Crawford County 2015

[Irish Ridge]

Feb. 7th and we are all set on Irish Ridge. All 50 buckets are ready to go along with taps and hose. We also have a good stockpile of wood for fuel. The lack of deep snow this winter has allowed us to widen our walking trails running tree to tree. Even with the heavy snow last weekend we can still get around in the woods. With trails trimmed back there is no more need for safety glasses when collecting sap this year. Temp got up to 42 today and rain is predicted for tomorrow but I am smart enough to know that spring isn't here yet. Our second year at this and the feeling of at least having an idea of what to expect is refreshing.

10-12 for now...

[OCHTO]

Used to live on Ducharme ridge up from Picatee creek. Miss the hills and the river. If I had some of those hills now I could really set up a pipeline. Spring comes fast down there, good luck!

[Irish Ridge]

March 2nd and we tapped fifty trees under bluebird skies this morning. After watching accuweather's forecast for the next ten days out we figured this weekend might be the start of something. The next few days will be getting the shack all set and supplies in place. There is also the matter of installing new firebrick before any match gets lit. Calling for a bit of snow tomorrow for us but then it is on to gradually rising temperatures.
Saying 39 Friday and 41 Saturday.

Some friends in Vineyard Coulee had their pipeline and set up in place last weekend already.

I am thinking there will be more updates coming in the very near future from Crawford County.

[Irish Ridge]

Sunday, March 7th...our afternoon walk revealed five buckets with a bit of sap. All were ridge top taps. All others were dry. Snow levels have dropped greatly. South facing slopes are next to bare. Will check buckets today for fun, not expecting a big change. Seriously considering the possibility of tapping another 20 trees at the bottom of my ridge that I can't get to most springs. Thinking these might be my big producers this spring. Meanwhile 50's forecast for the next ten days. They also don't rule out a day in the sixties. Sure didn't see this coming one month ago.

[Irish Ridge]

Tuesday March 9th, The walk at noon revealed approximately 20 of my 50 trees at least doing something. Not one of those twenty has much to brag about however. Mid 50's yesterday and again today. Collecting and starting a fire tomorrow morning no matter how much I bring in.

[Irish Ridge]

Wednesday, March 10th....Visited 50 trees this morning and brought in a whopping 10 gallons of sap. 16 of those trees are on strike. About 20 are on a work slowdown, the rest are good and one was impressive with over a gallon of sap. A quick measure showed a two per cent sugar content. Last year it was a consistent four per cent. Hopefully that will get better. The first boil has been pushed back to Friday. My ten gallons are on ice for now. More to come on Friday....

[Mr Sugar Maple]

Hi Irish Ridge like you my take was also sparse,only 20 gallons from 200 trees. I also checked the sap, 2% sugar. Keep the faith.

[Irish Ridge]

Friday, March 13th...collected sap this morning. Still numerous dry trees. Heard a turkey gobble several times. OK, got out of the woods and put my total 20 gallons for the season on fire. Four hours later we had it down to a half gallon or so. Will "finish" that inside. Just can't do that small amount outside. Other than that nothing new to report. Will say that it will be beautiful light amber syrup when done.

[Irish Ridge]

Monday, March 16.....collected five gallons of sap early Sunday morning. At noon today collected 4.5 gallons. Boiled in the early afternoon and by four pm the wind was howling. Glad we were finished as it is very dry. For the record, saw robins today. Don't even want to guess what is going to happen in the next few days with the sap flow. Nothing else to report - actually all caught up and that is entirely different than last year when we could not keep up.

[jeffeich]

Sounds like you have the same problem I do, lots of dry taps. I have 550 taps out and the biggest run we have had was 60 gallons on one day. It is getting frustrating but looks like cool nights are coming, so our pails will be running over soon. Might be short lived so enjoy it when it happens. Good Luck.

[Irish Ridge]

Thursday, March 19.....Jeff, the change in the weather hasn't really helped me. Still have dry taps and low volume for the most part. Gathered up 12 gallons today from the past 48 hours. And that is certainly not bragging. The one bright side of this season is the pleasant results of adding cinder brick to the inside of my wood burner. Fire stays hot and the amount of wood being used seems to be cut in half. Very impressed with the results of this low cost investment. Just waiting to see what the days ahead bring. Sap has gone up to three per cent sugar content.

[Irish Ridge]

Tuesday, March 24th....I hearby declare the sap running in Crawford County. Was it the 15 inches of snow? Who knows. It is pouring out right now as I type a way. Anyway 49 of my 50 trees are dripping sap. Some at a very nice pace. It was also nice to find ice in my buckets. Tossing that, upped my sugar content to 3 plus per cent. So in the last two days I averaged a gallon per tree. May it continue. Tomorrow afternoon I will be presenting to a sixth grade class on maple syrup production along with a friend that boils from sap collected in Vineyard Coulee not too far from me.

[Irish Ridge]

Thursday, March 26th.... In the last 30 hours the sap has been running hard. Averaged about 3.5 gallons a tap. Some more, some less. Took forever to collect with the deep snow and very hard crust from the rain. Being able to toss a bit of ice when collecting has reduced boiling time.

Friday, March 29th.....more ice in the buckets along with continued good flow over the past 24 hours. Finally collecting more than I can boil in a day. A great problem to have. Sap continues to be at 3 per cent or just a bit over that. Nothing like the steady 4 last year. Starting a fire at 5:15 am so this concludes the report.

[Irish Ridge]

April 2nd.....am enjoying the last boil of the season on my outside heat source. I have some "finishing" to do on the inside gas stove. Will share my totals when finished with that. Finished pulling buckets while my wife watched the fire this morning. Wind has picked up again but definitely not as bad as yesterday. My trees have turned off completely so they made the decision for me that the season only remains in the kitchen and in my mind. Reflections at this point are two definite periods where the sap really flowed. Good point there was I was always able to have sap boiled within 48 hours and the norm was either same day or within 24 hours. I do know that I wont reach my 2014 production. Still not complaining. What a hobby!