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Thread: Red Roof Maples 2019

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Dec 2002
    Location
    Rock Creek, NC
    Posts
    5,807

    Default Red Roof Maples 2019

    2019 is here and it's almost time to tap. Where did the time go? 2018 was a year of ups and downs.

    The downer was starting with the knowledge that something had been missed when I had prostate surgery in 2017. The next steps to get rid of that were hormone and radiation treatments. I got the hormone treatment on January 2nd to start the new year and had the radiation treatments, 39 of them, starting on March 27th and ending on May 21st. The results of the treatments wouldn't be fully known until after the hormone treatment had worn off. I got the first good news in September and then got the confirmation that the cancer was gone on December 21st.

    Fortunately there were more uppers than downers. I made more syrup in 2018 than I did in 2017 even though the season never seemed to take off. My son made a surprise trip up from NC for Maple Weekend which made my wife and I very happy. Our youngest daughter who also lives in NC got married in September, bought a house and her and my new son in law are planning to start a family. I also found out on Christmas Day that my step granddaughter is going to have a baby in July. I'm going to be a great grandfather! My wife says that we are too young for this but I say "bring it on". It was a good Christmas for me and my family.

    I go into 2019 optimistic that it's going to be a better year than the last two were.

    Happy New Year!
    Russ

    "Red Roof Maples" Where the term "boiling soda" was first introduced to the maple world!

    1930 Ford Model AA Doodlebug tractor
    A couple of Honda 4 wheelers
    Four chainsaws and no chickens!

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Mar 2012
    Location
    Walpole, NH
    Posts
    1,363

    Default

    Lots of great news there Russ. Happy New Year and hopefully we have a great sugar season this year.
    Sugaring for 45+ years
    New Sugarhouse 14'x32'
    New to Me Algier 2'x8' wood fired evaporator
    2022 added a used RB25 RO Bucket
    250 mostly Sugar Maples, 15% Soft Maples. Currently,(110on 3/16" and 125 on Shurflo 4008 vacuum, 15 gravity), (16,000 before being disabled)
    1947 Farmall H and Wagon with gathering tank
    2012 Kubota with forks to move wood around

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Location
    Oneida NY
    Posts
    11,547

    Default

    This is getting to be like a bad habit. (my posts following yours) I also had up's and downs in 2018. I started to prepare for the season just after Christmas 2017, but then in mid Jan I got diverticulitis. That actually proved to be lucky. When the ER did a Cat Scan to verify it, they also found a "lesion" on my left kidney. Tests then proved that to be cancer. I then had to hold off to tap until I got a surgery date. When surgery was set for April 18, I only tapped 225 taps around my sugarhouse. On 26-27" vacuum and the long season I got my best per tap season. 119 gal on those 225 taps, or .53 gpt, my previous best was just over .4 gpt.
    Then my 4/18/18 kidney surgery, when robotically they removed 15% of my left kidney was successful. I then could not work for 6 weeks which put me far behind. When I was finally given permission to work I was told to not be on my feet more than 2 hrs at a time and then set down, feet up, for at least 30 minutes. That was because of blood clotting issues. My work speed was far slower most if not the rest of the year. In the middle of all that my grandson who had worked with me from the time he was 7, until he graduated college, in both maple and in my blueberries, went into the Navy. My youngest daughter and son in law took over the blueberries to decide if they wanted to take them over permanently. They have not officially decided yet, but they did hire my brother to cut off 4 of the densest rows at about 6-8" high (this is an approved way to renovate) in late November, after the bushes had gone dormant.
    In early Nov I had a follow-up Cat scan and was declared cancer free.
    So it was all ups and downs, but in the end all worked out OK. Retail sales were by far my best ever, luckily I had some carry over inventory from 2017. I now only have 2 barrels of dark, of which 10 gal is going into a bourbon barrel to start aging soon, likely next week. The rest will be packed for retail sales, will likely last til the '19 season starts.
    All's well that ends well.
    Dave Klish, I recently ordered a 2x6 wood fired evaporator from A&A Sheet Metal which I will be converting to oil fired
    Now have solar, 2x6 finish pan, 5 bank 7x7 filter press, large water jacketed bottler, and tankless water heater.
    Recently bought another Gingerich RO, this one was a 125, but a second membrane was added thus is a 250, like I had.
    After running a 2x3, a 2x6, 3x8 tapping from 79 taps up to 1320 all woodfired, now I'm going to a 2x6 oil fired and a 200-425 taps.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Mar 2013
    Location
    Merrimack, NH
    Posts
    593

    Default

    Good luck on your upcoming season and your growing family!! I hope your health continues to improve as well.
    2022 4x40" RO, Welch 1397 Vac Pump, 3 Guzzler Pumps, Lapierre Releaser, 1100 taps
    2021 Twin Baby Boys, Close to 650 taps
    2020 Upgraded RO to 2 post and 7GBS Pump. 265 taps
    2019 Smoky Lake 2x6 raised flue, Autodraw system, Maple Jet Filter Press, a beautiful new bride to be my sugaring partner :-)
    2017 Expanded Sugar Shack, new 2x6 with float box, NEXTgen Maple RO, 250+ taps, still on sap sacks
    2016 Sugar Shack, 2x6 evaporator, 160 taps, all on Sap Sacks
    2014 110 taps
    2013 35 taps

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Jan 2012
    Location
    Oxford, Maine
    Posts
    193

    Default

    Here's to a healthy and productive 2019. Good luck to all

    2020: 317 taps, 2021: 360, 2022: 350 2023: 300, 2024: 230 (getting smarter)
    Drop lines and hanging buckets, all hand lugged
    2 X 6 raised flue evaporator
    7in. Filter press
    17 HP Kubota tractor
    12 X 16' sugar shack
    Sugar and red maples

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Mar 2008
    Location
    Barrington, NH
    Posts
    2,762

    Default

    Russ, Sorry to hear about your downs, and I’m glad to hear you’re on the other side of it. Focusing on ups is what gets us through the downs in life. Stay positive. Best of luck to you in 2019.

    Now, to focus on the important things in life…maple It’s too early to be starting a 2019 maple season thread…I’m not ready! Looking forward to hearing about your sucking, squeezing, and boiling sodas this coming season!

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Mar 2005
    Location
    Cornish,NH
    Posts
    712

    Default

    Glad to hear all is well Russ and Flats ! I spent my 2018 maple season in my recliner after open heart surgery on March 27th, same day as your treatment Russ. Had to spend maple weekend looking out the window as customers came and went while family ran the show .My son and son in law do all the heavy lifting now a days anyways. First maple season I have missed in 34 years ! But all is well now and getting ready for the 2019 season.
    Stay well everyone . Also happy New Year!s
    3x10 Dallalre, oil fired, Stainless steel.
    Steam hoods front and rear with preheater.
    1500 taps on vac, right to sugar house.
    900 on Gravity
    New Busch 3 Phase Vacuum. (2010)
    Lapierre 600 Turbo with 2 - 8" posts
    36 years of MAPLE ENJOYMENT!!
    https://www.facebook.com/pages/Hills...93710737313171

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Dec 2002
    Location
    Rock Creek, NC
    Posts
    5,807

    Default

    This year has started off great so far. The boss called me into his office on my birthday and I got an unexpected pay raise. That evening my wife surprised me by renewing the registration for my truck for me. Happy Birthday to me!

    I had originally planned to go to Bascom's today but postponed that until next Saturday. I wanted to get into the woods and finish the install on a mainline that I replaced before the big snow storm tomorrow. Things went well and I got that finished before lunch. At the end of last season the recirculation pump on my RO started squealing and the inside flapper on my releaser broke. I got the parts to fix those last week and got that done this afternoon. There's not much left on my things to get done before I tap list.

    I hope everyone else is doing well too.
    Russ

    "Red Roof Maples" Where the term "boiling soda" was first introduced to the maple world!

    1930 Ford Model AA Doodlebug tractor
    A couple of Honda 4 wheelers
    Four chainsaws and no chickens!

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Dec 2002
    Location
    Rock Creek, NC
    Posts
    5,807

    Default

    I went to Bascom's this morning as planned and got there at the right time. I was able to back up to the dock and unload my syrup without waiting. When the dude was done with me there were three other people waiting to sell their syrup. The line was even bigger when I came out of the store after buying my supplies.

    I wanted to buy a case of association jugs but they didn't have any. They said that they were printed wrong and they had to send them all back. The replacements won't be ready until the end of February or early March. I was able to get them this afternoon at Sunnyside.
    Russ

    "Red Roof Maples" Where the term "boiling soda" was first introduced to the maple world!

    1930 Ford Model AA Doodlebug tractor
    A couple of Honda 4 wheelers
    Four chainsaws and no chickens!

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Mar 2003
    Location
    colrain,ma
    Posts
    218

    Default

    Russ;was there this morning as well, went with some friends and helped them load up there new 6x10 Max pan and 3-2x6 cross flow pans and a bunch of supplies.Sun was nice but the breeze was cold strapping everything down up on their hill.Was busy with everyone loading up on supplies.Got the flue pan on the arch when we got back...heavy. Good luck with this season!

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