maple syrup – The Outdoors Guy

February 28, 2018

Maple Syrup time is here!

Image result for maple syrup sugar shack

What a great looking tree…I’d tap that! Heyohh!!

Its almost spring and maple syrup season is here, weather permitting!

I heard from my pal Ian McDonald who was already tapping last weekend in the Almonte area of the Ottawa Valley, and my high school buddy; Scott Lees just started-up his 25-year maple syrup operation in the Lachute, QC area.

My daughter Grace and I do a little tapping also, we produced 1-2 litres of syrup last spring from just a handful of trees. Not a ton for sure, but still fun.

Ahhhh, there is nothing quite like maple syrup production, and I have spent more years than I can recall with my Dad working the sugar bush at the Arundel Natural Science School. Times I will never forget..not easy work, mind you, but extremely rewarding and tasty.

What a blast it was – laying lines, repairing breaks, tapping, watching the evaporator, taking-off the syrup and running the old creaky canner. The entire operation is a blast right down to the moment when that batch of syrup is ready to harvest…man, it tastes awesome when its warm, doesn’t it?

There is a true science involved in any maple syrup operation; from understanding maple sap’s sugar content at various times of the season, knowing the colour, taste and density of different syrup grades, to understanding basic things such as building (and maintaining) the perfect fire to keep your evaporator going strong. Its not as easy as its sounds.

Then there’s moment when the ‘webbing starts’ at precisely 7 degrees above boiling point of water, and your pure maple syrup is ripe for the picking (or pouring I should say)

Old school syrup producers have never used modern gauges and I’m sure never worried about it either. They can read more in the webbing off their ladle than a thousand sophisticated gauges could predict..now that is science in itself.

The final product, well, it is a thing of beauty and there is really nothing in the world that compares to the taste of fresh maple syrup, or taffy on snow. Canada produces over 90% of the WORLD’S supply of maple syrup(majority produced in QC and eastern ON) – a statistic we should be extremely proud of.

Maple syrup production is a big part of our heritage just like hunting, fishing or the fur industry, never forget that.

So, get out there and enjoy some pure Canadian goodness!! The forecast looks good for sap to run over the next few days and lets hope favorable temperatures remain long enough for another great season! (Last spring, from what I heard, was a very good syrup season)

Outdoorsguy

February 25, 2017

Maple syrup season is upon us!

Image result for maple syrup sugar shack

Tapping and maple syrup season is here, based on weather at least!

I heard from my pal “imacdon” who was already tapping last weekend, and I’ll be heading out to my garage shortly to gather the spouts and pails for our own little operation.

My daughter Grace and I produced a whopping 1 litre of syrup last spring from just two trees. Not a ton but still fun.

There is a true science involved in any maple syrup operation; from understanding maple sap’s sugar content at various times of the season, knowing the colour, taste and density of different syrup grades, to understanding basic things such as building (and maintaining) the perfect fire to keep your evaporator going strong. Its not as easy as its sounds.

Then there’s moment when the ‘webbing starts’ at precisely 7 degrees above boiling point of water, and your pure maple syrup is ripe for the picking (or pouring I should say)

Maple syrup production is a big part of our heritage just like hunting, fishing or the fur industry.

Now, out to my garage I go to gather some equipment..and then wake my daughter up!

Outdoorsguy

March 8, 2016

Maple Syrup season, a sure sign of spring!

I have spent more years than I can recall working the sugar bush, times etched clearly in my memory..not easy work, mind you, but extremely rewarding and downright tasty!

Running the sap lines, repairing breaks, tapping, watching the evaporator, taking-off syrup and running the old creaky canner. The whole operation was a hoot right down to the moment when that first batch of syrup comes off…man, it tastes the best when its warm!

There is a real science involved in any maple syrup operation from understanding the sap’s sugar content at various times of the year, knowing the colour, taste and density of different grades of syrup, to skills like understanding how to build and maintain the perfect fire to keep your evaporator going steady.

The final product is a thing of beauty and there is really nothing in the world that compares to the taste of fresh maple syrup or taffy on snow.

Now get out there and enjoy some pure Canadian goodness!!

The forecast looks good for sap to run over the next week or so and lets hope favorable temperatures remain long enough for a great season!

Outdoorsguy

March 9, 2015

Maple syrup time is near!

There is nothing quite like the maple syrup time of year, and I have spent more years than I can recall working the sugar bush. Times I will never forget..not easy work, but extremely rewarding and downright tasty!

What a blast it was – running lines, repairing breaks, tapping, watching the evaporator, taking-off the syrup and running the old creaky canner. The whole operation is a hoot right down to the moment when that first batch of syrup comes off…man, it tastes awesome when its warm.

Its not as easy as its sounds!

The final product is a thing of beauty and there is really nothing in the world that compares to the taste of fresh maple syrup, or taffy on snow.

Now get out there and enjoy some pure Canadian goodness!!

The forecast looks good for sap to run over the next few days and lets hope favorable temperatures remain long enough for a great season!

Outdoorsguy

March 8, 2014

Maple syrup on the way!

There is nothing quite like the maple syrup time of year, and I have spent more years than I can recall working the sugar bush. Times I will never forget..not easy work, mind you, but extremely rewarding and tasty!

There is a certain science involved in any maple syrup operation; from understanding the sap’s sugar content at various times of the year, knowing the colour, taste and density of different grades of syrup, to skills like understanding how to build and maintain the perfect fire to keep your evaporator going steady. Its not as easy as its sounds!

Then there’s moment when the ‘webbing starts’ at precisely 7 degrees above boiling point of water, and your pure maple syrup is ripe for the picking, or pouring I should say.

The final product, well, it is a thing of beauty and there is really nothing in the world that compares to the taste of fresh maple syrup, or taffy on snow.

Canada produces 90% of the world’s supply of maple syrup(majority from QC) – a statistic we should be extremely proud of. It is a big part of our heritage just like hunting, fishing or the fur industry.

Now get out there and enjoy some pure Canadian goodness!! The forecast looks good for sap to run over the next few days and lets hope favorable temperatures remain long enough for another great season!

I just heard from our pal Ian MacDonald who will be out in the sugar bush this week!

Outdoorsguy

March 21, 2013

Maple Syrup better late than never

I was speaking with my father yesterday- who lives the heart of sugar bush country – and it looks like syrup producers are poised and ready for take-off this weekend!

At long last!!

Ah, there is nothing like the maple syrup time of year, if you ask me, and I have spent more years than I can recall working the sugar bush. Times I will never forget..not easy work, I might add, but extremely rewarding!

What a blast it was – running lines, repairing breaks, tapping, watching the evaporator, taking the syrup off and even canning. The whole operation is a hoot right down to the moment when that first batch of syrup comes off…man it tastes great when its warm.

There is a definite science involved in any maple syrup operation; from understanding the sap’s sugar content at various times of the year, knowing the colour, taste and density of grade ‘A’ syrup, to skills like understanding how to build and maintain the perfect fire to keep your evaporator going steady.

Then there’s moment when the ‘webbing starts’ at precisely 7 degrees above boiling point of water, and your pure maple syrup is ripe for the picking, or pouring I should say.

The final product, well, it is a thing of beauty and there is really nothing in the world that compares to the taste of fresh maple syrup, or taffy on snow.

Canada produces 90% of the world’s supply of maple syrup(majority coming from QC) – a statistic we should be extremely proud of. It is a big part of our heritage just like hunting, fishing or the fur industry.

Now get out there and enjoy some pure Canadian goodness!! (The forecast this weekend looks like -3 to -5 at night with a daily high around 4 -5 degrees C, and all of next week looks the same.)

Outdoorsguy

April 8, 2011

Some springtime rantings

Since my posts have been few and far between these days, I thought I would spend a bit of time and put together a few thoughts of potential interest…

It is spring, I can tell now and it’s not just because of the weather. Yesterday morning, I heard was must surely have been the horniest Tom turkey ever. He was gobbling up a storm and strutting around the field like nobody’s business. Man, I pity the hens!

Now that I’m the proud holder of an official Ontario small-game license, I’ve been busy reading and studying what’s in season and what is not. One thing I couldn’t believe was that raccoon season is closed all summer? Also, did you know it was illegal to shoot a red squirrel with a small-game license? They are considered fur-bearers and are only to be trapped. I did not know that!

Another thing of interest is the latest issue of Bounder magazine – get yours fresh of the press!! The Spring issue of Bounder focuses on ‘Wheels’..be it two-wheeled vehicles or 4-wheeled.

Plus, there’s the usual articles of interest to most men (& women too) One-Minute Moore, Music, good food, Red Green, Papousak, Delmer & Cecil and of course my favourite the Outdoors Guy.

With spring trout season just about here, I’ve had my eye on the ice-out conditions in our region and things seem to be on track. One thing I also noticed at Petrie Island (and it bothered me), was that some nut had left their ice-fishing hut to flounder out on the ice.

I’m not sure how closely the MNR follows these things with the March 15 hut removal date seemingly important, from both a safety and environmental standpoint. I suppose that bay of the river will have some new ‘habitat’ this summer; once the hut breaks up and drops to the bottom!

I must say, I’m pleased these days to have two of my old whitetail friends stop by each evening for a nibble of food (and I don’t care who knows it) One is a brazen 3 year buck we call Garfield, and the other is a two year old we call Rainbow..ok, I know, but my daughter’s named them and I think its cute.

Anyone headed out after gobblers this spring; I invite you to drop me a line with your plans for the hunt. I’ll also have a bragging board set up for those successful hunters later on, so hold onto those photos.

Have a good one, and prey for a better ‘Round Two’ of the maple syrup season. Its the one time of year when Mother Nature really is in charge..and she can be a real ‘biatch’ sometimes!

Outdoorsguy