This was certainly a year for building character – the hard way….this was it. All we can do is continue getting up every morning and put one foot in front of the other. Life on the farm continues on – which in it’s own way is comforting even if a little hard sometimes.
Hubby (Matt) is a Nurse Practitioner that works at the local Emergency Room – I don’t need to say more except how grateful I am that he and the rest of the team are as dedicated and caring as they are. The days he could spend at the sugarhouse last spring were his way of refreshing himself. The fact that he’s an old hand at pumps and moving liquids from tank to tank made life much easier for us. (He’s a retired submariner that excelled at propulsion). He’s also moved the reverse osmosis R.O.) rinse tank from the main part of the sugarhouse into the tank room – within the next year or so we’ll move the R.O. itself into the tank room. We also had issues with our old back pans on the sugaring arch so we bought a new deeper flue pan ( more surface area to boil). Lot’s of replumbing required that he’s made sure is already done in preparation for the next season.
What we didn’t have this year was a great year of making syrup – it was good, but not great. The previous year we had drought conditions into the fall – this led to darker colors in our syrup. The snow was unforgiving this spring and some of the deepest I have ever tapped in. I could only cover ground at about a 1/3 of the rate that I normally can. On a positive note – I was in great shape when it was done! This year looks to be better – we had plenty of rain and the water tables were filled. I have already replaced about half of the spouts and checked half the lines for damage. We replace the spouts to eliminate any bacteria growth that can occur off season. We always are checking for damage from squirrels, coyotes and especially wind. And let me tell you – we’ve had some serious wind lately so I’m almost nervous to check out the new damage.
We enjoyed hosting guest from across the country at our Bliss campsite (including an unknown relative!) and Woodsman’s Cabin. We love sharing the farm; showing the bird habitat, talking about our involvement with Cold Hollow to Canada and explaining how Maple Syrup is made! We book through Hipcamp and Air BnB if you’re planning a visit to Vermont!
This was the first year of our commitment to the Cold Hollow Carbon Offset Program. We joined together with other landowners in the Cold Hollow region to create a landbase to absorb carbon. We are promising to retain and increase the carbon offset capacity of our land.
We have begun work on a second bird habitat – while it may seem counter intuitive – we are cutting trees in a 2 acre section – but the remaining trees with be released and grow more rapidly. We will also be planting oaks to increase the natural diversity of the forest. Along the edges of the habitat we will add plants and shrubs that give quality habitat to birds. The original bird habitat is entering year 4 – the trees that we retained have grown, the woody debris we left in piles has created fantastic cover for birds and mammals such as snow shoe hare. I have seen an increase in their population which in turn will help attract red fox, bobcat (maybe even a lynx!) and coyotes.
Ups and downs – pandemic and all – we’ve made it through. We’ll be taking a few days off before we start tapping in January to relax and renew (or at least catch up on the housework and get the barn clean! But time for an extra nap or two!!)
2022 we have high hopes of adding a Buttermilk Pancake/ Waffle Mix, a baked bean kit, and Maple Spice Rubs!
Wishing you all a Happy Healthy New Year!
