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2nd Annual Sugar Bush Camp Presented by the GTB Agriculture & Food Sovereignty Department and GTB Cultural Department, with support from the USDA.
GTB Iskigamizigan (Sugar Bush) Camp!
Join us for four days of hands-on learning that celebrates the Anishinaabe sugar bush tradition. Participants will experience maple sap processing throughout the day, enjoy refreshments and snacks, and receive a meal when attending workshops.
New this year: a newly built lodge structure at the Sugar Bush Camp site.
March 13–14 & March 20–21
Daily programming | Workshops run at scheduled times
RSVP required for hands-on workshops
(limited space)
ABOUT ISHIGAMIZIGAN:
The ancestors of Grand Traverse Band citizens processed maple sugar using traditional techniques. This included use of birch bark baskets to collect the sap, sumac stems to use as “taps” or spiles. Sugar was derived by removing ice from the baskets, and boiling sap in animal skin containers using heated rocks. Maple sugar is easier to transport, and more shelf stable than maple syrup. Sugar was used as a sweetener, and also to preserve meats. Maple sugar, in moderation, has medicinal uses as well. It is a miraculous natural product that makes evident the sophisticated and productive life ways that sustained this community.
CONTACT US
(231) 534-7023
William.Derouin@gtb-nsn.gov
ONGOING ACTIVITIES (ALL CAMP DAYS)
• Maple sap processing & syrup making
• Sugar bush education & demonstrations
• Community meals & refreshments
HOW DOES IT WORK
Different maple products are made by heating maple syrup to a higher boiling temperature. Crystallization of the sugars in maple syrup will begin when enough water is removed from the syrup, so the lager sucrose molecules can begin to bond together. The more water removed, the tighter the crystallization bonding.
DAILY WORKSHOP SCHEDULE
(Workshop times are the same each day unless noted)
3505 N Putnam Rd, Suttons Bay MI 49682
C A M P D AT E S
O P E N T O P U B L I C
BIRCH BARK BASKET MAKING
• 10:00 AM–12:00 PM
• 12:00–2:00 PM
• 3:00–5:00 PM
RSVP required | 6 participants per session
WOODWORKING
STIR PADDLE MAKING
• 1:00–3:00 PM
• 4:00–6:00 PM
RSVP required | 4 participants per session
WINTER MITTEN SEWING
(MARCH 13, 14 & 20 ONLY)
• 11:00 AM–1:00 PM
• 2:00–4:00 PM
RSVP required | 4 participants per session
STORY TELLING
(MARCH 14 & 21 ONLY)
• 60-minute sessions offered
throughout the day
Up to 12 participants per session