMILY: Firstly, it's all about family, ours and yours. Our family is the heart and soul of Fulton's and spans the 4th, 5th and 6th generations. With added Fulton-In-Laws  and now two boyfriends, known as Fulton-in-law Wannabes, they have been duly notified that there is a requirement of volunteer hours before entering the fold. Check out the name tags when you are visiting! You will notice that all the Grands (all nine of them) have a note on their nametags, "Nana's Favourite". Of course they are!

 

STAFF: Next is our Team Awesome, all Fulton Wannabes. From our first-timers in 2018 to Sian (12+ years), these folks are the cheerful faces, the workhorses, organizers & often behind the scenes heroes of Fulton's. They start months before we open in February for the nine-week intensive maple season, cleaning and polishing (both inside and out), ordering supplies and inventory, designing flyers/print material/ads, pricing product, cooking and preserving and filling the freezer, making signs, planning for group visits, putting guidelines and policies in place for the season, hiring staff, setting up payroll,  and creating/ nurturing partnerships with local businesses, just to name a few of their many many tasks. They work for many weeks after we close, analyzing the season, writing suggestions for improvements and sharing some relaxing and fun off-site activities together, such as a day trip to Le Nordik, which is an annual tradition for staff. After the annual post-season clean-up it sometimes feels like we have moved a ton of mud from the floors of our buildings back into the yard.

 

VOLUNTEERS: Fulton's also has a huge team of volunteers. Vace is our sugar camp volunteer extraordinaire, and has been sharing his knowledge with thousands of people each season for more than 35 years! Vace is fluent in three languages and his science background has been a thrill to visitors from across the world. He is now imparting his knowledge and wisdom to Fulton's eager-to-learn Grands.

Many of our volunteers have been recruited (or voluntold!) by our staff and include friends, husbands, daughters, sons and son-in-laws.

The jobs they do for Fulton's are crucial to our success, from helping in the Maple Gift Shoppe and kitchen to computer support (both hard and software), city pick-ups and errands and parking attendant services...... amazing 'got-our-back-in-any-situation' folks!

Also the families of our staff are part of our team by accepting the exhaustion, lack of home-cooked meals, empty fridges, full laundry baskets and loss of all social engagements for the length of our season.

 

SUPPLIERS: Behind the scenes are our suppliers, many of which we have had alliances with for over 25 years. These folks supply us with maple donuts, coffee, chocolate, carbonated sap, paintings, blown glass, pottery, maple containers and equipment, labels and printed material, kitchen equipment supplies and repairs, milk, hundreds of pounds of sausage and bacon, fire extinguishers, oil, propane and Johnnie-on-the-spots.These local businesses support us and ensure everything runs smoothly. It has been wonderful to develop these long lasting business relationships. If any one wants names of these amazing local businesses, give me a call.

 

EVENTS: Also orbiting around our grounds is our amazing special event activity team. Our horses and their drivers. Amazingly talented, entertaining and fun  loving musicians. Our one and only Bushcrafter that brings alive the maple history on our Heritage Maple Path. They make the Fulton experience complete.

 

CUSTOMERS: Finally, the most important people of all.... our customers. Without you, Fultons would not have thrived since the 1840's. You were the folks in the 1960's who encouraged my Dad to build a 12-seat pancake house in 1969!

It's the 50th ANNIVERSARY of our Pancake House next year, watch for something special happening (we have no idea yet!)  Do you have any suggestions?

You make our days so fulfilling, watching kids be free to play and roam in our 400 acres (please don't lose any). Like our multi-generational family we now enjoy chatting with your multi-generational families. One of our greatest compliments is hearing kids saying, 'we don't want to leave' as their family herds them to their car.

Our other amazing customers are the shops, restaurants and spas who sell, serve and pamper you with our products, from maple syrup to spices to our gourmet and Maple Luscious Bath & Body line.

Corporate clients excite us with their volume orders of products to use as incentives, speaker gifts and hand-outs at their events and conferences. 

A special treat for us is to private brand products for these exceptional customers. 

 

So from our family to yours, a GREAT BIG HUG and THANKS for supporting our business & loving it as much as we do.

Sweet maple wishes to you,

Shirley Fulton-Deugo

4th Generation Owner

Open 7 Days Per Week Until April 15

Plan a visit to Fulton's Pancake House & Sugar Bush today! The grounds, Pancake House and Maple Gift Shoppe are open weekdays 9am to 3pm and weekends 8am to 3pm. Follow our Social Media for updates on fun family activities being offered on weekends (including all FOUR days of Easter Weekend) 10am to 2pm, such as horse-drawn sleigh/ wagon rides or bushcraft demonstrations, and experiencing fresh poured taffy or a maple snowshoe made just for you.

Here is a handy article, 12 Tips For A Great Visit, that we have put together for you.

And here are some photos we would like to share of the season so far. 

 

Have You Tried Some Of These Fulton's Maple Treats?

 Maple Snowshoes

Made fresh for you each weekend (as well as Good Friday and Easter Monday) starting at 11am. A delicious hot pastry, available with maple cinnamon sugar or maple butter on top. Grab a Maple Snowshoe as you head out onto our beautiful trails for a walk with family or friends. The Snowshow booth is located near the playground. 

       Maple Taffy...     A Fulton's Favourite

One of the best parts of visiting Fulton's Pancake House and Sugar Bush is Maple Taffy.  Poured fresh every weekend (as well as Good Friday and Easter Monday) from 10am to 2pm, for kids of all ages! A must-have for every visit to the sugar bush. So good you might even be tempted to get a second for the drive home.

The Heritage Maple Path

When you visit Fulton's, as well as having a delicious pancake meal and perhaps a maple taffy or maple snowshoe treat afterwards, you should also come prepared to experience the outdoors on our beautiful property. Take a short stroll down past the restaurant and sugar camp to the Heritage Maple Path where you can take a "Walk Though Time" in this self guided historical area and learn how those who came before us began tapping and making maple syrup. Follow our Social Media to find out which weekend days feature Chad Clifford from Wilderness Rhythms. Chad is a bushcrafter who is passionate about sharing his knowledge with our visitors. You might find him using a spokeshave to make a paddle, creating handmade rope, boiling hot rocks over the campfire to make maple syrup the 'old' way or working on a birchbark canoe. 

Featured Product for April

Maple Luscious Shea Butter

Spring is finally here and warmer weather is in sight. Get your toes sandal-ready. Soften those rough feet. Rub away the winter woes with Maple Luscious Shea Butter. Also great on chapped winter hands and fingers. Made on site in small batches with love. 

 
Purchase online here or in the Maple Shoppe.

Fulton's Welcomes Two New Partners

Irving Rivers on the Byward Market in Ottawa is now stocking Fulton's Maple Luscious Bath & Body Care products and Fulton's Gourmet spices, including jams, mustard and BBQ sauce. Like Fulton's, Irving Rivers is a family-owned business. They have 'cornered the market' since 1950.

 

The Merry Dairy is making ice cream using Fulton's Organic Maple Syrup. As well as a lovely storefront in Hintonburg (Ottawa), the Merry Dairy has both an ice cream truck and an ice cream cart you can book for parties and events, how cool is that?! They have a variety of creative ice cream flavours for you to experience.

 

We are so happy to work with these two new partners. We encourage you to browse previous editions of Fulton's Sugar Bush Gazette to learn more about the local businesses we proudly partner with (many of them also family-owned), where you can taste, buy, and be pampered with our products.

Mitchell's Sleigh Rides

Frank Mitchell and his son, Randy, have worked with horses their entire lives, both on and off their family farm. Frank spent many years pulling cable for Bell Canada with his horses and Mitchell's Sleigh Rides have been part of many parades and fairs over the years. In 1999, the Mitchell's joined the Fulton family, operating their sleigh rides with one, two or even three teams of horses at a time.

Randy and his team are at Fulton's for sleigh/ wagon rides, weather-permitting, on weekends from 10am to 2pm until April 15. You can visit the Mitchell family farm in Middleville, ON, during the winter season. Contact them at 613-259-2942.

Recipe of the Month

MAPLE SALMON

Barbeque season is upon us! This is an easy recipe for Maple Salmon, using Fulton's Pure Maple Syrup and other ingredients you are likely to already have on hand. 

Upcoming Local Events

Until April 15- Winter Magic & Maple Harvest season at Fulton's Pancake House & Sugar Bush. Open daily 9am-3pm (8am-3pm on weekends). Sleigh/ wagon rides, bushcrafting demonstrations and maple taffy on weekends and all four days of Easter weekend 10am-2pm, weather permitting. Check our website and social media for further details and updates:  www.fultons.ca

March 31- April 1 - The Ten Collective Art Exhibit at the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum 10am-6pm. See paintings by 10 renowned Canadian artists showing their work.  www.thetencollective.com. 

April 7-8 - Maple Weekend. This spring come taste the Sweet offerings from Ontario Maple Syrup Producers. More info at their website:  www.mapleweekend.ca

April 7-8- 16th Annual Pakenham Maple Run Tour, 10am-5pm, featuring Art, Craft, Food and Heritage.  Nine studio stops to tour and shop at (and meet the artists) as well as five stops to eat at. More information on their website. 

399 Sugar Bush Road, Pakenham, ON, Canada
613-256-3867

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