OLIVEBRIDGE — Some say there’s no such thing as magic, but try telling that to a maple tree.

If you’ve tasted real maple syrup, you know the truth. If you haven’t tasted real maple syrup, mark March 9 and 10 on your calendar. You don’t want to miss Maple Fest at the Ashokan Center.

On that weekend, the sap will be running and you’ll get to experience maple syrup in the wild. That means taps in the trees, catching the watery sap in buckets, then boiling it down in a process called “sugaring” to produce ... yep, syrup! The real thing, straight from nature. And straight to the bottle while hot. You can buy Ashokan maple syrup at the Ashokan Center gift shop or online, at https://ashokan-giftshop.square.site/product/maple-syrup/48?cp=true&sa=true&sbp=false&q=false .

“Straight from nature” means our Ashokan experts will lead you on a hike through the forest to the sugaring area. That’s where those generous trees give us the raw liquid material. There, too, is the Sugar Shack, where the steam rising from the evaporator signifies the thickening of the syrup as we boil it down.

You’ll be able to taste it, too, with an available pancake breakfast. Other food and refreshment options will be here for purchase.

There will also be live music, of course; this is, after all, the Ashokan Center.

Here’s the lineup: On the Trail (both days), Jeremy Schonfeld (both days); Strawberry Wine (Saturday) and Strawberry Hill Fiddlers (Sunday).

Do you play? More than one instrument? What would you like to try? Fiddle?  Guitar?  Upright bass? Here’s your chance. Visit the Ashokan Center’s Instrument Petting Zoo, where there’s a wide selection of instruments you can pick up and play.

In addition to the tapping and sugaring demonstrations, there will be blacksmithing demonstrations in the Ashokan Center’s blacksmith shop. For $20, you can forge your own take-home blacksmithing project.

Advance tickets each day to Maple Fest are $10; admission at the gate is $12. Kids under 5 get in free. The Ashokan Center recommends buying tickets in advance—the event may sell out. Hours both days are 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

You can make this the perfect winter weekend in the Catskills. Weekend lodging includes Maple Fest access. For advance tickets and more information, go to https://ashokancenter.org/product/maple-fest-2024/.

Come Saturday. Come Sunday. Come both days. Come for the magic.