what do you guys do after sugaring

[maplekid]

what do you guys do after sugaring? im a rc plane entusiust and every day after the mud season is time for me to practice flying my gas powered airplane

[mountainvan]

I'm lucky, sugaring never stops for me. I'm bottling and selling syrup yearround. Other than that I go fishing. I do miss the big bass I caught around McConnellsville, Ohio when I was your age.

[Fred Henderson]

I thin my sugar bush. Work in the blueberries & veggie garden. Go on many vacations, after all sugaring is hard work.

[Breezy Lane Sugarworks]

diesel mechanic, some welding/fabricating, and spend MANY days and nights working in the fields on the farm. but I wait to do sugaring work in the woods until the late fall and early winter...it's much better(no bugs, no leaves, cooler, etc...)

[Pete33Vt]

I putter in the sugar woods, get my house wood ready, and work for my families paving company as a truck driver, equipment operator and mechcanic,and wait till sugaring starts up again. Oh yeah, I hunt, and fish and do a few 12 ounce curls on hot days. LOL

[3% Solution]

Let's see, during the end of the sugaring it starts to dry out real well and the brushfires start kicking in. I work with the local forest ranger predicting the fire danger and putting out fires.
Then let's see, I start doing my building stuff.
Do most of my sugaring lines in the fall also.
I also work two days a week at the fire academy in Concord.
Working on weather stations and taking classes.
Vacations, family time, you know the usual.

[Russell Lampron]

Does sugaring season really end? I spend the off season cleaning the evaporator, sugarhouse, tanks and all of the equipment. Then I start cutting splitting and stacking the wood for the next season. After, during or in between doing that I can and sell syrup. In the fall and just before the sap starts to run I repair my tubing systems and clean up any blown down trees and branches.

Oh did I mention that I also work full time wrenching on Volvos. In my spare time (what is that?) I like to ride my Harley and go camping. I also read this forum a couple of times a day to see what everyone else is doing.

Russ

[Fred Henderson]

I think that we have all forgotten that there are just 2 seasons. Sugaring season and getting ready for sugaring season.

[andrew martin]

I agree with you Russell, sugaring is a four season "job." When not suagring, I re-model bathrooms, kitchens, add additions and install new roofs. Then I come home and play with my two boys, ages 2.5 years and 1 year - they are a lot of fun. ON Saturday's we go to the farmer's market to sell syrup. In my spare time, I love to read and work on my own house as the finances allow.

Andrew

[Grade "A"]

I also fly rc planes , I have 5 of them. That hobby is as addicting as sugaring. My days are spent working at a excavation company witch slows down during sugaring season. I am a volunteer firefighter, that takes up some nights and weekends for meatings/training and of course who knows when you have to drop everything to respond to a call. The rest of my time is spent with my wife and 2 year old girl.
Matt

[maplekid]

yeah i get all my airplanes from a place called towerhobbies its a fun place to be and you can get stuff for a fair price check them out www.towerhobbies.com. i agree it is a expensive hobby but sure is fun to know your able to do anything you want to.

[royalmaple]

I've been working. Not much time off, but did break out 1/2 day and went wake boarding and knee boarding the other day in the stretch of mid to high 90's.

I work construction, run my online business, work with my brother clearing house lots and excavation type stuff. And in the evenings been cutting firewood when its not too hot. Pretty full plate.

[Maple Hill Sugarhouse]

Royalmaple forgot to list his new hobby "Looking for lost or buried Pirate treasure"- I've found quite a few this year myself=About a basketball size wad of coins.

Still looking for the Mother lode....

[maplehound]

I am an ex model flier. In fact I was at one time the president of the Mahoning county MOdel Club. I had to give it up when I bought my house. Instead I opted for a hobby that at least tries to pay for itself ( syrup production). Now In the off season I sell syrup and work in my yard. I also cut meat full time.

[jason waterhouse]

I raise, breed and train treeing walker coonhounds,spend time with the family at our hunting camp in concord Vt.Unfortunanlty work gets in the way lol alot.

[maplekid]

yeah if you fly champion it can pay. it tried flying in the ace fighter categorie and took second . i was flying a p51 mustang. which is the hardest to fly because of how big it is( 8 foot long with a 7.5 wing span) but that plane is long gone.its so tricky to land. a west wind cuaght my wing and it nose dived straight into the ground( $800 laying in pieces all over the feild. but i had built a new plane it isnt the fastest but it sure a bute when it is flying. it is a four engine bomber with a rocket plane under neath of it that when i flip a swicth it pops off and another peson fly it to the ground

[royalmaple]

Your right kevin, I forgot. Kevin got me hooked into something I have always wanted to do, metal detecting. Pretty fun. Not much time to do it though. Kevin I still havn't gone down the road to the secret spot yet. I promised you I'd wait till you were here.

[Maple Hill Sugarhouse]

Might be August sometime before we get the chance to hit it?? I was eyeing another potential gold mine today on my 100 mile bike ride-Been thinking about it hitting this spot for quite a few years now/Just haven't filed my claim yet-so to say...Heading out right now as i know where there is about 75 targets that i hit that ere under the ground-Found them when i was looking for that guys double diamond ring he thought he lost there/but he found it at home after i had already spent about 8 hours looking for it.(He should have looked harder at home before sending me on the hunt for it).

[blackstrapking]

I work as an Ag mechanic at a John Deere dealer. I spend most nights and weekends working at a large dairy farm poised behind the steering wheel of some type of farm equipment. Most sundays I cut wood and putter away at the Sugar house. I have tried my hand at the model airplanes, seems every plane I've had has had a strong attraction to trees.

[maplekid]

yeah ive had a couple go into trees and its not to easy to get them out if you aint got the stuff to do it with. every once in a while i have to get the big tractor out with the loader on the front to retreive my airplanes.

[thenewguy]

seems likes there is a connection between mechanics and sugar makers. I too am a diesel truck mechanic, I work full time for a local International truck dealer. Specializing mostly on Cummins engines and vehical electronics. When I'm not at work I'm also a part/time volunteer firefighter for the municipalty I live in. I also enjoy fishing/ snowmobiling, sea dooing, etc. Seems like sugaring is always in the back of my head also, thinking of new ideas and more efficient way to run the operation.

[firetech]

I have my 40hrs/wk as a maintaince electrician specity is fire systems detection and suppression. I tournement walleye fish,hunt deer both bow and smoke sticks. 4-H leader (sheep) so I have a flock of 20 ewes. Heat my home with wood and pretent to do some logging now and then. Just got a new sap hauler (grandson) in June to go with my other hauler(grandaugther). Then we spend time in Mn looking for agates. Not much time to sit-around. Always looking for more maples.

[Breezy Lane Sugarworks]

Blackstrap-

I bet those Hy-Gard and Hy-Gard low viscosity pails you're carrying looked like some nice fancy syrup before they were emptied! LOL

NewGuy-

Yeah, there must be. I do most of my work w/ my uncle. He specializes in Cat engines(3406 b,c and e era)...Mostly truck engines and some equipment. But we do most anything anyway. Not much cummins though.

[blackstrapking]

Ryan,
MAN did you ever hit the nail on the head. EVERY single time I dump hyguard into a tractor that is EXACTLY what I think!!! Thats what we get for having maple on the brain.

[maple flats]

I work my blueberries, (4.5 acres), do custon sawing with portable sawmill, drive school bus, manage some rental properties my wife and I own, cut firewood/sugarbush improvement, do timberstand improvement on my woodlot, do some logging for the logs to saw, mostly my woods, do a little minor cutting and hauling of logs, mostly for free, for the logs. Life is great!! WQhen I get tired of one thing I do something else.

[PA mapler]

This time of year is the busiest for land surveying, so I'm glad I got most of my wood cut/split/stacked early. There's still a few cords of basswood rounds left up on the hill, but they'll just have to wait. I have plenty for this coming season anyway. And if work wasn't busy enough, my husband and I are building a small camp about 20 minutes away near Rew, PA. I'm getting pretty good at nailing now, which does wonders (sarcasm) for my machete-elbow. Also got 15 new chicks under a heat lamp in the basement, and will probably have to build an extension on the chicken coop if they all live. Plus all the county fairs, family gatherings, weddings, etc. . . that goes on this time of year. It's a relief when September comes!

[andyp]

This is a busy time of the year on the farm. A time to make hay for the beef cattle we have. Do some reseeding of the hay fields.Also the pasture needs to be mowed.I have a portable band sawmill and I like to do a little sawing mostly for the farm. Cut fire wood for the sugar house which I have not done yet. Finish the sugar house this year. Need to work in the sugar bush to clear out some fallen and unwanted trees. We like to take time to go to the area
airs ,and take time to go to truck and tractor pulls.

Andyp

[maplekid]

yeah speaking of we put in 800 to 900 bales to day. wow thats some work their we had the elevator going non stop for about 3 hours. this time we had about 10 people helping i drove the tractor and then we switch off and it was way to long of a day. the baler kept shearing pins so we shut dow for and huor or so and then one of the needles broke and that shut us down for the day. still have 80 acres to mow. got to get up early and start when it is not going to be so hot.

[Breezy Lane Sugarworks]

but you can't bale so early when the dew is down.

[maplekid]

no im not baling im cutting. the hay bine doesnt cut so well when there is dew on the ground so im waiting till 10 and then i have to help my dad put new twine in the baler and fix the needles so i have another long day a head of me. farm work never ends does it. just got the skid steer fixed so i wont have to shovel krap any more

[HanginAround]

I do internet tech support full time, also been a truck driver for many yrs, spent lots of time on the farm as a kid, and instead of flying RC, I have a couple of nitro RC cars. Dad has a plane, but I figure I'll let him crash it rather than me. Been kinda lazy with the cars, haven't had them out in a couple yrs.... gotta be full-time mechanic and pockets full of money to keep them going. Sure is a blast though!

[maplecrest]

sugaring is a year round event. i do have 35 beef cows, put up and sell 10,000 bales of hay a year. and work for the local school district. spend my spare time looking to expand my operation

[Jim Brown]

I have to agree with the person who said there is only two seasons. Sugar season and getting ready for sugar season.
I also work full time at a large SECURE underground complex. My boss calls me the TOP COP as I have a 25 man armed guard force that work for me. I'm on call even when I'm in the sugar woods or Wal Mart.

Looking forward to retirement in a couple of years

Jim

[mapleman3]

I have 300+ taps and make the best of it, sell my syrup at astronomical prices and charge folks a toll as they drive by my sugarhouse on the main road.. it's a tough job but hey I'm living in a mansion now !!

ok down to reality, I work for a property management company doing HVAC and maint. some computer work also, 50 hours a week unfortunately... then come home and do a lot with the cubscouts and boyscouts.. I am the cubmaster of our local scout pack, I put a lot of time into the scouts but enjoy it a lot.

[Cardigan99]

I raise chickens and pigs. Employed by a national insurance company doing resource planning and workforce management (spend 8+ hrs a day working in spread sheets). Lucky enough to work from home so that gives me some extra time in the woods. Crashed a couple RC planes a few years back, but switched hobbies to old tractors (cost a little more but they're harder to break).

[markcasper]

I run 1200-1600 taps depending on the year. I do most everything myself, with a little hired help during the season. I work full-time for Silgan Containers Co. producing metal containers for companies such as Nestle, slimfast and Hormel. If you ever ate SPAM, chances are the can crossed me.
My folks have a 460 acre dairy farm with dairy and beef. I help my brother and dad on the farm on my off days, mainly with field work. All of the feed is raised and harvested by us. I have a full plate all the time it seems.

[Revi]

I teach high school. We used a lot of logging debris from our woodlot to build a big bonfire at the school last Thursday. We always have a bonfire and a rally on Homecoming weekend. We always burn the other football team's mascot in effigy. This year we actually won the game too! It's a great way to get rid of last year's brush, and it's a thrill when it works. Last year I used biodiesel, because I wanted to have a carbon-neutral bonfire. It didn't light too well. This year we went back to 4 gallons of off-road diesel and it started right up. Anyway, that's what I'm up to. It did a nice job of cleaning up brushpiles, and the kids loved it.

[Sugarmaker]

I have read most of these and it is interesting what sugarmakers do in their "spare" time.
I work full time at a manufacuring company currently as a program manager in our Rotary wing Design group. Making helicopter rotor head parts to reduce maintanice and extend flight times is the task. I help with new product introduction process. 30+ years for the same company in Erie and still enjoy going to work. Always something differrent. A lot of my desk time is spent using Microsoft Project sofware and designing schedules, Thats the easy part. Meeting the end dates for critical new projects is the challange. Lots of team work and communication.

At home I mow 4 acres of lawn. Also take care of the 7 bee hives and honey. Swarm catching is always an adventure. Cutting house wood and or sugar wood seems to fill in most of the rest. I spend a week or so deer hunting. Rifle and muzzel loader seasons bring me right back to maple season again.

Chris

[Maplepro]

Maple is my hobby at the moment. I am a 6th generation sugar maker I am a forester by trade we work on private land and run two harvesters and two porters and a half a dozen of skidders depending on the market. right now we are in a bit of a down swing so I have had allot of time to be in the sugar woods but my father and I also run a heavy equipment parts place where we by and sell scrap equipment so that keeps me busier then I want to we just bought a 150 acres next to our sugar woods that has the potential for 15000 taps so that’s my goal before I die is to have all our woods tapped 10000-15000 plus the block we just bought may never happen but I am going to try. I also run 150 head of beef cattle we had dairy but sold out a few years back. So guess when I am not in the sugar woods I should be there but I am probably somewhere that I should be but don't want to be! I am happiest when I am in the sugar woods.

[PATheron]

Ive always been happiest when Im in the woods too. Ive always been a hunter especially flintlock and Ive fixed up a couple older vehicles but the one hobby ive never grown tired of is the syruping. The last couple of years Ive mostly been working, playing with my boys and working in the woods. I take care of high voltage electrical substations and am pretty much always on call but when Im not working Im tinkering on my syruping. This year I decided to build my sugar shed and have basically been spending every waking moment working on that and installing my tubing. When I get a chance I like to check out other peoples sugar operations just to get ideas and i enjoy talking syrup to anyone thats into it. Theron