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Nearing the end of the 2017 season!

by Don 3/29/2017 10:03:00 AM

Our unusual weather conditions surprised and intrigued meteorologists and naturalists alike during March. The ice on Whaletail Lake went out March 5th, the earliest we ever recorded. Five days later the lake froze again when Arctic weather descended upon us. The sap flow ceased and didn't restart for 10 days! The lake ice vanished for the second (and final!) time today. We make no predictions about the lake or the weather.

With the recent warmup, the trees responded with sap flows of over 2 gallons per tap on the last two "runs". We are on pace for a new record of maple syrup production. Our sap remains at 2.5% sugar, which is average for our sugarbush.  This translates to 34 gallons of sap to make one gallon of maple syrup. The quality of the finished syrup has been outstanding, with rich amber color and unmistakeable smooth maple flavor that lingers on the palate (if you let it linger!)

Our next update will be with a final total - stay tuned!