Adirondack Weekends ~ Rathbuns Maple Sugar House

I thought I'd try something new here at Spilled On The Kitchen Table, as a way to fill you in on the places around my region where the Hubbs and I spend our free time. For the time being, these posts will not be a regular or scheduled feature. That could change down the road, if you all like them and as long as I have the time to do them. I'm tentatively calling this... Adirondack Weekends. (** See the note at the bottom of this post)

As many of you probably know, I'm a weekend golf widow. In the Winter months, it's "indoor golf" and then when Spring and Summer roll around, it's any/every golf course within 100 miles of our home. There are a couple of courses where he plays more regularly and he has a group of buddies who are right there every weekend with him. Yup... Golf. Saturday and Sunday. He's addicted to the game.

I really don't mind that Hubbs plays golf. Really. Put simply, it makes him happy. And when he's happy, I'm happy. Maybe that comes across as a little old fashioned to some. Maybe I'm a bit of a dinosaur, in this era of the (alleged) "war on women". But, I certainly don't feel that way. (Frankly, I don't see where a war exists, but that's for another day and another rant post.) Basically, we've been happily doing this marriage thing for almost 30 years and plan to continue doing it til death do us part, so I'm pretty sure that we're doing something right.

I do have one rule.... The weekends are 50% mine. On Saturday afternoons and Sunday mornings, I get his undivided attention. Simple, right? Not much to ask? He doesn't think so. Ya see, over the last decade or so (since I've been sick) I've learned that I have to lay low during the week, so that I'll have the energy and the physical wherewithal to spend time hanging out with him on the weekend. My illness tends to cause periods of extreme fatigue and more often than not, even small increases in physical activity can result in days or possibly weeks of elevated pain. Luckily, he totally gets that and we both feel like my "rule" is a fair one.

It doesn't have to be anything earth shattering. It can be as simple as going to the grocery store and/or running other errands that we don't get around to during the week. Or, we might work around the house or in the yard like we did this past weekend. Or, on a cold winter day, we might spend hours in the kitchen making a big pot of "Sunday Gravy".

We'll usually go somewhere for lunch or dinner on Saturdays, and every Sunday morning we go out for breakfast. From time to time, he'll pass on golf for the entire weekend, so that we can take a short trip to visit friends or family a couple of hours away.

Obviously, this little schedule is flexible. Even though he loves the game of golf like it's his calling, I can ask him to take the weekend off for absolutely no reason in particular and it's a done deal. Likewise, there are weekends where he might have a tournament that spans two or three days and he's on the course the entire weekend. Like life in general, nothing is truly set in stone.

Last weekend, we decided to hop in the car and head over to North Granville NY (about a 30 minute drive and just shy of the Vermont border) to a place that we've both loved since we were kids... Rathbun's Maple Sugar House. Rathbun's has been a working sugar house for over four decades and is owned and operated by three generations of the Rathbun family.

Of course, Rathbun's claim to fame is their pure maple syrup and a myriad of other maple products, but they also have a quaint, rustic little restaurant, where you can slather that maple-y goodness all over a big plate of made from scratch pancakes, eggs, french toast, Belgian waffles, old fashioned oatmeal and country sausage gravy with fresh biscuits. They also serve some of the most incredibly delicious sausage and crispy bacon that I've ever tasted.

They have a sweet gift shop out back where you can buy their syrups, candies and other maple products, plus a great selection of gifts, including enamelware, dried flower and herb wreaths and pottery. Of course, I always come home with a little something for my pantry or to add to my ever growing collection of dishes, serving pieces and accessories. (See what I just had to have at the end of this post)

We always enjoy wandering around the property after breakfast, taking photos of the old farming and sugaring equipment that's been left there for Mother Nature to do with what she will...

Or just soaking up some warm Spring sunshine or later in the year, marveling at the bright reds, yellows and oranges of the trees and breathing in that crisp New England Fall air.

In the very early Spring, during "sugaring time" you can watch them boil the sap down to make the syrup and weather permitting, you might even be able to take a sleigh ride around the property or have a little taste of their pure maple syrup on scoops of fresh snow... kind of like a maple snow cone.

In the Fall, they serve warm apple cider and sell pumpkins and other autumnal goodies to decorate your home and yard. Whether you make the trip to enjoy a delicious breakfast or just to browse around the grounds and gift shop, Rathbun's is a unique and thoroughly enjoyable way to spend a Saturday or Sunday morning. About 20 years ago, my inlaws went for breakfast on a Saturday morning and came home with a new puppy! Now, I'm not saying that's one of their regular offerings, but it just goes to show... you never know what you might find on a trip to the country on a weekend morning.

Here's a peek at the goodies that I couldn't live leave without on this visit...

** I have not been asked to review/write or been compensated for this post in any way. All opinions, photos and details are my own, or those of my family and friends.