Vernon County

Hi Lulugrin. Well Thursday March 19th I drove over to gather sap, I just knew the trees would fill my pails and they sure did. Started gathering at 10:30 every pail was overflowing so for every three tree pails I had 9 gal of sap to carry and dump into my transfer tank.And 8 hours later I was done. Of course it rained steady on me that whole time, The thunder did sound cool though.Ended up kind of wet guess my rain gear has a problem, but did gather 600 gal plus 125 in the valley tank from our 17 trees on tubing. So I will try to cook solo for a while with the currant pandemic. Guess Sunday will be go day for me. God Bless. Did have turkeys talking back and forth in the morning and the mud on top was bad.

Sat. March 21. Nice updates here. Had the great flow as well. Boiled in between rain. Speaking of thunder. We had a loud thunder clap and minutes later a dog was running down the road like he was after Rusty of dog racing fame. That was funny. Strained ice out of buckets this morning and am back to boiling. It is actually turning into one of my best years. Have a good weekend everyone.

Hello everyone, well I am back from 4 days at sugar camp, got there sat aft and after getting the finish pan and stuff to the sugar house I went up top to straiten the pails, counted 28 or so on the ground from the wind. Fixed and cleaned out the blue bird houses. Sun morning started the evaporator at 9:30 cooked 300 gal sap, had to stay alert all day, done at 6;30 cool down clean up, had to pump the valley tank into the big tank so 9:30 supper 10:30 bunk time. Monday March 23rd started cooking at 8:30,had 325 gal sap to cook finished at 6.:00 pm cool down clean up,food and sleep. Tuesday March 24th up at 7:00 boy I sure feel old today, when I went out the cabin door 3 deer were eating under the bird feeder, was nice to see them, they look pretty rough this time of the year kind of like me.Went up top to gather started at 8:00 most pails were full again, got 560 gal,
so all my tanks are full for this sat. the valley tank had 60 gal just from sun and today.packed up went home. Had the road to myself guess it will get better sooner or later. Irish Ridge I liked to hear about your race dog. stay healthy and God Bless. The sap did not seem as sweet, made 15 gal syrup from 625 gal of sap.

That is alot of sap Irish Ridge!! I got so busy last Attachment 21307weekend that I had no time to post. Figured out what to do with the stored sap so it wouldn't freeze when temp went down to 15 Fri night (yep, that is our outhouse with a space heater😄). I'm trying to rearrange my schedule so I can head over today and cook all day Friday when weather looks best for outdoor boil and sap still good. I suppose it'll then be time to pull the taps. If all works out I'll have close to 5 gallons. Will post 1 more time and then sign off for the season

Sap storage in an outhouse, now that is a first.

Well the season is over for me, went to the sugar bush Friday March 27th and on Saturday the 28th I cooked from 7:40 to 6:00 while doing clean up the weather got stormy so I made a B line for the cabin. Thunder, lightning,then the rain came and pea size hail. wow, that was fun. Late supper and sleep. Sunday March 29th I started cooking at 8:30 the weather showery most of the day.Found some dead boxelder in the wood pile from last fall so between firing I would split wood so it would extended my cook time to 6:30. cool down and clean up sleep at 10:00pm. Monday March 30th I wondered what the bright thing in the eastern sky was.Took the finish pan and empty water jugs to the pick up, then loaded the snowmobile up to bring home. We tapped on Feb 29th and last cook March 29th second best season for me, still have to pull taps,roll up main line, wash tanks and tubing so next weekend for that. God Bless.

Sounds like you had the same weather last weekend that we had. Not fun to be out and about in. We had the hail as well. Congrats on a fine year. Just waiting for Lulu's final report now. Hopefully she will come in with her 5. By next year we need a more official name for the sap storage room. Maybe the annex?

Well yes did have a lot of clean up to do, so Sat April 4th I went over to get started. Went up top to pull taps, I bring some water along to wipe out the pink mold that is starting to form, found out not to let it dry on the bottom because its hard to wash out later, then pull the tap and move on to the next tree, three trips down to the pick up with empty pails so it took 8 hrs to complete that. Sun morning at 6:am a darn Robin kept banging against the two west facing windows, thought it would give up but my tired old body could not take it any longer so I stuck my head out the window to scare it away but it kept coming back, so after a bunch of attempts I had to hang garbage bags over the windows. Well time to clean the 4 tanks and two barrels, our tubing tank on 17 taps was overflowing again, hated to open the valve and dump 125 gal of sap. also dumped two 55 gal barrels sure need a RO. Also rolled up the main line, its in 3 sections so not to get to large to handle. Friend John and his wife Katie came to plant some trees up by his deer stand, wants more cover for them.Mon April 6th I pulled the tubing taps and cleaned the tubing, I run a bleach mixture first ,then clean flush of fresh water. Loaded the four wheeler on the trailer and went for home. thanks for all the conversations over the season and God Bless.

Well happy new year fellow maple friends,its been a strange year with covid 19 and a wild election season, But now its time to think about our time in the woods, all the syrup from last season is gone and need to make more. Snow cover is still on the low side but hope for more soon,I have not been over to our land in a a while.But we did have a great gun deer season My son got a nice 8pt my grandson a nice 6pt and I shot a big doe.Hope you all have a safe season and God Bless .

Well just returned from two days at the land, Left home Fri Feb 19th 8 am 7 degrees sunny and calm arrived 10:00 8 degrees. My day was good, brought the snowmobile over to haul 230 buckets up top. Made first run just snowmobile 2nd run 60 buckets in otter sled got stuck on the steep part of the ridge road had to pull it up to a flatter spot by hand then turn the snowmobile back down to get a run that worked. 40 buckets per trip worked fine. saw 5 deer 1 rabbit and lots of winter birds at the feeders. snow cover 12 inches of powdery snow, shoveled paths to wood piles and around sugar house cant forget the outhouse also. Fri night temp -9 used twice the fire wood to keep my 10x18 cabin warm. coyotes howling on and off most of the night.Sat morn boy you know your alive when your cheeks hit the seat in the out house.Then waited till 8 degrees to make two trips up with my 100 gal tanks, covered them with snow and white tarps.the snowmobile tracks were like pavement this morn. next trip clean sugar house and flu pan bottom. looks like March 6th to tap we will see.God Bless.

That's why you make the seat removable and keep it next to the wood stove and take out when you need it resulting in nice warm cheeks. Hoping to get this work project wrapped up in Oklahoma so I can get back to Wisconsin to tap some trees.
Take care, DJ

Mr. Sugar Maple,
I just read you post about your trip north and hauling buckets and 100 gallon tanks. Then cheeks hitting the seat. I am sitting in a warm house on the couch and man that just gave me a chill. Ha Ha

Mr. SM, Read your weekend report and figured I better get moving. My observations over here in Crawford County match yours. Deep snow in the woods, however for me, it was snowshoes for me going tree to tree. Not as many deer beds as some springs. Will put in my final taps today and come up with a total. Some dry, some wet and dripping slow. First collection set for Friday. Gotta love the extended forecast. We will see what the Lord gives us this year. Still have plenty to do around the shack to prepare for a Saturday fire.

Hi IR glad to hear from you, our land has more deer sign then last winter.Think their hungry because eating the red cedar thats around. Stay safe and healthy. God Bless.

My new report, Friday Feb 26th arrived at our land 3:00 unloaded gear for the weekend used the snowmobile with the otter sled . then took all the bucket lids up top to place by the pails. Snow is deep yet 9-10 inches. had to cut up two large branches that were over the syrup trails. worked past dark then down to the cabin to get the wood stove going and supper. Sat morn my son and friend John came, we tapped the top hill 235 trees. took 5 hours then they rolled the main line down the hill to the big tank by sugar house. next supper and relax. Sunday the 28th we tapped our 17 hillside trees with tubing, needed to fix some squirrel damage,then they cleaned the flu pan bottom, we call it the Big Dirty.The guys went home and I stayed to clean the sugar house, pile more snow around tanks. we have been disturbed by some animals living under the cabin, their hissing and scratching on and off all night long. still have a lot of winter birds around. The trees were running on sat but not on sun except the tubing was running strong right away. Could be a short season with above normal temp forecast for March. God Bless.

Hi everyone,
Finally made it over to our land in Vernon county and tapped about 20 trees on Saturday March 6th. All running moderate to crazy fast. I know we have a warm spell coming up but expect to have a lot of sap by Tuesday that I'll shore up w/sap ice in barrels and will do first boil on Saturday March 13th. Last year I was so worried about the COLD weather that I was keeping the sap tote in the heated outhouse. Yes, The Annex :). Hopefully won't have to do that this year! Keep posting and look forward to more chatter soon.

Hey Lulugrein,
Was wondering when you were going to check in. Saturday was a good day to be in the woods. Too nice to be chained to a fire actually. Consequently I sit here this afternoon watching the sun move across the sky as I boil away Friday and Saturday. I see a few days off in the near future so I will work until done tonight. Looking forward to your reports.

Well I am back from 4 days in the bush, arrived Friday March 5th spent 5.5 hrs gathering sap. Got 350 gallons. still used the snowmobile but some spots up top were snow free , was a bit concerned if I spin out on leaves with 65 gal sap in the tank then what. worked till 7pm needed to start the cabin wood stove and a late supper. Sat the 6th my son and I cooked all day until 5pm then went up top using the 4 wheeler and tank trailer. the snow was soft now from the warm day but she clawed her way up the ridge road. those tire chains payed for themselves on that run. We gathered 200 gallons for the next cook. 8pm cabin. Sun started cooking at 8am till 4pm. was a mild day had one scare my son just left for home and I would finish cooking when I ran out of sap with a hot fire yet had to shovel the wood out of the fire box, add a little water to the flu pan all good. Cool down clean up. then our tubing tank was not holding sap dug it out from the snow piled on it and found when I put the tape on the plug threads

Hi Folks - Tom & Sophie the Dog, a few friends and kids occassionally,....tapped our usual 25 by La Farge,...ran crazy last week like everyone else, so I took off work to boil what I thought would be a record,....no such luck. Only about 25-30 gal. Trees didn't restart until about Saturday noon,.now slow but all steady. Amish up on Cty D said all their trees stopped about Tuesday - but now restarting.
So, I learned my lesson in 2019, no more "farmer-carrying" 20-30 buckets down 1/4 mile from the ridge. Have a 100 gal tank up top and tubing all the way down to the pan,....but only 35 gals boiled this weekend. Hoping to fill that tank on Friday.
Anyway, 4 months of sitting on the couch and watching football and now "Alone" (TV series), I can now grunt up and down the ravines getting pails to the field edge for pickup. Ooof-da.
Good luck!
Tom

Hi Tom I can relate to that grunt up down and over the hillsides. my heart gets a year older just like my joints.

Well hear is my 4 day report, Arrived 9 am Fri March 12th, could not believe it the snow that was still deep on the 8th is gone. no run off just gone. Also noticed Red Winged black birds are back, went and gathered about 60 gallons of sap some too stained so that hit the ground. Sat 13th my son and I cooked from 8:30 to 4:00 made 7 gallons of medium syrup. then gathered again till 6:00 some clean up and 7:00 supper. Sunday March 14th started to cook at 7;30 TO 3:30 made 7 more gallons of dark amber syrup. My son headed for home and I was able to scrape up the snow along the sugar house and took it up top for my tanks.Was glad to be able to replenish them. Then more clean up and 8:30 supper. the wind sure turned the trees off. plus mild nights have all but killed things. usually have a huge run by now where finding storage is a problem. Monday March 15th did not gather the weather was iffy snow in forecast, did cut a large poplar tree by the cabin, it was half dead and worried me when sleeping in there. but that went very well , ever watch tree cutting on You Tube? saw deer tracks no deer, lots of geese in the marsh sand hills also no peepers yet, so that is good. Lots of talking coyotes at night. God Bless.

Hi all. I think it is my north facing slope that is saving me. It puts me a week behind in spring arrival.. We tapped 3/6 and on 3/9 gathered about 60 gallons from 19 trees. Then things shut down like it did for you between 3/9 and 3/12. Then most were back to crazy fast and with additional trees tapped on 3/13 we had a total of about 140 gallons to boil down over Saturday-Sunday. Today, 4 inches of new snow coming down as we finished inside. Really beautiful around the cabin and in the valley.. 35 birds at the feeders at any given time.

One thing i am puzzled about....I only got 2.5 gallons of syrup from that 140 gal of 2%sap and am wondering if you have any thoughts on that. Using rule of 86 i should have gotten at least 3 gallons. I know you lose a little in the orlon filter and I do tend to take the phrase "top it off" pretty seriously when im bottling but still should have more. I confess for my whole crew that two rounds of maple old fashions taken from near syrup put a little dent in the final product but,, again,, not enough to explain the end ratio. Any comments welcome. I am counting on 2 more weekends of boiling and with new monovision contacts I can no longer see the buds so am going to assume they're not there😉.

Hi Everyone - similar to Lulu's question, I'm interested in some rough numbers (nothing precise - back of the envelope will do). How many taps do you have, and how many gallons of sap did you get/or do you normally get, and how many finished gallons of syrup? I tap 32 trees, with 35 taps (two are huge and I have 2 and 3 taps on those). I figured I got 120 gallons of sap so far,....not done finishing in the kitchen yet. I'm amazed at the variation between sugar bushes (the ridge vs. the hollow) each year as well as the variation between trees in a bush. Now a few buckets tipped over, at some point, so my operation is a weekend hillbilly sort of thing, but I'm addicted and my family figures there are worse things to occupy my time and energy. I'm grateful to return home on Sunday evenings and walk on endless level ground,.....for a day or two.
Tom

My report for 4 days, Friday March 19th sunny 45 degrees a nice day going. When I arrived figured to check the taps up top to see when to gather for Saturday. Was planning to install a solar panel I got because my cabin is totally off grid. Well to my surprise most buckets were full, took me 7.5 hrs to gather. had 560 gal of sap.Funny thing on the way back down I found 5 deer in a panic all split in every direction then circled back to find each other. Saturday March 20th my son and I cooked from 8am to 8pm made 10.5 gal syrup another late supper and bunk. Sunday March 21st gathered the tubing tank it was overflowing so total sap to cook on sun was 300 gal. Made 7.5 gal syrup. cool down clean up 8:30 supper.the peepers were peeping sun night. Did get up top to gather on Sunday, my son and a friend ran the sugar house, I did get 140 more gallons and put in the top tanks still have snow along them with the white tarps but I did a stupid mistake while gathering when my 65 gal tank was full I forgot to bring up a transfer hose with me ,so had to climb down the hill, followed the main line down and climbed back up. Thats like 800 feet of strait up sure got the old ticker going. trees are done up top tubing on hillside still going strong so hope to get one more day . My buckets are getting moldy and moths are bad did not see bud brake though.have 230 taps on buckets 17 on tubing. been averaging 38 gal sap per 1 gal syrup. I take off the evaporator at 30 Baume so not finished syrup I do that at home before bottling God Bless

March 23rd...I am caught up. I can respond to threads. First of all I need the recipe for maple old fashions. I will be looking for that online. I also monitor my sugar content with each collection. Yup, I also run a hillbilly operation (no offense to hillbillies). I have a personal relationship with a few of my trees. Some always are low production, some on the edge of a rock outcropping are always high. One has a spring running from underneath it yearlong. Very interesting. I have never taken my hydrometer with me to get a reading from some of my trees. I figure it would be broke before I got back to my base camp. This year I could not get a reading over 2.5 per cent but still got good final results in my 6 final "finishes." My last batch of the season which was sap from Saturday until noon Sunday when we pulled taps, began with 35 gallons of sap and we got close to a gallon of syrup (7 pints). Go figure.

I also believe the location of the trees this year was more relevant this year than some. Trees further down my hillside gave more than those right up on top that probably suffered with all those warm sunny days. Reading about 800 feet of straight up puts a smile on my face because those trees of mine located down the hills made me walk this year back up with full buckets. Not complaining but I haven't forgotten that the first part of my season was trailblazing with snowshoes. And there were times I was pausing way too often to catch my breath. Sunday evening we finished for the day at around 8:30 p.m. and as we walked from the sugar shack up (why is everything located up) to the house we also heard peepers in the pond. Spring is here.

To help you spend a few more hours at your computer, check out Backyard Maple Syrup Maker on facebook. My wife found it and we laugh at pictures of burned pans, funny stories, and responses to questions that are asked. It is very family friendly. Some good ideas are also offered, things I will try next year. Best regards to all of you in Vernon County.

4 more days in the sugar bush, arrived Friday March 26th did not have to gather had 140 gallons in storage so I spent the afternoon hooking up a solar panel and controller that went well so now we have power with a battery and inverter in the cabin. Saturday my son and I cooked that sap plus 70 gal from the tubing tank.finished at 3:00 he went home I did clean up again.there was a wet rain and drizzle all day. Sunday March 28th I started at 9;00 to pull taps, scrub mold from the buckets and stack. Made 4 trips down to the pick up with all the buckets. Boy the strong north west winds all day beat me up, could not wait to get in the cabin start a fire and warm up, by then it was 6:30. Monday March 29th I rolled up the main line then loaded the buckets in the pickup and headed home.that truck was so packed with buckets, lids, boots, food, cooler but made it home without losing any thing. Strong south winds made travel challenging. next weekend will be my final clean up. God Bless.

Well this is my last post for this season, Went over to our land Friday April 2nd arrived 11:00 took things to the cabin and 40 gal of water to the sugar house. went to the tubing tank it had 70 gal sap but opened the plug to drain it out. then took it down to the sugar house to clean it along with 4 other tanks. That took care of Friday. Saturday April 3rd friend John came to work on his deer stand so I cut wood and made brush piles all day. on the way up we saw 4 deer real close to us they dont even care when your on a atv but boy try walking with a gun once. Sunday April 4th I pulled the tubing taps and flushed the lines with a bleach and water mixture. then a fresh water chaser.Stacked the tanks inside and hauled 4 loads of wood down to pile up for splitting. Monday April 5th packed up the pick up with water buckets my finish pan boots had a full load. Been lots of geese sand hill cranes in the marsh. Did notice I have not heard turkeys gobbling this spring hope the large population of coyotes isnt killing them. Have a great summer God Bless.

Hi everyone hope you all are well, been over at our sugar bush a few times lately. have tanks in place covered with snow, buckets up top and covered.waiting for a normal warm up, our plan was Feb 26th-27th to tap but still looks cold. we will see. Yesterday afternoon about 5pm I was cutting some tree tops from a downed tree when a loud crack of thunder then a big downpour of sleet - snow with huge wind gusts.Wow turned out a snow squall warning was posted. I grabbed the snowmobile went back to the cabin for cover. about then a big tree fell up in the woods. glad it was not by me. Its been a cold dry winter in Vernon county, there is 8 inches of snow in the valley 6 inches up top. I live in Lodi, the last time I shoveled snow was on January 24th. Hope you ALL have a safe and fun season. God Bless

Good first report SM. You are ahead of me. Heading out to the woods later this morning with supplies. I will probably tap a few sample trees but definitely want to be ready for the weekend. I am hoping by Monday I am in the flow. Forecast looks good. Noticed a report on the Iowa board some trees are getting close in Clayton County right across the river from me. The only thing I have done is have plowed trails out to the woods and that wasn't bad because as you mention, the snow just isn't that deep. I got the thunder and snow pellet storm yesterday that you witnessed last week. Still not complaining, received a thin layer of snow and a layer of ice which will be gone on the first warm day. God bless your season as well. Don't want to hear reports of twisted ankles or spilled sap.

Thanks Irish Ridge, at my last posting accuweather had it still cold for the 26th and 27th but now the forecast temps have gone up so think its a go for this weekend.we still have to get the main line down the hillside and do the Big Dirty. thats bringing the flu pan outside lay it on its side and use a flu brush to get last seasons soot out from between each flu.One thing for sure you do not want to be down wind on that job. keep us up to date on your season. God Bless.

Back from the sugar bush ,we tapped the 235 bucket taps up top yesterday. The snow was solid could mostly walk on top. had a quiet night and today Sunday we did 17 on tubing, had to fix squirrel damage but got thru that and then the Big Dirty. what a dirty job.weather was nice nice both days. Did not have any problems getting up the ridge road, most seasons that can be a real problem. But that could change with a big storm. no deer seen, saw tracks though

Well back from a 3 day stay, arrived on Friday morn March 4th after getting all my needs to the cabin, went back to the sugar house to get my 4 wheeler and gathering tank. Went up top expecting a few hundred gallons and nothing. It was like every tree was wearing a Depend underwear, so plans changed I worked on some future fire wood. after some rain Friday night,Saturday morning I went up top to get 2 widow maker trees down, used a 30 ft tow strap and come along had to pull one 35ft till it came down. Saturday afternoon the rain and thunder came in so good time to give the sugar house a good cleaning.storms in the eve. Sunday morn I gathered 80 gal sap and put in a top tank. clean up pack up head home.Saw 1 squirrel heard sand hill cranes, geese,. and the always present owl. Now with the super cold forecast should have skipped the gather cant have the sap freeze in the tank. Boy with these gas prices it costs 40 bucks round trip OUCH.

Just heard the snowplow go by so I figured it was time to get up and read your report. Kind of figured it would mirror my results. A few weeks ago I thought we would be in the middle of a good run. I am just going to accept what comes my way. That rain didn't soak in by me. But it sure took out my gravel drive. Twice it came down super hard and fast. Now I have the chore of fixing ruts when the snow melts. I am waiting to hear how you make out with the frozen sap in the tank. Nice report.

Tapped 23 trees on March 3rd in anticipation of good temps. That didn't happen. About 10 gallons so far. All I want to do in March is be completely absorbed in sugaring. Oh well. Next week looks great and will probably be inundated with sap. Bring it on!!

Tapped 30 trees on the 1st because the forecast looked great. A week and a half later I have 8 gallons of sap. Looking good for my area (north of La Crosse) early next week if the forecast holds.

Hi all here is an update on 80 frozen gallons of sap, well thankfully I made the decision on Wednesday to dump it out. As it was when I opened the valve it was frozen. had to pound a rod thru the ice to get it to drain.I tested it it was only one and a half percent sugar. so Thursday morn did more sugar bush trimming and back home. More gasoline burnt with no gain. Irish Ridge that rain had our valley ditch running fast. we have had that land for 25 years and never seen water run thru there. there have been flash floods and other floods but was never there too see it.Saw my first Robin in Lodi this Thursday, my son heard red winged black birds today.The up coming week looks warm but warm nights may mess it up, we will see. God Bless.

3/16/22: A warm day but maybe just right for our north facing slope. Temp was down to 27 degrees Tuesday evening and sap was really flowing today. Collected about 60 gallons over past 2 days from 23 trees. Happy with that and expect a bit more over the weekend. We plan to boil Friday/Saturday when help arrives. Should be a really nice day for boiling out in the fresh air on Saturday. Season is kicking into high gear and I'm not sure what I was so worried about last week! Good luck everyone!

Thanks for the update Lulugrein, I am back from a one night stay at the bush. I gathered 440 gal sap from 235 trees, and the 17 on tubing had 50 gal in the tank. But WOW the mud was relentless, the 4 wheeler and atv trailer with 65 gal of sap in it made some serious ruts in the woods. they filled in with water the worst I have ever seen.But on the plus side we have sap to cook Saturday. Today Thursday the 17th the trees were dry, needing cold temps to keep going. Saw a number of sandhills flying up and down the west branch Kickapoo river what a sound they make. got the bluebird houses ready for vacancy. Keep posting. God Bless.

Just back from a 3 night stay at the sugar bush, Friday March 18th was rainy windy wet glad to have full rain gear, got all the float boxes connected wood inside for Sat AM first boiling. Saturday 19th we started at 8:30 cooked 325 gal sap syrup was darker then a normal first boil but had a great taste. supper at 8pm Sunday 20th up at 6:30 have 180 gal sap to cook.was 25 degrees clear calm,was nice too have the mud frozen for a little while any ways. finished at 2PM so made a total of 13 gal dark robust grade syrup. Had the always fun clean up, then went up top to check buckets,most had sap so plan on Monday AM gather. Monday 21st up at 6;30 mostly cloudy 34 degrees started gathering at 7:45 finished at noon have about 200 gal in storage tanks. Both still have covered snow around them. headed home 1:30pm and its 72 degrees just nuts . going to stay with it as long as I can, but sure is discouraging. Heard a number of coyote each night, the always present owls. lots of winter birds, robins all over the place. a rooster pheasant in the marsh. God Bless.

Very similar situation over by us... from coyotes howling to the little bit of joy you feel when you wake up to the ground crunching under your feet. That means its going to be a good day! We boiled down about 50 gallons that came out of the RO at about 4.8%. Many trees in the range of 2.5% sugar content. Was a super day for boiling on Saturday. Finished it all in the cabin Sunday morning. Nice color deeper than previous years' early boils. Had a great time showing newbie sapsuckers how it all works. Hope we have another good run starting ?Thursday. Have fun slip sliding around in the woods!