(ABC 6 News) – From pancakes to waffles, syrup is something that never fails to put a smile on someone’s face, but the process of making it may just surprise you.

Sugar, spice and everything nice; that’s what goes into making the locally known Eagle Bluff syrup.

As the town of Lanesboro, MN hosts the annual Cabin Fever Fest, a weekend full of celebrating the arts, the Eagle Bluff Learning Center has a different way of being creative.

“Whether you’re doing something creative on paper, or you’re doing something creative in the kitchen, or doing something creative in the woods, there is something about creativity that is refreshing,” said Allie Palmer, Owner of Paddle On Coffee.

A creative process in the woods can be as complicated as it sounds.

“As a group they’ll tap a tree, drilling a small hole, and then take a little spiral and hammer that into the hole. Then they’ll hang a bucket under that small hole and on the spiral, that way the sap will just start dripping out of that tree and collecting into the bucket,” said Luke Williams, Environmental Educator for the Eagle Bluffs Learning Center.

Sugar maple trees are the life blood of the bluffs. Although strong and tall, they are a little more fragile than one might assume, but warmer temperatures can have a lasting impact.

“For sap to be flowing in the trees, it has to be below freezing at night, and get a little bit above freezing during the day,” said Williams.

Williams goes on to say, “We probably have to cut off the season earlier than we normally would, we just have to see how it all shakes out. If we hover around here for a little bit longer, then we’ll get plenty of sap and plenty of syrup.”

With only a small window of time to harvest the tree sap, the town of Lanesboro is more than happy to keep up with an art form that has stood the test of time.

The syrup season only lasts about 4 weeks, so there isn’t much time in the year to tap in, but the Eagle Bluff Learning Center is always available to help make someone’s day.