Tag Archives: Maine winter

When is the ice safe? Ice-walking in Acadia

  “When is the ice safe?” I am asked. There are plenty of answers to this, but the only right one is: “It depends.” Safe for a skater does not mean safe for a snowmobile. There is a generous amount of info out there on judging ice safety by its color, whether it is early […]

Maple syruping for beginners, Part 2: Tapping

After you get all your equipment together, it’s time to tap. (for equipment: http://mainemorsels.bangordailynews.com/2014/03/23/maine-morsels/maple-syruping-for-beginners/) Choose your trees Sugar maples have a higher sugar content than other maples, which means you get more syrup per gallon of sap. We have a few sugar maples, but use mostly red maples. The flavor is as deep and maply […]

Maple syruping for beginners

Like many hobbies, maple syruping can be done very simply and inexpensively, or you can have equipment lust. There are plenty of tempting syrup accessories out there, from felts and filters to stainless evaporators. We have upscaled with a handmade evaporator replacing the lobster pot, and felts replacing the cheesecloth, but backyard syruping is easy […]