first set tapped, (western) Virginia

[highland03]

I have set my first taps. Good run on the north side. This season has started much later then last for us. January 1st was my first tap last year.

[VA maple guy]

Highland03
Welcome to the Trader. Where are you located, what size operation do you have?
I'm near leesburg VA and will be tapping this weekend.
Gerry

[highland03]

Hi,
located in the mountains near Harrisonburg. Only average about 225 taps. give or take. Maybe not even that much by end of this season! We cook all of our sap over a cook stove, so very slow.
Do you have many maples in the Leesburg area? Our woods here are thinner on maples then I would like!
Lisa

[S Culver]

Va maple and Highland3 you two are fairly close to me I am off rt 50 30 min west of Winchester in Hampshire Co. We are starting to tap today. not sure of how many 300 or so. We will be on buckets and some short tubing runs on gravity to small tanks.

[VA maple guy]

Highlander03
I travel through your area several times a year. I have been bow hunting in Highland for about 30 years. I also get some of my maple supplies from Mike puffinberger in Bolar.
250 West between Harrisonburg and Monterey in October is my favorite drive.
We have plenty of maples around here, but most are reds. We also have Silver,
Norways, and a few sugars. Last year I found a small bush of all sugars. Its about
75x300 yards. About 150 years ago someone planted two rows of sugars flanking a driveway. over the years these trees have seeded the down wind side of the land.
there are now enough trees for about 175 to 200 taps.














w

[wvsugarshak]

Hi Gerry I put about 20 taps in a couple weeks ago when we had that warm spell and trees ran pretty good. I see by the 10 day forecast it's suppose to get cold again. I was going to get most of my tap in this weekend but not sure witht the forecast of a cold 10days. just would like to here you thoughts on why you are tapping this weeked?

WV sugarshak

[220 maple]

WV Sugarshack,
Good to see your about ready. Should be a good season, I always try to start tapping the the first warm day after Groundhogs Day, In actuality I could have started two weeks ago, but was not ready. I know one of the big camps in Highland County, Va. is tapped and should have had a couple very good runs. Your in Morgan County, WV.? SCulver on here has started making syrup in Hampshire County. He came by and looked over my tubing system, I showed him the right way and the wrong way to put tubing in. I believe he has 300 taps now but said he could probably expand to 1500 with tubing. Buck Barb at Mathais, WV. (Hardy County) was planning on tapping this week also. Jim Fergerson at Bridgeport, Taylor County is planning on tapping tomorrow, talked to him on the phone this evening, he did not get above 28 degrees today. I suspect the Stemple's in Preston County have some tapped simply because they have over 16000 taps, Joe Stemple told me they use a six man crew that's not enough help to get them all tapped in one day. Last year because of the deep snow I did not get open until the 18th of Feb, 32 days later it was done. I have never made it to April, Spring of 2000 we made syrup on March 31, Grade C syrup.
Good luck on your season
Mark 220 Maple

Mark 220 Maple

[VA maple guy]

WV Sugarshak,
I usuall tap the the last week of January. V DOT has kept me pretty busy the last couple of weeks in my plow truck. I should have tapped last week, but just did not have time.
Good luck to you and 220 Maple, I shure hope we don't that deep snow again, that was not fun last year.
Gerry

[220 maple]

Gerry,
Last year was my best year ever, I had built a new tubing system with tubing straight down hill and main lines on a 3% grade. The one thing that style tubing is made for is lots of snow. Old style tubing system are buried under the snow they freeze up and shutdown.

Mark 220 Maple

[VA maple guy]

Mark, that tubing system shure would have ben nice to have last year. I never even got
all my trees taped because of the deep snow. Most of my trees are so spread out
that a tubing system is not an option. My bush with all my sugars is dead flat and I would
have to put vacume on it, and I dont think the land owner would go for that.
So far I got 275 taps in and I may add maby another 100. The trees ran pretty good today,
so I'll get to sweeten my pans this week
Gerry