Purple Woods Observation Deck

Purple Woods Conservation Area, the site of the Central Lake Ontario Conservation Authority’s annual Purple Woods Maple Syrup Festival, is a 17-hectare sugar maple forest and open meadow located in the midst of the provincially significant Oak Ridges Moraine. Here one can use the viewing platform that is only steps from the parking area to get a tremendous view south all the way to Lake Ontario from the crest of the Oak Ridges Moraine.

A short 0.5 km trail allows for a quick stroll down into the hollow. This is where you will find the sugar shack, which is the heart of this operating sugar bush. Visit in mid-March and discover how maple syrup production has changed from early native methods to the modern methods used today (Purple Woods Maple Syrup Festival). Syrup and maple products are also available for sale at this time. If you visit in the spring and summer, you may have the opportunity to see or hear some of the more common forest birds in the canopy of this mature deciduous forest.