The smell of maple was in the air this spring at the 29th annual Sunderland Maple Syrup Festival.
From April 11-12, people from across Durham Region gathered to sell fresh goods, go for a pony ride or get a juicy burger at the stand.
There was a wide range of events happening at Sunderland Public School on both days, such as the bus tours hosted by Harlaine Maple Farm, face painting and a visit from Soper Creek Wildlife Rescue.
One of the main attractions at the festival was the musicians that took the stage every year. Lexy The Rap Dad, the Twangsters and the Brian Wride Trio were some of the features this year.
Vendors were in the spotlight, as well, with 170 unique booths set up indoors and outdoors on both days, including Pefferlaw Creek Farms, Terry’s Unique Hot Sauce and Mr. Kettle Corn.
Ramona Lawrence, who owns Mona’s Merch, had a booth in the Sunderland Public School gym.
“I’m a repeat vendor, I’ve been doing this festival for about five years, so a lot of people already know us for our fun socks,” said Lawrence.
She says people come from across the region and beyond.
“People come from everywhere, so not just local but Durham visitors, Peel, Toronto, everyone. It’s awesome. It’s the ‘if you build it, they will come’ theory,” said Lawrence.
Like Mona’s Merch, the majority of the vendors featured in the festival are small businesses.
According to the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) in 2023, 92 per cent of Canadians said they like having small businesses in their community.