getting ready

[lafite]

Just a few weeks to go and I am all set with my improved gravity system. i am driving my wife crazy with all my preparations....Looks like I'll max out at 104 taps this year with 70 on gravity.

Good luck to everyone with hopefully a better season than the last!

[ctjim]

i am gearing up myself too. wood is ready to go, need to get the evap ready and need to get out and hang my gravity lines. may have another place to tap, but if i get it it will be a rush to tear out old tubing and put in new. good luck this season hoping it will be better than last.

[Tanta K]

We do mostly teaching here at Brooksvale and are scheduling our classes, making sure we have what we need and upping our Open House day a week earlier. Rained out every other year as March gets warm. Now watch everyone freeze on March 5th!

Brooksvale Park Sugar Shack
Tanta Kirsten - a.k.a. The Sugar Mama, Sugar Mistress and the Sugarmaker
20-30 old fashion taps depending on staff available
A zillion trees
Loads of Fun and Learning Going On

[markct]

yea i am almost done in the woods, basicly just gota put in a half dozen saddles on the mainline when i get them, but still have a bit to do in the sugarhouse, got a new front pan made for the evaporator and tonight finished tig welding the float box i am making to replace the old soldered tempermental one! then have to make a cover for the finishing pan and tig weld in the drawoff fitting when i decide where i want it. then just a little plumbing for the gas and the sugarhouse will be ready to go! want to setup a uv light this year but that may not happen.

[lafite]

Kirsten. I'll make sure to stop by again this season since you are a mile away. Charlie loved the coloring book.

I hung a 200' mainline the other day and I can't wait till I get to cut in my drop lines. Santa bought me a nice 2-handed tool that should speed things up a bit.
70 drop lines already to go.....But first a Nor'easter to deal with...

[lafite]

maybe the snow shoe workshop wasn't a bad idea....

[lafite]

25 inches of snow here in southern CT. my exit line for my long run has less than an inch for collecting due to the snow banks......Holy Snow!! There used to be room for a 55 gallon barrel for collection.

My target date for tapping (weather permitting) is 4 weeks from today.

[markct]

yea my father was just saying today how he had seen so many pairs of snow shoes at tag sales this past summer, yet didnt think of any need for them! sure looks like we might need the to tap this year! the crowd that was all excited to tap jan 15th this year, so much so that the maple assoc meeting was moved earlier in the month, well they seem to have been put on hold for a bit as it looks like the 15th will still be darn cold this year!

[Tanta K]

I look forward to the visits. We start teaching the school kids on Feb. 1st so no matter what the weather is we have to be set up and at least tap a few trees. Right now, there are limbs all over the place, ice, snow, a royal mess. Put in an order for a few things we need and I think we'll put out 30 taps/buckets and work with that. Staffing was cut again, I'm teaching, sugaring and doing office work. Fun but exhausting 5 weeks for us. We moved up our public day to March 5 as we keep getting rained out the following weekend. We'll give it a try. See you soon. I enjoyed the syrup, let's trade this year!

[Mike Van]

This coming Sunday night, it's supposed to be -10 F :o Winter, the way it used to be!

[batsofbedlam]

I tried taking a walk in the woods today. It was challenging. Hard crust on deep soft snow tires one quickly. I guess I'll resort to one of the three pairs of snowshoes that I own. It'll be interesting to see how tomorrows snow affects conditions.
So much for early tapping this year.

[batsofbedlam]

Check out www.accuweather.com Bastardi: Forecast for the Rest of Winter.
His prediction is for a long, cold, snowy winter for new England., with snow into April. This should make for a great maple season.

[markct]

yea mike it does sound like the winters everyone said we "just dont get anymore" but i suppose thats why they started calling it climate change a few years ago rather than global warming, that way whatever happens there not wrong!

[valleyman]

We may be in for another big storm Tue -Thur time frame next week.:o

[Mike Van]

Today I made a 50 ft walk through what has fallen in the last 2 weeks to dump an ash pan. Wow, over my knees. Sure glad I quit smoking 2 years ago, this season is going to be a tough haul to get started.

[valleyman]

Phew!
Last night I went and did the turkey trot (side stepping) a bunch of trails to even out the paths some more. I went out in the woods and did it again this AM . I'm doing all the work and the deer are taking advantage of my trails. A lot of tracks using my trails. Sure is a lot of snow out there.

The Northern folks are probably laughing at my complaining. But this southern CT boy isn't used to this much snow. If I didn't know any better I'd think this almost feels like work :D

I'll be sleeping well tonight.

[lafite]

I've been in San Francisco for the last week returning tomorrow....my wife has already purchased a roof rake for me to use upon my return.

maybe feb 15 is going to be too early to tap this year!

[markct]

i went up to bascoms saturday and bought a used hand pump filter press and was surprised to see they have about the same amount of snow up there that we do, expected they would have alot more!

[batsofbedlam]

-4 the last two mornings. Best to just sit by the woodstove and save my energy. Looks like I might give it a couple of weeks.

[Mike Van]

-12 here in Kent this AM - nothing running but my nose.

[Tanta K]

We are supposed to tap one week from today for the school kids who start to arrive. This year we will teach close to 750. And we are short staffed wishing we had volunteers available during the day! Sigh.

I may have to climb over snow banks and slide down ice floes to do so but we will at least tap oru grandfahter tree and teach. We are Nutmegger's and we won't give up!

Brooksvale Park Sugar Shack
20-20 spiles with metal buckets, depending on staffing.
750+ kids and adults to teach.
1 full time park ranger.
1 part time (exhausted) sugarmaker who donates more hours than she's paid for.
5 weeks of fun!

[markct]

-12 here in Kent this AM - nothing running but my nose.

yup we had minus 12 at the transfer station in torrington too, wasnt till almost 11 am we had all the trucks and equipment up and running at work, spent all morning running around because of gelled up diesel fuel, heating tanks with the heaters and changing filters.

[lafite]

this year's snow is more than I can ever remember....with another potential foot on the way. It's going to be a very muddy start to the season. Looks like I'll be looking at plans for a sugar shack next year!

[lafite]

Big day tomorrow. We are tapping in Southern CT and hoping for what looks like a promising start to the season. i fired up the evaporator today and boiled some snow for kicks.

I hope to be fully up and running by Sunday.

Perhaps some great light amber to start?

Good luck and I hope the big sap runs plenty and wild next week.

[ctjim]

planning on putting the finishing touches on the sugarhouse this afternoon and starting to tap this morn. this week looks to be a good start weather wise, and hopefully get a good jump on some sap to sweeten the pans.

[paqmom]

I'm back for another year of hobby tapping!

Of course, I haven't been sick all winter and now, with the sugarin' season upon me, I'm really sick and coughing! :rolleyes: Looks like I'll have to suck it up and get out there and clear snow to the shed (and my sugarin' supplies). I honestly NEVER thought we'd have this much snow or I would have had the hubby keep the path to that clear.

The weather is looking fantastic this coming week to start!!!!

[They Call Me Pete]

Cutting my teeth on sugaring this year tomorrow. Will be going out with kids and tapping. Snow is frozen so at least we'll be on top of it. Later in week I'll have to breakout snow shoes.

[oxfordsugarshack]

finally the weather broke tapped in 60 yesterday goin out to tap the other 700 :D

[farmer james]

Put in 35 today, so all 60 buckets are hung. No sap today, too cold, not enought sun.

[adk1]

well good luck, hope the sun comes out tomorrow!

[markct]

my taps on vac just barely ran today, my line of 80 taps just dumped the dairy releaser once all day, and the zero tank just had a little trickle coming in but got some more of my gravity lines tapped in and weather looks good for the coming week!

[farmer james]

Yes, Great weather coming this week, glad to be able to catch this first run.