Maple Destinations Throughout Laurel Highlands

Silver Horse Coffee

Start your morning right at Silver Horse Coffee, a coffee shop in Donegal tucked into the trails of the Laurel Highlands. You’ll have ample options to get energized, including burritos, pastries, jerky, protein bars, and a variety of specialty coffee and tea drinks. They’re committed to supporting other local businesses with locally sourced maple syrup and other treats available in their retail store and maple-infused menu items during maple season for a taste of what lies ahead on your maple-packed itinerary.

Somerset Historical Center

What better way to learn about maple syrup then to see how the production process has evolved during the last century? Pay a visit to the Somerset Historical Center’s Maple Sugar Camp, a recreation of a typical 1860s permanent sugar camp which highlights the  historical techniques used in maple syrup production from colonial times to present day.

Baer Brothers Camp

Continue your maple adventure at Baer Brothers Maple Camp, a working sugar camp that makes syrup much as it was done for the past century on local farms (with a little new technology mixed in). You can watch maple syrup boil over a wood-fired evaporator, learn how to make spotza — a special maple treat — during the sugaring process. Each spring, Baer Brothers place 4,000 new taps in their trees as winter ends and spring begins. Many of their maple delicacies including maple cream, sugar, candy, and, of course, maple syrup are available for purchase year-round.

Pine Grill

It would be great if you could subsist on only maple sugar all day, but it’s time to enjoy a savory lunch. Visit Pine Grill, less than 5 miles south of the maple camp. In operation since 1941, this family-run restaurant offers a casual dining atmosphere with reasonable prices. Its broad menu ranges from crab cakes to some of the finest New York strip steaks.

Flight 93 National Memorial

After dining, drive northeast to the Flight 93 National Memorial to learn about the 40 brave passengers and crew members aboard Flight 93 on September 11, 2001, whose actions thwarted hijackers’ plans to crash the plane in Washington, D.C. Stroll along the 40 memorial groves and memorial plaza at the crash site and view the exhibits at the visitor center. It’s a place to honor these heroes, contemplate their sacrifice, and pay tribute at their final resting place.

Whitehorse Brewing

Cap off your busy day with a cold one at Whitehorse Brewing, where you can relax and grab a bite. While you’re there, try their maple-inspired brews while they are still in season to pay tribute to the area’s maple-tapping and maple syrup-making traditions happening at local farms!

Yoder’s Guest House

As the day draws to a close, it’s time to curl up and rest for tomorrow’s big adventure. Luckily, it’s a quick drive to Yoder’s Guest House, a cozy turn-of-the-century bed and breakfast on the Great Allegheny Passage. Not quite ready to turn in? Unwind with a book in the doctor’s library, play games in the dining room, or mingle with other guests. Make a note to sip your morning coffee on their spacious front porch lounge. A number of their delicious breakfast selections are served with locally produced maple syrup!

Additional nearby accommodations less than half an hour from Whitehorse Brewing include: Levi Deal Mansion Bed & Breakfast, which was once home to local coal and timber baron Levi Deal and his family; and Huddleson Court, whose rooms, suites, and cottages echo a rural environment, offering a closeness to the natural beauty of the Laurel Highlands

For Foodies & History Buffs: Maple Weekend Taste and Tour

Go north to the Somerset Historical Center’s annual Maple Weekend Taste and Tour, a free two-day event during maple-tapping season featuring recreated 17th century Somerset County sugar camps to promote the maple industry. Learn about tapping, gathering, and boiling sap while you sample delicious maple concoctions and products. If you’re a foodie, this taste and tour is surely for you.

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For Families & Festival Lovers: PA Maple Festival (April 20 & 21 and April 24-28, 2024)

You’re invited to celebrate spring and the tradition that comes with the tapping of maple sap from local maple trees at Meyersdale’s 77^th annual  Pennsylvania Maple Festival. The multi-day festival includes tapping demonstrations, a sugar shack & sugar camp, live entertainment, delicious pancake and sausage dinners, a maple queen and king, and lots of activities for kids.

Brantview Farms

Craving more maple production in action? Get your fix at Brantview Farms. The maple camp comes alive as the trees are tapped, tubing is placed, and the gathering begins. Visitors have the chance to see the process firsthand, attend product demonstrations, and stock up on maple products such as maple cotton candy and pure maple syrup! They offer group and self-guided tours of their sugar camp throughout the year, so if you miss the spring tapping season there are plenty of opportunities to increase your knowledge of all things maple at another time.

Quecreek Mine Rescue Site

History awaits you at the Quecreek Mine Rescue Site, located just off Somerset Pike. Learn the miraculous story where nine miners were trapped underground for over 77 hours in July 2002. Hear how rescue workers freed the miners from 240 feet beneath the earth, and see artifacts including the rescue capsule and broken drill bit used in the rescue operation.

Levi Deal Mansion Bed & Breakfast

Your final stop is the opulent yet comfortable, Levi Deal Mansion. Crowning Meyer's Avenue, a tree-lined thoroughfare hosting some of the oldest and grandest houses in Meyersdale, the Deal Mansion was home to local coal and timber baron Levi Deal and his family. Completed in 1900, the 15-room house features a ballroom on the top floor, reception hall, parlors, drawing rooms, a dining room, and library all trimmed in light, native hardwoods, including birch, oak, and maple.

We hope you enjoyed your time in the Laurel Highlands. Share your memories with us on Facebook, X (Twitter), and Instagram! #PursueYourHappiness