Filed under: March 2015 | Tags: maple syrup, maple syrup production, maple syrup season, maple syrup time, patience
Start up
March 20, 2015
If it’s your plan to make maple syrup, the thing you will need the most of is… PATIENCE!
First you wait on the season to get here. Then you wait for the sap to start running. Then you wait for the bags to fill. Once they are full, you wait for help to empty them all. Then the boiling process starts. You wait for the sap to boil. You then wait for the pans to get concentrated. A process called “getting the pans sweet”. Then you watch the thermometer and hydrometer as you wait for the first syrup.
We finally made some today….and it was worth the wait! The trees are dripping pretty good this afternoon. We should have a good weekend as long as we can wait 😮
Filed under: March 2014 | Tags: friends, maple syrup time, memories, slip and slide
Here we go
March 19, 2014
  We have boiled twice so far this season. It has been a crazy year so far. The only thing that is predictable…is that it will be unpredictable! The one constant is this; the sap runs like mad on the days that I have to work. Logistics this year have been hard to manage, but thanks to family and friends…it’s all working out. 😮
  The frost is coming out of the ground so fast that mud, is the new obstacle. It sticks to everything especially our boots. The woods mud is just sloppy, but the clay that I hauled in last summer from my son’s basement excavation has proven to be very sticky. I, of course, raised the unloading ramp with that clay…ugg it makes for bad footing for men. The horses almost laugh at us as we slide and sip all over the place.
  Maple syrup time is finally here. The season may be very short, but who knows. The experience, however, will last forever in my memories and the mud will last until July…dang near everywhere we step!
The girls wait for dinner
February 3, 2013
Today was a repeat of the last few. It’s cold and snowy. Plain old winter and as much as I like it, I found plenty of reasons to stay inside today. I even snuck in a nap:o
My list is growing again, mostly because I took time to make one. The sugarhouse preparation gets top billing. I will help cut my son some more firewood, but mostly I’ll keep working , making ready for maple syrup time.
The spiles have all been washed and sanitized. The bags are ready to hang. The easy stuff has been cleaned in the sugarhouse. I need one whole day, lots of hot water and a little ambition and I can be ready. If the weather works out, we will tap next week and start our season.
I spent part of a day last Saturday visiting my friend Marvin and his family. They too are anticipating the upcoming season. We sat around the shop stove sharing conversation while we watched the snow fall outside from the window. All of us are like runners in the starting blocks, excited and just about to be off and running!
