Purple Woods Conservation Area

Purple Woods Conservation Area is a 17-hectare nature reserve located on the crest of the Oak Ridges Moraine in Oshawa, offering commanding southern views that stretch all the way to Lake Ontario. While it serves as a year-round destination for hiking with access to the Oak Ridges Trail and the accessible Discovery Walk, it is most famous for hosting the annual Purple Woods Maple Syrup Festival each spring. During this season, the site’s active sugarbush transforms into a hub of activity where visitors can tour a functioning sugar shack, watch sap boil into syrup, and enjoy horse-drawn wagon rides, making it a central cultural and recreational landmark in the Durham Region.