Coasting after a day of boiling
March 8, 2013
Hello everybody! I am back at the blogging thing. Our computer was very sick with a bunch of viruses (56) that I got , from of all places … Craigslist!
Yesterday evening we gathered sap until dark. I was unhooking the horses from the sap sled by the barnyard lights. We gathered about 750 gallons. I boiled for seven hours today and the maple syrup is beautiful. The wood is holding out well and it was a perfect day 😮
The picture above shows the last of the fire going out. The sap is almost gone. I quit firing the arch and just sit and wait, as the whole process coasts to the end of the job. The sap quits boiling as the fire goes down. The hot firebricks evarorate a little more, but the job is done. It is a peaceful time to reflect on a great day!
The sap ran again this afternoon. The weatherman says it should run tomorrow too. I am glad, because this was only the third time this year for boiling. It has been very cold and the sap doesn’t run until the weather warms up. We have a long way to go to break even, but I love this job!
Now for the cute part of the BLOG … We are having baby lambs. The rams got in early and I don’t know how to “unbreed” the sheep…so ready or not… here come the lambs! The mortality rate is higher than we have ever seen due to the weather. We still will have a nice crop of babies, but this year we are seeing the effects of Mother Nature’s … “Only the strong survive,”
We plan our baby lambs to come in May. The weather and pasture conditions are perfect then. The cold spring rains are mostly over and the mud is fleeting by then. This is not the case in March. I am doing what I can for the good of the flock, but nature can humble man’s best intentions. The ram’s “escape and date” stragety was great fun for them… but not so much now for me!
The babies are cute as they can be. Already they are playing and jumping about. They grow very fast and are just fun to watch. I am hoping for the best as the little ones grow. The warm weather helps them too.
So our spring season is both cute and sweet … just like me 😮
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