WEATHER: Since the overnight thaw of March 16/17 the temps have stayed below or just at the freezing point. Several inches of snow fell over the weekend. According to TK the Weatherman who writes the weather blog for Jay Peak, Arctic front #18 will arrive this coming weekend. He has been counting since December 1st, 2025.
But yesterday and today, March 24-25 have felt more like sugaring weather. Yesterday was calm, sunny then cloudy, with a temp range of 22-34 degrees. Today began a bit warmer. It was cloudy then sunny then cloudy, with a chilly west wind. At this writing the forecast is for slightly above-freezing temps all night and I hear the vacuum pump releasing again and again: It’s the heartbeat of this sugaring operation.
HOW’S IT RUNNING? Chops calls it a gallop. Yesterday the sap trotted for a couple of hours later in the day. Today it’s running in earnest; we have a run on our hands. What a relief! Is the west wind making the difference? Yes, I think so.
The old adage comes to mind:
Wind from the north, sap flows forth.
Wind from the west, sap flows best.
Wind from the east, sap flows least.
Wind from the south, saps’a a drought.
BOILING STATUS: Tomorrow will be Day Eight. To date we have made about one-third of an average crop. This fact doesn’t mean much now, though it indicates a slow start. What matters is the count on the final day of boiling.
GEMS FROM THE INBOX:
Jenn Galliott (Crew Class of ’25) writes from her home in western Newfoundland:
As I sit and write this blog post, I sadly admit that I am physically absent for this year’s sap run.
I dream of coffee made from fresh sap, a hint of sweet flavor that isn’t achievable by just adding syrup.
I know that I would be in much better shape by now, snowshoeing through the tall maple trees checking the sap lines, or moving wood for the fire.
I would have the comfort of the seasonal routine, including cleaning the firebox and pans before the next boil, and the excitement of whether the sap will run or if it will finally freeze (giving everyone a chance to sleep).
I would have the comradery of everyone working together to achieve a common goal.
In my opinion, food tastes better shared with friends (especially after a long day in the sugar bush), and a cold beverage is always best standing over hot bubbling syrup pans… But if you don’t have access to either, maybe this cocktail in front of a wood stove might help.
So Cheers to the sap run, the boiling syrup, the hard workers and their crazy labor of love!
-Jenn
[Editor’s Note: Jenn says that she can’t make this cocktail at the moment because, due to retaliatory boycotts, bourbon is not available in Canada. I just learned that by law bourbon is an American product only. AC]
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One recent Sunday I recounted my ski adventure of the day to my neighbor Colleen. A few hours later I opened this surprise in my inbox. The “I” in the poem is your truly, Audrey the blog editor.
Fording the river
I went into the wet spring snow—
The snow that coats your skis and makes good snowmen and snow forts, ammunition for snow battles.
I broke trail through the wet spring snow—
A trail the groomer has forgotten, a narrow passage through new spruce, deep green spruce.
I stood at the edge of a river dolloped with wet spring snow—
A river of freshet that remembers the bridge that straddled it with its deep gulley walls, walls reaching skyward.
I looked to my skis in that wet spring snow—
Skis with no doubt, and sidestep by sidestep they strove for balance, one tip in the river and a tail wedged by a rock.
I went out into the wet spring snow to turn inward. I forsook groomed trails, I found the bridge that was, I forded the river:
I am made for breaking trail.
-Colleen McGovern
The Nebraska Knoll Blog 